self-destructive

adjective

self-de·​struc·​tive ˌself-di-ˈstrək-tiv 

: acting or tending to harm or destroy oneself

self-destructive behavior

also : suicidal

a self-destructive impulse

self-destructiveness noun

Examples of self-destructive in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

His outstanding gambling debts to a local mobster (Oscar winner Troy Kotsur, of CODA) threaten Jake’s business and the life he’s built away from his self-destructive sibling. — Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 17 Aug. 2026

Then, over the last several weeks and months, the self-destructive tendencies and nature of the WNBA organization, its coaches, and fans has reared its ugly head yet again. — Ian Miller Outkick, FOXNews.com, 16 Aug. 2026

Humor is also one of the best, least self-destructive coping mechanisms for pain and depression…not to get too serious. — Lisa Hanawalt, The New York Review of Books, 15 Aug. 2026

While many teenagers awakening to mortality might turn to poetry or self-destructive behavior, Cao turned to science. — Ingrid Wickelgren, Quanta Magazine, 14 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1641, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for self-destructive

• deconstructive
• nondestructive
• nonproductive
• reconstructive
• reproductive
• unproductive
• abductive
• conductive
• constructive
• deductive
• destructive
• inductive

Medical Definition

self-destructive

adjective

self-de·​struc·​tive -ˈstrək-tiv 

: acting or tending to harm or destroy oneself

self-destructive behavior

also : suicidal

self-destructively adverb

self-destructiveness noun