monkey wrench
To apply a monkey wrench, e.g. to tighten or loosen nuts.
wrench
/ˈɹɛnt͡ʃ/
noun 5verb 5name 1
Collocations
5ADJ.
adjustable, all, careful, mean, useful
VERB + WRENCH
borrow, call, don't, grip, hand, monkey, need, pass
WRENCH + NOUN
ankle, bicycle, deliberations, others
PREP.
in, in, into, on, out, until, with
ADV.
commonly
Definitions
noun
1
A movement that twists or pulls violently; a tug.
With a wrench, which threw his victim back upon the bed as though hurled from a height, he turned and sprang at us.
2
An injury caused by a violent twisting or pulling of a limb; strain, sprain.
3
A trick or artifice.
4
Deceit; guile; treachery.
5
A turn at an acute angle.
verb
1
To pull or twist violently.
With a surge of adrenaline, she wrenched the car door off and pulled out the injured man.
2
To injure (a joint) by pulling or twisting.
Be careful not to wrench your ankle walking along those loose stones!
3
To distort the original meaning of; to misrepresent.
4
To rack with pain; to make hurt or distressed.
And what actinic, mind-wrenching form could the countermeme take? How could human hands assemble something so devastatingly powerful and hold it steady; what human mind could wield it without exploding from the inside out?
5
To deprive by means of a violent pull or twist.
name
1
A surname transferred from the nickname.
Thesaurus
Synonyms
noun — a hand tool that is used to hold or twist a nut or bolt
noun — a jerky pulling movement
verb — twist and compress, as if in pain or anguish
verb — twist or pull violently or suddenly, especially so as to rem
Antonyms
Idioms & Phrases
throw a monkey wrench into the works
Synonym of throw a spanner into the works.
throw a wrench in the works
Synonym of throw a spanner in the works.
throw a wrench in
To introduce a problem, dilemma or obstacle in; to complicate.
The pandemic is also weighing on preparations, with election administrations hyperaware that Covid cases could throw a wrench in their plans at the last minute.
throw a wrench in the gears
Synonym of throw a spanner in the works.
Example Bank
601
With a wrench, which threw his victim back upon the bed as though hurled from a height, he turned and sprang at us.
Wiktionary02
But weighing one thing with another he gave Britain for lost; but resolved to make his profit of this business of Britain, as a quarrel for war; and that of Naples, as a wrench and mean for peace
Wiktionary03
With a surge of adrenaline, she wrenched the car door off and pulled out the injured man.
Wiktionary04
Be careful not to wrench your ankle walking along those loose stones!
Wiktionary05
And what actinic, mind-wrenching form could the countermeme take? How could human hands assemble something so devastatingly powerful and hold it steady; what human mind could wield it without explodin
Wiktionary06
Hand me the wrench.
Tatoeba · #50293Usage Notes
i Register
In some senses, wrench is marked as obsolete. Watch for register when choosing this word.
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