as in destroying
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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Recent Examples of decimating
By the mid-1800s, a different kind of hunter had arrived, scouring the region for ivory, hides, and rhino horn - decimating populations.
—
Sarah Kingdom, Forbes.com, 28 Aug. 2025
There, he was briefed on the massive wildfires that are decimating the northwest region of the country.
—Meredith Kile, People.com, 18 Aug. 2025
Environmental groups, others long oppose SpaceX rocket launches That aggressive approach, though, has rankled environmentalists and others who have criticized SpaceX's operations for potentially decimating regional ecosystems.
—Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 14 Aug. 2025
An exotic pet escapes and multiplies, decimating native species.
—Jeffrey Kluger, Time, 7 Apr. 2025
Combating bird flu Stories about bird flu decimating poultry farms and causing jumps in egg prices have been all across the news in recent months.
—Richard Requena, Chicago Tribune, 5 Apr. 2025
But decimating the entire health bureaucracy in this country is not proving his point.
—Nicholas Florko, The Atlantic, 2 Apr. 2025
Vought has returned to his post as the budget office’s director, and his plans for eviscerating entire agencies and decimating the morale of federal workers have turned into reality.
—Stephen Engelberg, ProPublica, 20 Mar. 2025
Then in March 2020, as COVID was decimating the country’s medical infrastructure and shuttering Hollywood, Wyle started receiving dozens of Instagram DMs from first responders who knew him from ER.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 20 Mar. 2025
Sarah Kingdom, Forbes.com, 28 Aug. 2025
There, he was briefed on the massive wildfires that are decimating the northwest region of the country.
—Meredith Kile, People.com, 18 Aug. 2025
Environmental groups, others long oppose SpaceX rocket launches That aggressive approach, though, has rankled environmentalists and others who have criticized SpaceX's operations for potentially decimating regional ecosystems.
—Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 14 Aug. 2025
An exotic pet escapes and multiplies, decimating native species.
—Jeffrey Kluger, Time, 7 Apr. 2025
Combating bird flu Stories about bird flu decimating poultry farms and causing jumps in egg prices have been all across the news in recent months.
—Richard Requena, Chicago Tribune, 5 Apr. 2025
But decimating the entire health bureaucracy in this country is not proving his point.
—Nicholas Florko, The Atlantic, 2 Apr. 2025
Vought has returned to his post as the budget office’s director, and his plans for eviscerating entire agencies and decimating the morale of federal workers have turned into reality.
—Stephen Engelberg, ProPublica, 20 Mar. 2025
Then in March 2020, as COVID was decimating the country’s medical infrastructure and shuttering Hollywood, Wyle started receiving dozens of Instagram DMs from first responders who knew him from ER.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 20 Mar. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for decimating
Verb
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The two initial quakes flattened villages in both provinces, destroying more than 6,700 homes, and rescue workers pulled bodies from the rubble on Thursday.—
Mohammad Yunus Yawar,
USA Today,
5 Sep. 2025
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As Greengrass was editing the picture, wildfires tore through the Pacific Palisades and Altadena in Southern California, killing residents and destroying homes.—
Brent Lang,
Variety,
5 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Lewis Hamilton lost control of his Ferrari and crashed out of the Dutch Grand Prix, ruining a chance to nab a good haul of points.—
Nelson Espinal,
MSNBC Newsweek,
1 Sep. 2025
-
Thanks, man, for ruining an almost-letter-perfect red-carpet walk.—
Guy Martin,
Forbes.com,
31 Aug. 2025
Verb
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About 90% of the former Spring Hill Mall is gone and work demolishing the final anchor store set to begin in the next couple of weeks, officials said.—
Gloria Casas,
Chicago Tribune,
6 Sep. 2025
-
After filing the first lawsuit, attorney Katie Steele of Varghese Summersett also sought a temporary restraining order to prevent the owners from removing or destroying tenants’ property from the units, or demolishing the building, and to preserve critical evidence in the case.—
Fousia Abdullahi,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
3 Sep. 2025
Verb
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As the table fell behind Cenat, shattering into pieces, the streamer looked behind him, cut the music, and asked his friends to fess up.—
Brenton Blanchet,
People.com,
2 Sep. 2025
-
August made history on its own, but compared to the record-shattering extremes of 2023 and 2024, this year had fewer heat streaks.—
Hayleigh Evans,
AZCentral.com,
2 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Kahani’s work is of a piece with that of bigger-name compatriots like Jafar Panahi and Mohammad Rasoulof in its protest against the Iranian government, though his droll-to-devastating approach is very much his own.—
Guy Lodge,
Variety,
21 Aug. 2025
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Additionally, deadly waves of violent extremism in places like Nigeria and India are devastating whole communities and going unchecked.—
Miles P. J. Windsor,
MSNBC Newsweek,
14 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Following the court ruling, the hotel again sought a wrecking permit in April 2025 but could not proceed with demolition until filing the overlay permit.—
Matthew Glowicki,
The Courier-Journal,
28 Aug. 2025
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The brand nails high-quality essentials that look luxe without wrecking your travel budget.—
Claire Gallam,
Travel + Leisure,
27 Aug. 2025
Verb
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The Police, a renowned English rock band, formed in 1977, looping together Sting, Copeland and Summers for an act that rode the new wave to smashing success through the late '70s and early '80s.—
Anna Kaufman,
USA Today,
29 Aug. 2025
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Even the squirles are smashing their bread extra hard.—
Rob Sheffield,
Rolling Stone,
27 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Decimating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/decimating. Accessed 8 Sep. 2025.
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