destroyed; destroying; destroys
1
: to ruin the structure, organic existence, or condition of
destroyed the files
also
: to ruin as if by tearing to shreds
their reputation was destroyed
a disease that destroys the body's ability to fight off illness
… destroyed any hope of a return to past crackdowns … —
George Brock
George Brock 2
a
: to put out of existence : kill
destroy an injured horse
b
: neutralize
the moon destroys the light of the stars
c
: annihilate, vanquish
… marines have been trained to close with and destroy the enemy. That's what we do.—Stephen W. Larose
Stephen W. Larose
: to cause ruin or destruction
It is proverbially easier to destroy than to construct …—T. S. Eliot
T. S. EliotSynonyms
Examples of destroy in a Sentence
Eventually our problems with money destroyed our marriage.
All the files were deliberately destroyed.
The disease destroys the body's ability to fight off illness.
The bomb blast destroyed the village.
The dog had to be destroyed since its owner could not prevent it from attacking people.
Recent Examples on the Web
The latest attacks on Odesa follow a wave of drone attacks on southern Ukraine overnight, with 12 drones destroyed in the Mykolayiv region.
—Sophie Tanno, CNN, 10 Apr. 2024
The governor asked for prayers before sharing reports of at least 72 homes having been either damaged or destroyed in Grenada, Hinds, Marshall, Scott, Warren, and Yazoo County.
—Solcyré Burga, TIME, 10 Apr. 2024
More than 70% of schools in Antakya were destroyed, according to the teachers union, and most students still attend classes in makeshift shelters or crowd into remaining school buildings.
—Erin O’Brien, The Christian Science Monitor, 9 Apr. 2024
Around 500 paintings were destroyed in the fire, including another Velázquez: Expulsion of the Moriscos (1627), which depicted Philip III’s order to expel the Moriscos, Muslims who converted to Christianity, from Spain.
—Ella Feldman, Smithsonian Magazine, 9 Apr. 2024
Hovering over it all is the great unknown of artificial intelligence, and how fast-evolving A.I. tech will upend, or destroy, existing business models.
—Scott Roxborough, The Hollywood Reporter, 8 Apr. 2024
The fact that cultural heritage has been totally destroyed in these days, in Gaza, is, in a way, shaping the trauma as a collective experience of dispossession from their land and their territory…so this is a way to create a kind of colonial trauma.
—Lisa Deaderick, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Apr. 2024
America supplied Israel with the weaponry required to free the hostages and destroy Hamas as a coherent military force.
—Matthew Continetti, National Review, 6 Apr. 2024
Climate change and extreme weather have contributed to catastrophic fires that destroyed thousands of California homes in recent years — and an insurance crisis that could result in the biggest set of regulatory changes since the passage of Proposition 103 in 1988.
—Laurence Darmiento, Los Angeles Times, 29 Mar. 2024
Sophie Tanno, CNN, 10 Apr. 2024
The governor asked for prayers before sharing reports of at least 72 homes having been either damaged or destroyed in Grenada, Hinds, Marshall, Scott, Warren, and Yazoo County.
—Solcyré Burga, TIME, 10 Apr. 2024
More than 70% of schools in Antakya were destroyed, according to the teachers union, and most students still attend classes in makeshift shelters or crowd into remaining school buildings.
—Erin O’Brien, The Christian Science Monitor, 9 Apr. 2024
Around 500 paintings were destroyed in the fire, including another Velázquez: Expulsion of the Moriscos (1627), which depicted Philip III’s order to expel the Moriscos, Muslims who converted to Christianity, from Spain.
—Ella Feldman, Smithsonian Magazine, 9 Apr. 2024
Hovering over it all is the great unknown of artificial intelligence, and how fast-evolving A.I. tech will upend, or destroy, existing business models.
—Scott Roxborough, The Hollywood Reporter, 8 Apr. 2024
The fact that cultural heritage has been totally destroyed in these days, in Gaza, is, in a way, shaping the trauma as a collective experience of dispossession from their land and their territory…so this is a way to create a kind of colonial trauma.
—Lisa Deaderick, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Apr. 2024
America supplied Israel with the weaponry required to free the hostages and destroy Hamas as a coherent military force.
—Matthew Continetti, National Review, 6 Apr. 2024
Climate change and extreme weather have contributed to catastrophic fires that destroyed thousands of California homes in recent years — and an insurance crisis that could result in the biggest set of regulatory changes since the passage of Proposition 103 in 1988.
—Laurence Darmiento, Los Angeles Times, 29 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'destroy.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Destroy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/destroy. Accessed 20 Apr. 2024.
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