1
: wide and general destruction : devastation
A tornado wreaked havoc on the town two years ago.
2
: great confusion and disorder
the blackout caused havoc in the city
Synonyms
Examples of havoc in a Sentence
Noun
The disease can play havoc with the body's immune system.
Several small children can create havoc in a house.
Recent Examples on the Web
Sunny Nagpaul, Fortune, 8 Apr. 2024
During the later decades of the last century, economic free-fall and repression crippled much of the region, some of it instigated by the C.I.A., with trade agreements like NAFTA decimating many small, rural businesses, then globalization wreaking further havoc.
—Michael Kimmelman Clement Pascal, New York Times, 3 Apr. 2024
The crisis in Haiti intensified earlier this month as criminal gangs and militias began wreaking coordinated havoc on businesses and leaving necessities including food, medicine and gas in short supply.
—Alexandra Banner, CNN, 20 Mar. 2024
Until then, Bay FC should count on two-time Ballon d’Or Award finalist Oshoala, a goal-scoring machine for Barcelona during the last five years, to cause havoc on opposing defenders as the central striker.
—Jason Mastrodonato, The Mercury News, 17 Mar. 2024
That could play havoc with watching the sky darkening as the moon’s shadow envelopes the plane, but Delta confirmed to me in an email that these are not on the A321neo—or the A220-330 being used for the DL 1218 from Austin to Detroit flight.
—Jamie Carter, Forbes, 28 Feb. 2024
Now, 54 years later, the recent cyberattack on Change Healthcare is wreaking similar havoc on the economic infrastructure of the healthcare system.
—Seth Joseph, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024
For the first time, according to security sources, rival gangs and coalitions began to wreak coordinated havoc, sharing territory for tactical advances.
—Caitlin Stephen Hu, CNN, 15 Mar. 2024
Tornadoes ripped through the Midwest Thursday, causing havoc in the states of Kentucky, Indiana and Ohio.
—Chris Sims, The Courier-Journal, 15 Mar. 2024
Noun
The downsides to high military spending include concerns that such spending is economically unsustainable, is wasteful, and wreaks environmental havoc—militaries are responsible for about 5.5% of global greenhouse gas emissions, according to a Conflict and Environment Observatory report.
—Sunny Nagpaul, Fortune, 8 Apr. 2024
During the later decades of the last century, economic free-fall and repression crippled much of the region, some of it instigated by the C.I.A., with trade agreements like NAFTA decimating many small, rural businesses, then globalization wreaking further havoc.
—Michael Kimmelman Clement Pascal, New York Times, 3 Apr. 2024
The crisis in Haiti intensified earlier this month as criminal gangs and militias began wreaking coordinated havoc on businesses and leaving necessities including food, medicine and gas in short supply.
—Alexandra Banner, CNN, 20 Mar. 2024
Until then, Bay FC should count on two-time Ballon d’Or Award finalist Oshoala, a goal-scoring machine for Barcelona during the last five years, to cause havoc on opposing defenders as the central striker.
—Jason Mastrodonato, The Mercury News, 17 Mar. 2024
That could play havoc with watching the sky darkening as the moon’s shadow envelopes the plane, but Delta confirmed to me in an email that these are not on the A321neo—or the A220-330 being used for the DL 1218 from Austin to Detroit flight.
—Jamie Carter, Forbes, 28 Feb. 2024
Now, 54 years later, the recent cyberattack on Change Healthcare is wreaking similar havoc on the economic infrastructure of the healthcare system.
—Seth Joseph, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024
For the first time, according to security sources, rival gangs and coalitions began to wreak coordinated havoc, sharing territory for tactical advances.
—Caitlin Stephen Hu, CNN, 15 Mar. 2024
Tornadoes ripped through the Midwest Thursday, causing havoc in the states of Kentucky, Indiana and Ohio.
—Chris Sims, The Courier-Journal, 15 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'havoc.' 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
“Havoc.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/havoc. Accessed 23 Apr. 2024.
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