Synonyms of ruining

ruining

verb

present participle of ruin

1

as in bankrupting

to cause to lose one's fortune and become unable to pay one's debts

after he was ruined by the Great Chicago Fire of 1871, the industrialist was forced to sell his mansion and start all over again

Synonyms & Similar Words

• bankrupting
• busting
• reducing
• breaking
• impoverishing
• pauperizing
• beggaring
• wiping out
• cleaning (out)
• straitening

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• enriching
• richening

2

as in destroying

to bring destruction to (something) through violent action

tornadoes ruined a wide swath of the county

Synonyms & Similar Words

• destroying
• ravaging
• devastating
• wrecking
• plundering
• scourging
• stripping
• shattering
• obliterating
• despoiling
• eradicating
• sacking
• wasting
• looting
• pillaging
• vaporizing
• decimating
• marauding
• extinguishing
• annihilating
• demolishing
• expunging
• smashing
• extirpating
• wiping out
• harrying
• overwhelming
• wracking
• totaling
• mowing
• nuking
• desolating
• overthrowing
• razing
• overrunning
• overpowering
• foraying
• crushing
• rubbing out

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• restoring
• recovering
• rehabilitating
• repairing
• fixing
• redeeming
• reconditioning
• mending
• patching
• revamping

3

as in wrecking

to bring to a complete end the physical soundness, existence, or usefulness of

a huge fire that ruined an entire city block

Synonyms & Similar Words

• destroying
• wrecking
• demolishing
• shattering
• devastating
• smashing
• damaging
• wasting
• overcoming
• eroding
• decimating
• annihilating
• extinguishing
• marring
• vaporizing
• pulverizing
• ravaging
• razing
• crippling
• killing
• totaling
• creaming
• wracking
• tearing down
• crushing
• breaking
• dismantling
• pulling down
• removing
• nuking
• defeating
• doing in
• blasting
• spoiling
• harming
• injuring
• impairing
• desolating
• subduing
• deteriorating
• disintegrating
• conquering
• rubbing out
• trimming
• mutilating
• licking
• mastering
• prevailing (over)
• winning (against)
• clobbering
• dissolving
• defacing
• eradicating
• whipping
• disfiguring
• obliterating
• surmounting
• dynamiting
• undoing
• mangling
• routing
• vitiating
• wearing (away)
• besting
• gutting
• thrashing
• scouring
• triumphing (over)
• sweeping (away)
• beating
• slaughtering
• vandalizing
• exterminating
• assassinating
• murdering
• plundering
• trampling
• despoiling
• disassembling
• walloping
• sacking
• expunging
• trashing
• blowing up
• liquidating
• trouncing
• extirpating
• looting
• overbearing
• washing out
• effacing
• wiping out
• massacring
• overmatching
• executing
• pillaging
• taking down
• scotching
• cutting down
• butchering
• slaying
• drubbing
• blotting out
• zapping
• stamping (out)
• unmaking
• dilapidating
• skunking
• rooting (out)
• dispatching
• killing off
• snuffing (out)
• taking out
• felling
• mowing (down)
• unbuilding
• havocking

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• building
• constructing
• creating
• raising
• repairing
• fixing
• erecting
• rearing
• setting up
• making
• producing
• forming
• shaping
• putting up
• inventing
• establishing
• manufacturing
• protecting
• assembling
• forging
• organizing
• preserving
• saving
• framing
• revamping
• patching
• molding
• fashioning
• fabricating
• constituting
• instituting
• mending
• bringing about
• reconditioning
• restoring
• doctoring
• conserving
• founding
• rebuilding
• reconstructing
• remodeling
• fathering
• renovating

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of ruining

For a full breakdown of how to clean your bedding without ruining it, refer to AD's guide on how to wash a comforter. — Yelena Moroz Alpert, Architectural Digest, 24 Aug. 2026

This allegedly caused the cancellation of school recesses, and also ruining weddings and funerals. — Finnegan Belleau, Chicago Tribune, 19 Aug. 2026

Tibbetts wants fans to blame outside agitators for ruining the league's momentum. — Alejandro Avila Outkick, FOXNews.com, 17 Aug. 2026

High heat can turn liquid glue into a runny consistency, which leads to leaks, potentially ruining your car seats or floor mats. — Olivia McIntosh, Martha Stewart, 9 Aug. 2026

Tarik Skubal did not go into last week expecting to be the latest avatar for the Los Angeles Dodgers ruining baseball. — Fabian Ardaya, New York Times, 4 Aug. 2026

Shop additional Ilia beauty products below, and don’t fret about the heat ruining your glam. — Jennifer Chan, PEOPLE, 25 July 2026

Floyd is no longer attracted to his wife, has trouble connecting with his teen-age stepson, and owes tens of thousands in taxes—a set of stressors that are ruining his health. — Inkoo Kang, New Yorker, 22 July 2026

Plus, one of the biggest things that holds people back from DIY is a fear of ruining their home, but that’s virtually impossible with peel-and-stick wallpaper. — Ashley Chalmers, The Spruce, 13 July 2026