1
as in bankrupts
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
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in ravages
to bring destruction to (something) through violent action
tornadoes ruined a wide swath of the county
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in destroys
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
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in rubble
the portion or bits of something left over or behind after it has been destroyed
the ruins of an abandoned abbey
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of ruins
Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 20 Apr. 2026
Jeff then immediately ruins the stakes-building tension by launching into an interminable Applebee’s ad.
—Rebecca Alter, Vulture, 2 Apr. 2026
One drop of red dye ruins the whole thing.
—Charles Trepany, USA Today, 24 Mar. 2026
And as per usual, a man ruins everything.
—Emily Tannenbaum, Glamour, 19 Mar. 2026
For more history, the Maya ruins all over the area never fail to surprise, but Tulum remains singular with the only major Mayan site built dramatically atop seaside cliff.
—Gina Góngora, Condé Nast Traveler, 11 Mar. 2026
Eventually, extensive bombing and the Soviet army reduced the Königsberg Castle to ruins, and the original Amber Room was never recovered.
—Encyclopedia Britannica, 10 Mar. 2026
In games that matter, one bad inning — one weak link on the chain — ruins a whole game.
—Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 5 Mar. 2026
There’s, in fact, a lot of narrative chaos in the movie’s last third, from a pyramid scheme that ruins Junyang’s professional ego to the fact that Lydia, once she’s given birth, is basically cut out of the picture.
—Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 16 Feb. 2026
Kanis Leung, Los Angeles Times, 20 Apr. 2026
Drone video shows the southern Lebanese town of Bint Jbeil in ruins following the Israel Defense Force's strikes on the area.
—Will Clark, NBC news, 20 Apr. 2026
Salado College Ruins The ruins of the limestone Salado College buildings, erected around 1860, can still be seen in Salado College Hill Park.
—Lauren Jones, Travel + Leisure, 19 Apr. 2026
Her family stays on beside the ruins, and the film charts how occupation and its aftermath become the unremarkable background of her adolescence.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 16 Apr. 2026
Markets are soaring even as $58 billion in energy assets lie in ruins.
—Lim Hui Jie, CNBC, 16 Apr. 2026
The Vatican said that the site includes the ruins of the basilica where Augustine preached and the adjoining baptistry.
—Nicole Winfield, Chicago Tribune, 14 Apr. 2026
While in Annaba, Leo will visit the archaeological ruins of the ancient Roman city of Hippo, including its theater, market and thermal baths.
—ABC News, 13 Apr. 2026
Verb
English ivy ruins paint jobs, encourages wood rot, and damages stucco and the mortar between bricks.
—Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 20 Apr. 2026
Jeff then immediately ruins the stakes-building tension by launching into an interminable Applebee’s ad.
—Rebecca Alter, Vulture, 2 Apr. 2026
One drop of red dye ruins the whole thing.
—Charles Trepany, USA Today, 24 Mar. 2026
And as per usual, a man ruins everything.
—Emily Tannenbaum, Glamour, 19 Mar. 2026
For more history, the Maya ruins all over the area never fail to surprise, but Tulum remains singular with the only major Mayan site built dramatically atop seaside cliff.
—Gina Góngora, Condé Nast Traveler, 11 Mar. 2026
Eventually, extensive bombing and the Soviet army reduced the Königsberg Castle to ruins, and the original Amber Room was never recovered.
—Encyclopedia Britannica, 10 Mar. 2026
In games that matter, one bad inning — one weak link on the chain — ruins a whole game.
—Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 5 Mar. 2026
There’s, in fact, a lot of narrative chaos in the movie’s last third, from a pyramid scheme that ruins Junyang’s professional ego to the fact that Lydia, once she’s given birth, is basically cut out of the picture.
—Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 16 Feb. 2026
Noun
Mak’s wife, Kit Chan, 74, likened their home to ruins.
—Kanis Leung, Los Angeles Times, 20 Apr. 2026
Drone video shows the southern Lebanese town of Bint Jbeil in ruins following the Israel Defense Force's strikes on the area.
—Will Clark, NBC news, 20 Apr. 2026
Salado College Ruins The ruins of the limestone Salado College buildings, erected around 1860, can still be seen in Salado College Hill Park.
—Lauren Jones, Travel + Leisure, 19 Apr. 2026
Her family stays on beside the ruins, and the film charts how occupation and its aftermath become the unremarkable background of her adolescence.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 16 Apr. 2026
Markets are soaring even as $58 billion in energy assets lie in ruins.
—Lim Hui Jie, CNBC, 16 Apr. 2026
The Vatican said that the site includes the ruins of the basilica where Augustine preached and the adjoining baptistry.
—Nicole Winfield, Chicago Tribune, 14 Apr. 2026
While in Annaba, Leo will visit the archaeological ruins of the ancient Roman city of Hippo, including its theater, market and thermal baths.
—ABC News, 13 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ruins
Verb
-
Greenhouses provide protection from scourges like tomato blight, which ravages otherwise beautiful crops in areas with cool, rainy weather.—
Lauren Jarvis-Gibson,
Kansas City Star,
1 Apr. 2026
-
Over time, toxins accumulate, and the genetic disorder ravages children’s organs, including their heart — and in many cases, their brain, leading to dementia-like symptoms.—
Elizabeth Chuck,
NBC news,
1 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
For those who know the play well, some of Mantello’s choices are most striking, especially the horror here of the famous hotel-room scene with a tawdry lover (brutally played by Katherine Romans), an act born of loneliness that destroys a father’s relationship with his son forever.—
Chris Jones,
New York Daily News,
10 Apr. 2026
-
Alzheimer’s disease, a brain disorder that slowly destroys memory and thinking skills, affects more than 6 million Americans, most of them age 65 or older.—
Khloe Quill,
FOXNews.com,
9 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
The structure is being brought down so first responders can safely go in and recover the two workers who are trapped under the rubble.—
Ryan Hughes,
CBS News,
12 Apr. 2026
-
The remains of one of his two daughters were still missing, believed to be trapped under rubble, as search operations concluded Saturday, three days after the attacks.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
11 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Florida’s citrus industry has been in a steady decline the past 25 years because of Huanglongbing (also known as HLB and citrus greening disease), a bacterial disease that devastates citrus trees.—
Jim Turner,
Sun Sentinel,
9 Apr. 2026
-
Kyiv residents endure long daily blackouts as Russia devastates the power system, leaving tower block dwellers freezing in apartments with no heat or light.—
Derek Gatopoulos,
Los Angeles Times,
25 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
The change launches biannual arguments about the practice, wrecks havoc on sleep and has inspired voters to go to California polls.—
Hannah Poukish,
Sacbee.com,
7 Mar. 2026
-
In a film like this, you’re ostensibly meant to root against the terror that the central characters wrecks on his victims.—
Alison Foreman,
IndieWire,
16 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Kuhner led me up a wooden staircase, into a dark space littered with debris.—
Emma Green,
New Yorker,
17 Apr. 2026
-
The Philadelphia Office of Emergency Management said Thursday that there's a lane restriction in one eastbound lane of Grays Ferry Avenue as crews clear debris, but the westbound lanes are fully open.—
Tom Ignudo,
CBS News,
17 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The latest filing demolishes the timeworn claim that DOGE was infiltrated into Social Security in order to responsibly ferret out fraud and overspending.—
Business Columnist,
Los Angeles Times,
22 Jan. 2026
-
If the city demolishes the building, the costs will be assessed to the property owner.—
Frederick Melo,
Twin Cities,
30 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Beekeepers in protective suits worked alongside crews to regain control of the swarm, which had clustered around the wreckage and nearby roadway.—
Brittany Miller,
FOXNews.com,
17 Apr. 2026
-
The wreckage and cargo of a tractor-trailer litters the hillside above a hairpin curve on the west side of Wolf Creek Pass.—
Logan Smith,
CBS News,
17 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Ruins.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ruins. Accessed 24 Apr. 2026.
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