ravage 1 of 2

ravage

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noun

Synonym Chooser

How does the verb ravage contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of ravage are despoil, devastate, pillage, sack, and waste. While all these words mean "to lay waste by plundering or destroying," ravage implies violent often cumulative depredation and destruction.

a hurricane ravaged the coast

When would despoil be a good substitute for ravage?

In some situations, the words despoil and ravage are roughly equivalent. However, despoil applies to looting or robbing without suggesting accompanying destruction.

the Nazis despoiled the art museums

When is it sensible to use devastate instead of ravage?

While the synonyms devastate and ravage are close in meaning, devastate implies the complete ruin and desolation of a wide area.

an earthquake devastated the city

How are the words pillage and sack related as synonyms of ravage?

Pillage implies ruthless plundering at will but without the completeness suggested by sack.

settlements pillaged by Vikings

Where would sack be a reasonable alternative to ravage?

The meanings of sack and ravage largely overlap; however, sack implies carrying off all valuable possessions from a place.

barbarians sacked ancient Rome

In what contexts can waste take the place of ravage?

While in some cases nearly identical to ravage, waste may imply producing the same result by a slow process rather than sudden and violent action.

years of drought had wasted the area

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 ravage
Noun
More Getty Images San Francisco has been absolutely ravaged by injuries over the last couple of seasons. Matthew Schmidt, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Sep. 2025 The man stands just beyond a vivid swirl of similarly unclothed American Indians with discolored bodies, a jarring imagining of the senseless violence and disease that ravaged the Ohlone people, who first settled in the coastal Northern California land that now comprises much of the Bay Area. Shomik Mukherjee, Mercury News, 6 Sep. 2025 City officials hired a company to knock down the brick behemoth months after a late-night fire ravaged the building in June 2024, but what to do with the city real estate has remained unclear. Jake Goodrick, Sacbee.com, 5 Sep. 2025 Many of us became hermits when COVID-19 ravaged our sense of normalcy, and some still haven’t quite gotten back into the swing of in-person dating. Essence, 5 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for ravage
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ravage
Verb
  • Some are value-destroying black holes; others are relentless value creators.
    Steve Denning, Forbes.com, 15 Sep. 2025
  • The first instance of NATO nations downing drones came last week, when Polish and Dutch fighters destroyed three Russian drones over Poland.
    David Brennan, ABC News, 14 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Deadly floods in Asia have devastated crops, crippling already fragile food production.
    Tom Chivers, semafor.com, 11 Sep. 2025
  • The glossy marketing doesn't include a footnote about trust funds, family support or the ability to absorb year-over-year losses that would devastate most working families.
    Elle Wang, Forbes.com, 11 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • The wrecking begins when Carey (Marvin), Paul’s best friend, ill-advisedly sleeps with Julie—and then, more ill-advisedly still, confesses it to Paul the next day.
    Justin Chang, New Yorker, 22 Aug. 2025
Verb
  • However, for some, gambling is an addiction that can ruin lives and families.
    Mark Price, Charlotte Observer, 10 Sep. 2025
  • Our family has been ruined by Denise's lies of promising to end a year-long affair.
    Stephanie Wenger, PEOPLE, 9 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • Critical wildlife habitat may be put at risk for alteration or wholesale destruction.
    Ryan Gellert, Time, 9 Sep. 2025
  • But tenants have little legal footing to stand on in combating that destruction.
    Max Klaver, Miami Herald, 8 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • His wife Sherrie Parker, 41, and their son, Deshawn Thomas, 22, are charged with desecration of human remains and fourth-degree tampering with physical evidence, according to officials.
    Julia Marnin, Miami Herald, 11 Sep. 2025
  • The desecration of pizza seems to have no limits.
    Inga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • To call it a Life Ruiner is not to say that a life of letters is necessarily ruination—but rather, to identify it as the book . . .
    The New Yorker, New Yorker, 13 Aug. 2025
  • Fetterman and McCormick set for high-stakes Pennsylvania forum MAJOR HEADLINES ‘DAMAGING DECISION’ – Trump says tariff ruling could lead to 'economic ruination' of US.
    , FOXNews.com, 2 June 2025
Noun
  • In the filing, Omni Hotels outlined a five-year timeframe that would get the site fully designed, permitted and prepared for construction, noting construction would not start until at least five years after the demolishing of the buildings on site.
    Matthew Glowicki, The Courier-Journal, 28 Aug. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Ravage.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ravage. Accessed 16 Sep. 2025.

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