1
as in disastrous
bringing about ruin or misfortune
a ruinous miscalculation of the financial markets left them bankrupt
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in devastating
causing or tending to cause destruction
a ruinous windstorm destroyed the crops
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of ruinous
Arthur inherited his father’s alcoholism and propensity for violence, with such ruinous results that he was eventually institutionalized as well.
—
Kathryn Schulz, New Yorker, 9 Feb. 2026
And if the hypotheticals are not enough to dissuade, history is littered with teams trading away their future for immediate glories, seeing their plans implode, and being left with a ruinous future that becomes a hopeless present while another team reaps the benefits.
—Joseph Dycus, Mercury News, 30 Jan. 2026
Dinner might have been ruined, but this certainly was not any sort of ruinous trade for either team.
—Abbey Mastracco, New York Daily News, 23 Jan. 2026
In a state where ruinous wildfires are commonplace and the threat of catastrophic earthquakes haunts imaginations, Cal OES officials wanted to make sure the new system had redundancies to prevent widespread failure.
—William Melhado, Sacbee.com, 23 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for ruinous
Kathryn Schulz, New Yorker, 9 Feb. 2026
And if the hypotheticals are not enough to dissuade, history is littered with teams trading away their future for immediate glories, seeing their plans implode, and being left with a ruinous future that becomes a hopeless present while another team reaps the benefits.
—Joseph Dycus, Mercury News, 30 Jan. 2026
Dinner might have been ruined, but this certainly was not any sort of ruinous trade for either team.
—Abbey Mastracco, New York Daily News, 23 Jan. 2026
In a state where ruinous wildfires are commonplace and the threat of catastrophic earthquakes haunts imaginations, Cal OES officials wanted to make sure the new system had redundancies to prevent widespread failure.
—William Melhado, Sacbee.com, 23 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for ruinous
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ruinous
Adjective
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Each hot run was countered by a disastrous stretch for seemingly everyone.—
Gabby Herzig,
New York Times,
15 Mar. 2026
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But two disastrous seasons followed that campaign, with the Hurricanes going a combined 22-41 in 2023-24 and 2024-25.—
Adam Lichtenstein,
Sun Sentinel,
15 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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To lose a single service member is just a devastating blow.—
ALLEN G. BREED,
Arkansas Online,
10 Mar. 2026
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Trump told Fox that Iran has only about 150 missile launchers left, or about 20% of its original total, after waves of devastating attacks on Iran’s military and civilian infrastructure.—
Dave Goldiner,
New York Daily News,
9 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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The man’s death marks Kansas City’s 24th homicide of 2026, compared to 26 at this time last year, according to data tracked by The Star, which includes fatal police shootings.—
Caroline Zimmerman,
Kansas City Star,
11 Mar. 2026
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According to the city's police department, the fatal accident occurred at 1990 S Flamingo Road.—
Ana Maria Soler,
CBS News,
10 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Residents should be prepared for all modes of severe weather, including damaging winds exceeding 70 mph, destructive hail larger than baseballs, heavy rain and the possibility of a few tornadoes, according to the National Weather Service in Fort Worth/Dallas.—
Brandi D. Addison,
USA Today,
10 Mar. 2026
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The system is forecast to spawn strong tornadoes, destructive winds and hail the size of baseballs.—
Kenton Gewecke,
ABC News,
10 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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The interviews themselves are informative, but unobtrusive, and the while intimate footage of Frazier and Reynolds’ personal lives paints a slightly wider picture of their circumstances, their moods in the aftermath of their unfortunate digital breakthroughs is kept largely at an arm’s length.—
Siddhant Adlakha,
Variety,
14 Mar. 2026
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Juicy is in the unfortunate position of following Jane.—
Jason P. Frank,
Vulture,
14 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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And despite volatility across markets, oil prices don’t seem to be creeping back toward catastrophic levels.—
Tiana Lowe Doescher,
The Washington Examiner,
13 Mar. 2026
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And in some cases, going up against her has resulted in a nearly catastrophic loss in follower count.—
Kathleen Walsh,
Vulture,
12 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Ruinous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ruinous. Accessed 17 Mar. 2026.
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