devastating
adjective
dev·as·tat·ing
ˈde-və-ˌstā-tiŋ 
1
: causing great damage or harm
a devastating flood/earthquake
a devastating injury
A devastating coastal tsunami could also result from a severe displacement of the San Andreas Fault.—
Gary Sandquist
Gary Sandquist2
: causing extreme emotional pain
a devastating loss
Even the most banal domestic melodramas, readers come to understand, are experienced as devastating tragedies by children living them for the first time.—Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly3
: extremely effective or powerful
a devastating satire
He had a devastating wit and an utter contempt for shoddy work in physics.—Jeremy Bernstein
Jeremy Bernstein
devastatingly
adverb
Some people recover readily from the infection, but in others it becomes disseminated, spreading rapidly and devastatingly from lungs to bones, skin and nervous system
—Lawrence Galton
Lawrence Galton
Postcards from the Edge is a devastatingly savvy, bitingly funny, yet sad movie based on Carrie Fisher's autobiographical novel about Hollywood.
—Jeffrey Lyons
Jeffrey Lyons
… is portrayed as a devastatingly effective power broker in the Senate.
—Alan Brinkley
Alan Brinkley
Examples of devastating in a Sentence
a devastating blow to our morale
Recent Examples on the Web
That’s what makes strokes, which cut off blood and oxygen supply to parts of the brain, so devastating.
—Yasemin Saplakoglu, Quanta Magazine, 13 May 2026
American losses were devastating, approximately 140 killed and another 300 wounded—about a fifth of the men who’d fought.
—Literary Hub, 13 May 2026
Cuba is struggling with devastating nationwide blackouts as the United States’ effective oil blockade strangles fuel supplies.
—Laura Paddison, CNN Money, 13 May 2026
Much of Pratt’s campaign has focused on the devastating fires in the Palisades last year and has attacked the response of Mayor Karen Bass.
—Ted Johnson, Deadline, 13 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for devastating
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Yasemin Saplakoglu, Quanta Magazine, 13 May 2026
American losses were devastating, approximately 140 killed and another 300 wounded—about a fifth of the men who’d fought.
—Literary Hub, 13 May 2026
Cuba is struggling with devastating nationwide blackouts as the United States’ effective oil blockade strangles fuel supplies.
—Laura Paddison, CNN Money, 13 May 2026
Much of Pratt’s campaign has focused on the devastating fires in the Palisades last year and has attacked the response of Mayor Karen Bass.
—Ted Johnson, Deadline, 13 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for devastating
Cite this Entry
“Devastating.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/devastating. Accessed 14 May. 2026.
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