destroy

(dĭ-stroi')

v., -stroyed, -stroy·ing, -stroys.

v.tr.

1. To ruin completely; spoil: The ancient manuscripts were destroyed by fire.
2. To tear down or break up; demolish. See synonyms at ruin.
3. To do away with; put an end to: "In crowded populations, poverty destroys the possibility of cleanliness" (George Bernard Shaw).
4. To kill: destroy a rabid dog.
5. To subdue or defeat completely; crush: The rebel forces were destroyed in battle.
6. To render useless or ineffective: destroyed the testimony of the prosecution's chief witness.

v.intr.
To be destructive; cause destruction: "Too much money destroys as surely as too little" (John Simon).

[Middle English destroien, from Old French destruire, from Vulgar Latin *dēstrūgere, back-formation from Latin dēstrūctus, past participle of dēstruere, to destroy : dē-, de- + struere, to pile up.]

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verb

1. To cause the complete ruin or wreckage of: bankrupt, break down, cross up, demolish, finish, ruin, shatter, sink, smash, spoil, torpedo, undo, wash up, wrack, wreck. Slang total. Idioms: put the kibosh on. See help/harm/harmless.
2. To pull down or break up so that reconstruction is impossible: demolish, dismantle, dynamite, knock down, level, pull down, pulverize, raze, tear down, wreck. Aerospace destruct. See help/harm/harmless.
3. To cause the death of: carry off, cut down, cut off, dispatch, finish (off), kill, slay. Slang waste, zap. Idioms: put an end to, put to sleep. See help/harm/harmless.
4. To take the life of (a person or persons) unlawfully: finish (off), kill, liquidate, murder, slay. Informal put away. Slang bump off, do in, knock off, off, rub out, waste, wipe out, zap. See help/harm/harmless.
5. To impair severely something such as the spirit, health, or effectiveness of: break, crush, overwhelm, ruin. See help/harm/harmless.

v

Definition: demolish, devastate
Antonyms: build, construct, create, improve, repair, restore

This entry contains information applicable to United States law only.

In general, to ruin completely; may include a taking. To ruin the structure, organic existence, or condition of a thing; to demolish; to injure or mutilate beyond possibility of use; to nullify.

As used in policies of insurance, in leases, and in maritime law, and under various statutes, this term is often applied to an act that renders the subject useless for its intended purpose, though it does not literally demolish or annihilate it.

In relation to wills, contracts, and other documents, the term destroy does not mean the annihilation of the instrument or its resolution into other forms of matter, but a destruction of its legal efficacy, which may be by cancellation, obliterating, tearing into fragments, and so on.

(DOD) A condition of a target so damaged that it can neither function as intended nor be restored to a usable condition. In the case of a building, all vertical supports and spanning members are damaged to such an extent that nothing is salvageable. In the case of bridges, all spans must have dropped and all piers must require replacement.

IN BRIEF: adj. - Spoiled or ruined or demolished.

I know that my unity with all people cannot be destroyed by national boundaries and government orders. — Leo Tolstoy

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sign description: Both flat hands make a quick motion past each other as they become closed hands apart from each other.

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For a list of words related to destroy, see:

• Violent Actions - destroy: ruin, demolish, or exterminate; reduce to fragments or useless form

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See words rhyming with "destroy."

  See crossword solutions for the clue Destroy.

Common misspelling(s) of destroy

• story

Dansk (Danish)
v. tr. - ødelægge, gøre ende på, rive ned, aflive, hærge, ruinere, knuse
v. intr. - hærge

Nederlands (Dutch)
vernietigen, verwoesten, vernielen, afmaken (van dieren), ruïneren

Français (French)
v. tr. - détruire, ravager, démolir, anéantir, exterminer (une population), abattre (un animal), supprimer, faire piquer (un animal), se suicider, détruire (une réputation), anéantir (un espoir)
v. intr. - détruire, être destructeur

Deutsch (German)
v. - zerstören, vernichten, ruinieren

Ελληνική (Greek)
v. - καταστρέφω, σκοτώνω, εξολοθρεύω, αχρηστεύω

Italiano (Italian)
distruggere

Português (Portuguese)
v. - destruir

Русский (Russian)
разрушать, уничтожать

Español (Spanish)
v. tr. - destrozar, romper, destruir, devastar, matar, extinguir
v. intr. - destruir

Svenska (Swedish)
v. - förstöra, rasera, krossa

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
破坏, 消灭, 毁坏, 造成破坏

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
v. tr. - 破壞, 消滅, 毀壞
v. intr. - 破壞, 造成破壞

한국어 (Korean)
v. tr. - 훼손하다, 죽이다, 소멸시키다
v. intr. - 파괴하다

日本語 (Japanese)
v. - 破壊する, 砕く, 殺す

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(فعل) يدمر, يهدم, يقضي على شئ‏

עברית (Hebrew)
v. tr. - ‮הרס, השמיד, הרג, חיסל‬
v. intr. - ‮עסק בהרס‬

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