as in to destroy
to bring to a complete end the physical soundness, existence, or usefulness of
the army's attack decimated the enemy's defenses beyond repair
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of decimate
Israel, meanwhile, has emerged from the war in a much stronger security position after decimating Hamas in Gaza, slamming Hezbollah in Lebanon, and hammering Iran's nuclear facilities.
—
Greg Myre, NPR, 9 Oct. 2025
Exotic pests from Asia, notably the chestnut blight, decimated it about 100 years ago.
—Jenna Prestininzi, Freep.com, 9 Oct. 2025
Los Angeles — Nine months after a raging inferno decimated the Los Angeles area, claiming the lives of a dozen people and burning down thousands of homes and businesses, officials have arrested a suspect in Florida on suspicion of arson.
—Josh Campbell, CNN Money, 8 Oct. 2025
According to another Ilam official, six members of one family died after their residence was decimated by a landslide, the Times of India reported.
—Jillian Frankel, PEOPLE, 6 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for decimate
Greg Myre, NPR, 9 Oct. 2025
Exotic pests from Asia, notably the chestnut blight, decimated it about 100 years ago.
—Jenna Prestininzi, Freep.com, 9 Oct. 2025
Los Angeles — Nine months after a raging inferno decimated the Los Angeles area, claiming the lives of a dozen people and burning down thousands of homes and businesses, officials have arrested a suspect in Florida on suspicion of arson.
—Josh Campbell, CNN Money, 8 Oct. 2025
According to another Ilam official, six members of one family died after their residence was decimated by a landslide, the Times of India reported.
—Jillian Frankel, PEOPLE, 6 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for decimate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for decimate
Verb
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The fear of further Israeli strikes, particularly on Iran, remains acute in the public’s mind as much of Iranian air defenses likely were destroyed by Israel in June.—
Jason Ma,
Fortune,
12 Oct. 2025
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The Wild were absolutely destroyed in the faceoff circle, losing 44 of 71 (38 percent success rate).—
Michael Russo,
New York Times,
12 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Though the large recall sent shockwaves through the EV space, many fans of the nameplate were left devastated because of its initial positive reception.—
Charles Singh,
Nashville Tennessean,
15 Oct. 2025
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Suspect arrest in deadly Palisades Fire The man accused of starting a fire that eventually became the deadly blaze that devastated the Pacific Palisades area of Los Angeles earlier this year has been indicted by a federal grand jury, the Justice Department announced Wednesday.—
Alex Stone,
ABC News,
15 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Back in January, Preston remembered filming My Best Friend’s Wedding — and how an iconic scene ruined crab and lobster for her.—
Victoria Edel,
PEOPLE,
14 Oct. 2025
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Packages of flying tortillas thrown at the wrong time, or pocket knives, would only hurt a reputation that Texas Tech has worked doggedly to change and show that the Red Raiders are at home on a national stage, and not the crazy drunk uncle ruining a holiday.—
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
14 Oct. 2025
Verb
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And often, that was exactly how forgeries were eventually demolished.—
JSTOR Daily,
JSTOR Daily,
16 Oct. 2025
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On land, the current one- and two-story buildings will be demolished and replaced with 15,682 square feet of modern marina facilities spread across two, two-story buildings.—
Jennifer Van Grove,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
16 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Tessa Ia leads the series as Valeria Goldberg, a young woman in a Jewish-Mexican community who makes a mistake that shatters her world and forces her into a desperate fight to find her missing children.—
Allison DeGrushe,
Entertainment Weekly,
17 Oct. 2025
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When a prosperous farming family was murdered in their own home in cold blood for no reason at all by two young male ex-cons, the image of a neat, safe, mid-20th century rural American life was shattered.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
16 Oct. 2025
Verb
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One raid saw masked federal agents repelling from Black Hawk helicopters and wrecking an apartment building.—
Christopher Cann,
USA Today,
9 Oct. 2025
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The wrecking-ball style is the way King played even at Longview (Texas) High, where his father was the coach, and didn’t coddle or protect his son, as Dickey remembers.—
Seth Emerson,
New York Times,
8 Oct. 2025
Verb
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That property happened to be a $60,000 Boston police cruiser equipped with computers and other technology that was smashed and torched.—
Peter Lucas,
Boston Herald,
13 Oct. 2025
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The Vultee aircraft completed a flight from Los Angeles to New York in 11 hours and 34 minutes and 16 seconds, smashing the existing record of 12 hours for that distance.—
Stuart Dyos,
Nashville Tennessean,
12 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Decimate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/decimate. Accessed 18 Oct. 2025.
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