wrench

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.
• It was difficult indeed for Max to disengage himself from the effusive Spinola's affection without a wrench.

An injury caused by a violent twisting or pulling of a limb; strain, sprain.

A trick or artifice.obsolete

Deceit; guile; treachery.obsolete

A turn at an acute angle.obsolete

A winch or windlass.archaic

A screw.obsolete

A distorting change from the original meaning.

A hand tool for making rotational adjustments, such as fitting nuts and bolts, or fitting pipes.CanadaPhilippinesUS

An adjustable spanner used by plumbers.UK

To pull or twist violently.transitive

• With a surge of adrenaline, she wrenched the car door off and pulled out the injured man.

To injure (a joint) by pulling or twisting.transitive

• Be careful not to wrench your ankle walking along those loose stones!

To distort the original meaning of; to misrepresent.transitive

To rack with pain; to make hurt or distressed.transitive

• 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?

To deprive by means of a violent pull or twist.transitive

To use a wrench; to twist with a wrench.transitive

• The plumber wrenched the pipes until they came loose.

To violently move in a turn or writhe.intransitiveobsolete

To tighten with or as if with a winch.obsoletetransitive

• [S]end me that hag hither; she shall avouch what it was that she hath given to the wretch Dryfesdale, or the pilniewinks and thumbikins shall wrench it out of her finger-joints.

To thrust (a weapon) in a twisting motion.obsoletetransitive

To disarm an opponent by whirling their blade away.intransitiveobsolete