1
as in devastating
causing or tending to cause destruction
the destructive storm blew down trees all over town, and blew the roof off our neighbor's house
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in disastrous
bringing about ruin or misfortune
technology used for destructive ends
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of destructive
The new severe weather alerts follow a weekend of destructive storms that spawned multiple twisters in parts of Mississippi and Texas.
—
Kyle Reiman, ABC News, 27 Apr. 2026
Formosan termites are subterranean termites that form large, highly destructive colonies in the South.
—Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 27 Apr. 2026
All your hard work and planning can be set back by just a few minutes of destructive chewing.
—Samantha Johnson, Martha Stewart, 25 Apr. 2026
Enid takes a direct hit from violent tornado A large and slow-moving destructive tornado tracked through Enid, Oklahoma, Thursday evening, triggering a rare tornado emergency — the National Weather Service’s most urgent type of tornado warning.
—Briana Waxman, CNN Money, 24 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for destructive
Kyle Reiman, ABC News, 27 Apr. 2026
Formosan termites are subterranean termites that form large, highly destructive colonies in the South.
—Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 27 Apr. 2026
All your hard work and planning can be set back by just a few minutes of destructive chewing.
—Samantha Johnson, Martha Stewart, 25 Apr. 2026
Enid takes a direct hit from violent tornado A large and slow-moving destructive tornado tracked through Enid, Oklahoma, Thursday evening, triggering a rare tornado emergency — the National Weather Service’s most urgent type of tornado warning.
—Briana Waxman, CNN Money, 24 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for destructive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for destructive
Adjective
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The virus that is believed to be responsible for the deaths of three people and the illnesses of three others aboard a cruise ship over the weekend is a relatively rare but devastating threat without a vaccine, treatment or cure.—
Evan Bush,
NBC news,
4 May 2026
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What happened this week is nothing less than a massive and devastating blow, not only to our democracy, but particularly to people of color in the South.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
4 May 2026
Adjective
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After enduring nearly 10 months with the heartache of disastrous flooding that killed 28 people at the camp – 25 campers, two counselors and the camp’s director, Dick Eastland – days of hearings resulted in an unexpected decision by Camp Mystic’s leaders.—
Andy Rose,
CNN Money,
3 May 2026
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His portrayal of best-selling thriller writer Greg Russo — adrift in a New England college after a disastrous campus speaking engagement — lands in that sweet spot between comedy and drama that has increasingly defined the modern Emmy landscape.—
Clayton Davis,
Variety,
2 May 2026
Adjective
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Homicide detectives are investigating the fatal shootings of three adults in Baldwin Park last week — two of whom were a married couple, officials said, who were being mourned by their college-age children.—
Karen Garcia,
Los Angeles Times,
28 Apr. 2026
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Police have arrested a man on murder and firearm charges in connection with a fatal shooting in Stratford earlier this month.—
Justin Muszynski,
Hartford Courant,
28 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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But, yeah, that would be unfortunate.—
Ricky Sayer,
CBS News,
2 May 2026
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In this unfortunate category, Amazon’s new feature for generating mini-podcast segments that shill for products on its shopping platform really takes the cake.—
Frank Landymore,
Futurism,
30 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Despite heroic acts of survival, 25 girls and two counselors died in the catastrophic flooding, as did camp co-owner Dick Eastland.—
Brian Brant,
PEOPLE,
30 Apr. 2026
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This year, several Western states had very dry to record-dry winters, setting them up for a potentially catastrophic wildfire season.—
Austin Amestoy,
NPR,
30 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Destructive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/destructive. Accessed 6 May. 2026.
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