1
as in ravaged
to bring destruction to (something) through violent action
the city was devastated, first by the earthquake and then by fires
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in ruined
to bring to a complete end the physical soundness, existence, or usefulness of
the explosion devastated an entire city block
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in overwhelmed
to subject to incapacitating emotional or mental stress
we were devastated by the awful news of his death
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in destroyed
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of devastated
Jane Arraf, NPR, 10 Oct. 2025
Meanwhile, intense Israeli attacks on Gaza City -- the largest urban area in the Gaza Strip -- and elsewhere in the devastated Palestinian territory continued.
—David Brennan, ABC News, 6 Oct. 2025
Barney Henderson, MSNBC Newsweek, 22 Oct. 2025
Schools, hospitals, as well as water and electricity infrastructure have all been devastated during the two-year war from Israel’s extensive military campaign on the Gaza Strip, Amr said.
—Nadine El-Bawab, ABC News, 18 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for devastated
Verb
The ceasefire announced Wednesday still leaves questions over who will govern Gaza, reconstruction of the devastated Palestinian territory and whether Hamas would keep its weapons.
—Jane Arraf, NPR, 10 Oct. 2025
Meanwhile, intense Israeli attacks on Gaza City -- the largest urban area in the Gaza Strip -- and elsewhere in the devastated Palestinian territory continued.
—David Brennan, ABC News, 6 Oct. 2025
Adjective
Trump is trying to bring an end to the war in Ukraine, that has devastated large parts of the country.
—Barney Henderson, MSNBC Newsweek, 22 Oct. 2025
Schools, hospitals, as well as water and electricity infrastructure have all been devastated during the two-year war from Israel’s extensive military campaign on the Gaza Strip, Amr said.
—Nadine El-Bawab, ABC News, 18 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for devastated
Recent Examples of Synonyms for devastated
Verb
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Families in the region were already hurting before the shutdown due to the Dragon Bravo Fire that ravaged the North Rim of the Grand Canyon for nearly three months, Amos said.—
Jose R. Gonzalez,
AZCentral.com,
24 Oct. 2025
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The San Francisco 49ers have been hanging tough despite being ravaged by the injury bug for the second year in a row.—
Robert Marvi,
MSNBC Newsweek,
24 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Herodotus reasoned that had Helen in fact been within the walls of Troy instead of in Egypt, the Trojans would surely have surrendered her to the Greeks rather than allow their city to be destroyed.—
Elizabeth D. Samet,
Foreign Affairs,
29 Oct. 2025
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Your homes may have been damaged or destroyed and your communities and towns no longer look the same.—
Abigail Adams,
PEOPLE,
29 Oct. 2025
Verb
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After giving birth to him, she’s overwhelmed by irreconcilably conflicting emotions—Javed is at once her own flesh, and an embodiment of his father’s actions.—
JSTOR Daily,
JSTOR Daily,
30 Oct. 2025
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Over the past few days, the mother of three was overwhelmed by the number of comments on her original post.—
Alisha Ebrahimji,
CNN Money,
29 Oct. 2025
Verb
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An old fur coat or feather stole could also be ruined.—
Brandee Gruener,
Southern Living,
31 Oct. 2025
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Cash is king right now, Hsia said, and the AFJ is matching up to $1 million in donations that will go toward things such as new roofs for houses whose roofs were blown off and new furniture after many people's belongings were soaked through and ruined.—
Matt Nighswander,
NBC news,
30 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Many of those games have been thrillers and even wrecked seasons.—
Shaun Goodwin,
Idaho Statesman,
23 Oct. 2025
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Behind Sarnow and Common Council members, employees used equipment to lift a wrecked SUV with its left front side smashed in, a somber reminder of the devastation caused by reckless driving.—
Hope Karnopp,
jsonline.com,
15 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The case of Mamulya, a donkey whose hoof was shattered, apparently in a mine explosion, becomes central to the story, emblematic of the assistance the sanctuary receives from within and beyond Ukraine’s borders in order to provide state-of-the-art medical treatments.—
Sheri Linden,
HollywoodReporter,
24 Oct. 2025
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But when newspapers shifted from reinforcing social order to documenting disorder in readers’ own communities, audiences responded by distrusting the institution that shattered their comforting myths.—
David Wingrave,
Harpers Magazine,
24 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Bonner's father worked at the Product Development Center — part of which Bonner demolished to make way for the new World Headquarters building.—
Jamie L. LaReau,
USA Today,
2 Nov. 2025
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The ballroom project has stirred controversy, as the East Wing, home of the First Lady’s staff and long a grand entrance for White House events, was demolished to make room for the new ballroom.—
Kate Wolffe
October 30,
Sacbee.com,
30 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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The torrential rains and strong winds caused severe flooding that left several rural communities isolated and damaged buildings, roads, crops and infrastructure in poor areas that had already been hit by Hurricane Oscar last year.—
Nora Gámez Torres,
Miami Herald,
3 Nov. 2025
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Cuba, still enduring the storm’s heavy rains and winds, reported widespread flooding, damaged buildings, and hundreds of thousands of people displaced, as authorities warned that Melissa could worsen the island’s ongoing economic crisis.—
Anna Skinner,
MSNBC Newsweek,
29 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Devastated.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/devastated. Accessed 4 Nov. 2025.
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