devastated

adjective

dev·​as·​tat·​ed ˈde-və-ˌstā-təd 

1

: brought to a state of ruin or destruction

Dr. Dawdy, a 38-year-old assistant professor of anthropology at the University of Chicago, is one of the more unusual relief workers among the thousands who have come to the devastated expanses of Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas in the aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

—John Schwartz

I present here a steady flow model for the blast dynamics and propose that through much of the devastated area the blast was a supersonic flow of a complex multiphase (solid, liquid, vapour) mixture.

—Susan Werner Kieffer

2

: emotionally shattered or distraught

Doug never called. He dumped me for the cheerleader, and I was, in the parlance of teen-age romance, absolutely devastated.

—Marialisa Calta

Mr. Jacoby was devastated; he felt he was a proven winner and should not be yanked for one bad half.

—Ira Berkow

Examples of devastated in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The tensions have deepened since U.S. President Donald Trump raised the possibility of Palestinians from the devastated Gaza Strip moving into Egypt, a suggestion that Cairo has rejected. —John W. Dean, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Apr. 2025

Bonta said the Trump administration and its Department of Government Efficiency were acting unlawfully by unilaterally axing a program established and funded by Congress to support devastated parts of the country at their greatest time of need, such as Los Angeles after its recent wildfires. —Kevin Rector, Los Angeles Times, 29 Apr. 2025

From the European perspective, leaders including French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer have sought U.S. guarantees for Ukraine's long-term security, as well as help with funding any eventual reconstruction of the devastated nation. —Alex Leff, NPR, 23 Apr. 2025

Seeing the Rays’ devastated home – which had its domed roof ripped to shreds in the October storm – conjures up core memories for the lefty. —Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 20 Apr. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1792, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for devastated

• abdicated
• abrogated
• acclimated
• activated
• actuated
• adumbrated
• advocated
• aggravated
• aggregated
• agitated
• allocated
• alternated