as in ruined
Related Words
Relevance
Dissimilar Words
1
as in demolished
to bring to a complete end the physical soundness, existence, or usefulness of
they practically destroyed the safe in order to get at the money inside their poor scores on the final exam destroyed any chance they might have had to pass the course
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in ravaged
to bring destruction to (something) through violent action
wildfires destroyed thousands of acres in forests across the state
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in killed
to deprive of life
regrettably, the veterinarian was forced to destroy the injured horse
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of destroyed
Helen Regan, CNN Money, 3 June 2026
Twelve people were killed, including two young boys, in the southeastern city of Dnipro, where a four-story apartment building was partially destroyed, local officials said.
—Valentyn Ogirenko, USA Today, 2 June 2026
Bass was the mayor during a devastating series of wildfires in 2025 that killed more than thirty people and destroyed some eighteen thousand structures in Los Angeles, and her administration’s response has emerged as a major issue in the race.
—The New Yorker, New Yorker, 2 June 2026
The Pentagon has destroyed numerous mines and over 40 minelaying vessels, a White House official told CNBC.
—Spencer Kimball, CNBC, 2 June 2026
The original Neiman Marcus store opened in downtown Dallas in 1907, but after a fire destroyed the site, the flagship was relocated to its current one in 1914, which is at Main and Ervay streets.
—David Moin, Footwear News, 2 June 2026
Just all these innocent people, the culture, just, they could all just be destroyed.
—Alex Sundby, CBS News, 1 June 2026
Beyond the physical destruction, the Great War, as it was then known, destroyed a world where many people believed in progress and gradual advance and replaced it with a cynical and desperate world, in which nations and ideologies were natural and necessary enemies.
—Literary Hub, 27 May 2026
But in 1931, a logician who was then just 25 years old, Kurt Gödel, destroyed these hopes.
—Manon Bischoff, Scientific American, 26 May 2026
Verb
Russian air defenses intercepted and destroyed more than 350 Ukrainian drones over territories both close to the border but also as further afield as Moscow, St Petersburg, and Novgorod in the country’s west, according to the Russian Ministry of Defense.
—Helen Regan, CNN Money, 3 June 2026
Twelve people were killed, including two young boys, in the southeastern city of Dnipro, where a four-story apartment building was partially destroyed, local officials said.
—Valentyn Ogirenko, USA Today, 2 June 2026
Bass was the mayor during a devastating series of wildfires in 2025 that killed more than thirty people and destroyed some eighteen thousand structures in Los Angeles, and her administration’s response has emerged as a major issue in the race.
—The New Yorker, New Yorker, 2 June 2026
The Pentagon has destroyed numerous mines and over 40 minelaying vessels, a White House official told CNBC.
—Spencer Kimball, CNBC, 2 June 2026
The original Neiman Marcus store opened in downtown Dallas in 1907, but after a fire destroyed the site, the flagship was relocated to its current one in 1914, which is at Main and Ervay streets.
—David Moin, Footwear News, 2 June 2026
Just all these innocent people, the culture, just, they could all just be destroyed.
—Alex Sundby, CBS News, 1 June 2026
Beyond the physical destruction, the Great War, as it was then known, destroyed a world where many people believed in progress and gradual advance and replaced it with a cynical and desperate world, in which nations and ideologies were natural and necessary enemies.
—Literary Hub, 27 May 2026
But in 1931, a logician who was then just 25 years old, Kurt Gödel, destroyed these hopes.
—Manon Bischoff, Scientific American, 26 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for destroyed
Adjective
-
His choices allow the viewer to drink in the intimate details of the ruined world.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
17 Nov. 2025
Verb
-
Israeli forces now control large areas in southern Lebanon and have demolished homes and historical sites.—
Melanie Lidman,
Los Angeles Times,
31 May 2026
-
Two other properties were purchased in 2024, one of which was a barbershop that was demolished, and a third property was purchased in 2025.—
Delia Rose Sauer,
Miami Herald,
29 May 2026
Verb
-
After the flood When floods ravaged the Asheville area, the neighborhood went three weeks without electricity and six weeks without running water.—
Jessica Blough,
CNN Money,
22 May 2026
-
The April 8th strikes ravaged a range of sites across the country.—
Rania Abouzeid,
New Yorker,
21 May 2026
Verb
-
At least 13 people were killed in the overnight assault that Ukraine’s military said involved more than 600 drones and dozens of missiles, including advanced hypersonics.—
Helen Regan,
CNN Money,
2 June 2026
-
Israel says 23 of its soldiers and four civilians have been killed over the same period.—
Christopher Cann,
USA Today,
2 June 2026
Adjective
-
For days, no one connected the wrecked car to Marcus.—
Edie Peffley,
NBC news,
19 May 2026
-
The three adults on board — pilot Hernán Murcia, Indigenous leader Herman Mendoza Hernández and Magdalena — were found dead when Colombian soldiers located the wrecked plane two weeks after the crash.—
Emily Blackwood,
PEOPLE,
1 May 2026
Verb
-
The former Iowa Hawkeyes star shattered scoring records in college, transformed women's basketball into a national phenomenon and has continued rewriting the WNBA record book since arriving in 2024.—
Jon Root OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
30 May 2026
-
The team features Megan Grant, the Bruins' two-sport athlete who shattered Lauren Espinoza's 31-year-old single-season home run record in the Big Ten Softball Tournament and extended it to 40 home runs, outlasting Oklahoma's Kendall Wells for the record.—
Nicole Fallert,
USA Today,
29 May 2026
Verb
-
This iconic resort, located 16 miles north of Kailua-Kona at the site of an ancient fishing village leased from the Kamehameha Schools, first opened in the 1960s and was shut down after a tsunami devastated much of the coast in 2011.—
Brianna Randall,
Forbes.com,
30 May 2026
-
The sisters said Perez was a loving mother and daughter, and her death has devastated their mother.—
Harriet Ramos,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
30 May 2026
Adjective
-
Cut away any damaged or bruised areas; throw away the outer leaves of lettuce and cabbage heads.—
Emerson Latham,
Better Homes & Gardens,
30 May 2026
-
Photos from the scene showed charred and damaged brickwork on the roof of the 10-story apartment block which Romanian authorities said was hit by a drone that exploded on impact, tearing through a top-floor flat.—
George Calin,
USA Today,
29 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Destroyed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/destroyed. Accessed 4 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
