wrest

1
as in to pry
to draw out by force or with effort the boy wrested the book out of his sister's hands

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2
as in to extort
to get (as money) by the use of force or threats vowed that the bully had wrested his lunch money from him for the last time

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3
as in to earn
to get with great difficulty farmers who were used to wresting a living from the harsh land

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4
5
as in to grab
to separate or remove by forceful pulling wrested open the stuck door of the cabinet

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Examples Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of wrest While sudden incidents wrest the plot in new directions, the film is driven less by perverse narrative trickery than by the arbitrary cruelty of fate or the volatility of human nature. Guy Lodge, Variety, 26 Sep. 2024 By this time Australia had wrested control of Bougainville from Berlin after the outbreak of the First World War. Sean Williams, Harper's Magazine, 23 Sep. 2024 The latter demand will almost certainly remain stalled in Congress unless Democrats wrest control of both chambers in the November election and retain control of the White House. Justin Jouvenal, Washington Post, 6 July 2024 Lebanon’s Army will have to try to wrest power from, and replace, Hezbollah. Robin Wright, The New Yorker, 28 Sep. 2024 See all Example Sentences for wrest 
Recent Examples of Synonyms for wrest
Verb
  • The former governor was convicted on corruption charges in 2011 for attempting to extort campaign donations from a children’s hospital and for attempting to sell former President Barack Obama’s U.S. Senate seat.
    Asher Notheis, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 25 Sep. 2024
  • That investigation began after Torres told police that a 21-year-old Chicago man continued to extort him — threatening to release nude photos and videos — if Torres failed to meet his financial demands.
    Devan Patel, The Mercury News, 6 Nov. 2024
Verb
  • Directed by Ridley Scott, the $250 million Gladiator sequel is the top pick for males, both younger and older, and earned a B CinemaScore.
    Pamela McClintock, The Hollywood Reporter, 23 Nov. 2024
  • Mike slowly starts to earn the respect of his much younger teammates, ultimately leading him on a journey to address his masculinity and resolve his generational trauma put upon by his father, while also addressing his strained relationship with his son.
    Matt Grobar, Deadline, 22 Nov. 2024
Verb
  • Brands began to pull together resources to support refugees.
    Stephan Rabimov, Forbes, 13 Feb. 2023
  • The 13-minute performance will likely call for a healthy dose of vibrant, colored lighting to pull it all together.
    Kelly Allen, House Beautiful, 10 Feb. 2023
Verb
  • At one point, the man allegedly told Combs to grab a white bird from a cage that the man had presumably brought with him.
    Cheyenne Roundtree, Rolling Stone, 18 Nov. 2024
  • After the tree lights up the night, the park will be open for visitors to check out the exhibits and grab some holiday treats.
    Anne Gelhaus, The Mercury News, 18 Nov. 2024
Verb
  • Key Ingredients: Niacinamide, salicylic acid, tea tree extract How to Use: Apply to clean, dry skin and leave on for at least six hours before carefully peeling off.
    Emily Orofino, Vogue, 21 Nov. 2024
  • Once the pine cones are collected, they're brought to a network of nurseries, where the seeds are extracted and grown into seedlings.
    Jonathan Vigliotti, CBS News, 20 Nov. 2024
Verb
  • Often the rookie spends several minutes adjusting their chair, finding the right eye relief, and remembering their shooting form before ever squeezing the trigger for that first dry fire.
    Natalie Krebs, Outdoor Life, 13 Nov. 2024
  • The investigation reveals a dismal picture of a company with a sales culture that depends on squeezing infirm and elderly patients and the government for every penny.
    Peter Elkind, ProPublica, 13 Nov. 2024
Verb
  • For these projects, companies have to obtain a hefty number of permits, slowing their ability to execute on these plans.
    Li Zhou, WIRED, 23 Nov. 2024
  • In documents obtained by AllHipHop, one of Diddy’s lawyers, Alexandra Shapiro, admitted that Combs used other inmates’ Phone Access Cards (PACs) to make calls, a violation of the rules laid out by the U.S. Department of Justice Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP).
    Jessica Bennett, VIBE.com, 22 Nov. 2024
Verb
  • In 1846, scientists had observed irregularities in Uranus’ orbit, as if an invisible counterweight were tugging on the planet from the far side.
    Shi En Kim, Smithsonian Magazine, 5 Nov. 2024
  • The Trump era has twisted and tugged at the county’s social fabric, so much so that the answers to basic questions about what is true and who can be trusted no longer appear certain.
    Clare Malone, The New Yorker, 31 Oct. 2024

Thesaurus Entries Near wrest

Cite this Entry

“Wrest.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wrest. Accessed 30 Nov. 2024.

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