7 results for: destroy Browse Nearby Entries
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
de·stroy    Audio Help   [di-stroi] Pronunciation Key
–verb (used with object)
1.to reduce (an object) to useless fragments, a useless form, or remains, as by rending, burning, or dissolving; injure beyond repair or renewal; demolish; ruin; annihilate.
2.to put an end to; extinguish.
3.to kill; slay.
4.to render ineffective or useless; nullify; neutralize; invalidate.
5.to defeat completely.
–verb (used without object)
6.to engage in destruction.

[Origin: 1175–1225; ME destroyen < OF destruire < VL *déstrūgere, for L déstruere (dé- de- + struere to pick up, build)]

de·stroy·a·ble, adjective

1. smash, level, waste, ravage, devastate. Destroy, demolish, raze imply reducing a thing to uselessness. To destroy is to reduce something to nothingness or to take away its powers and functions so that restoration is impossible: Fire destroys a building. Disease destroys tissues. To demolish is to destroy something organized or structured: to demolish a machine. To raze is to level down to the ground: to raze a fortress. 2. extirpate, annihilate, uproot.
1, 2. create.
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
destroy

To learn more about destroy visit Britannica.com

© 2008 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
de·stroy    Audio Help   (dĭ-stroi')  Pronunciation Key 
v.   de·stroyed, de·stroy·ing, de·stroys

v.   tr.
  1. To ruin completely; spoil: The ancient manuscripts were destroyed by fire.
  2. To tear down or break up; demolish. See Synonyms at ruin.
  3. To do away with; put an end to: "In crowded populations, poverty destroys the possibility of cleanliness" (George Bernard Shaw).
  4. To kill: destroy a rabid dog.
  5. To subdue or defeat completely; crush: The rebel forces were destroyed in battle.
  6. To render useless or ineffective: destroyed the testimony of the prosecution's chief witness.

v.   intr.
To be destructive; cause destruction: "Too much money destroys as surely as too little" (John Simon).


[Middle English destroien, from Old French destruire, from Vulgar Latin *dēstrūgere, back-formation from Latin dēstrūctus, past participle of dēstruere, to destroy : dē-, de- + struere, to pile up; see ster-2 in Indo-European roots.]

(Download Now or Buy the Book)
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
destroy 
c.1225, from O.Fr. destruire, from V.L. *destrugerie (infl. by destructos), from L. destruere "tear down, demolish," lit. "un-build," from de- "un-, down" + struere "to pile, build" (see structure). A naval destroyer was originally a "torpedo boat destroyer," though the name comes specifically from the proper name given to one such ship in the U.S. Navy in 1882.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
destroy

verb
1. do away with, cause the destruction or undoing of; "The fire destroyed the house" 
2. destroy completely; damage irreparably; "You have ruined my car by pouring sugar in the tank!"; "The tears ruined her make-up" 
3. defeat soundly; "The home team demolished the visitors" [syn: demolish
4. put (an animal) to death; "The customs agents destroyed the dog that was found to be rabid"; "the sick cat had to be put down" 

WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
destroy1 [diˈstroi] verb
to put an end to or make useless; to ruin
Example: Vandals destroyed the painting.
Arabic: يُدَمِّر، يُخَرِّب، يُحَطِّم
Chinese (Simplified): 破坏, 毁坏
Chinese (Traditional): 破壞, 毀壞
Czech: zničit
Danish: ødelægge; tilintetgøre
Dutch: vernielen
Estonian: hävitama
Finnish: tuhota
French: détruire
German: zerstören
Greek: καταστρέφω
Hungarian: megsemmisít
Icelandic: eyðileggja
Indonesian: menghancurkan
Italian: distruggere
Japanese: 破壊する
Korean: 파괴하다, 쓸모없게 만들다
Latvian: iznīcināt; sagraut; izpostīt
Lithuanian: (su)naikinti, (su)griauti
Norwegian: ødelegge, rive ned, tilintetgjøre
Polish: niszczyć
Portuguese (Brazil): destruir
Portuguese (Portugal): destruir
Romanian: a distruge
Russian: разрушать
Slovak: zničiť
Slovenian: uničiti
Spanish: destruir
Swedish: förstöra
Turkish: parçalamak, mahvetmek, tahrip etmek
destroy2 [diˈstroi] verb
to kill (animals)
Example: This poison destroys rats.
Arabic: يَقْتُل
Chinese (Simplified): 消灭
Chinese (Traditional): 消滅
Czech: zabít
Danish: aflive; gøre det af med
Dutch: doden
Estonian: hävitama
Finnish: hävittää
French: tuer
German: vernichten
Greek: σκοτώνω ζώα
Hungarian: (el)pusztít
Icelandic: eyða, drepa
Indonesian: membunuh
Italian: uccidere
Japanese: 殺す
Korean: 죽이다, 박멸하다
Latvian: iznīcināt
Lithuanian: naikinti
Norwegian: drepe, avlive, destruere
Polish: niszczyć
Portuguese (Brazil): exterminar
Portuguese (Portugal): exterminar
Romanian: a omorî
Russian: уничтожать
Slovak: zabiť
Slovenian: pokončati
Spanish: matar, abatir
Swedish: döda, avliva, ta död på
Turkish: öldürmek, itlâf etmek
See also: destroyer

Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary, © 2000-2006 K Dictionaries Ltd.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Destroy

De*mol"ish\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Demolished; p. pr. & vb. n. Demolishing.] [F. d['e]molir, fr. L. demoliri, p. p. demolitus; de- + moliri to set a thing in motion, to work, construct, from moles a huge mass or structure. See Mole a mound, and Finish.] To throw or pull down; to raze; to destroy the fabric of; to pull to pieces; to ruin; as, to demolish an edifice, or a wall.

I expected the fabric of my book would long since have been demolished, and laid even with the ground. --Tillotson.

Syn: To Demolish, Overturn, Destroy, Dismantle, Raze. That is overturned or overthrown which had stood upright; that is destroyed whose component parts are scattered; that is demolished which had formed a mass or structure; that is dismantled which is stripped of its covering, as a vessel of its sails, or a fortress of its bastions, etc.; that is razed which is brought down smooth, and level to the ground. An ancient pillar is overturned or overthrown as the result of decay; a city is destroyed by an invasion of its enemies; a monument, the walls of a castle, a church, or any structure, real or imaginary, may be demolished; a fortress may be dismantled from motives of prudence, in order to render it defenseless; a city may be razed by way of punishment, and its ruins become a memorial of vengeance.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
Browse Nearby Entries:

destn
destn.
desto
destool
destournelles de constant
destournelles de constant..
destournelles de constant..
destournelles de constant..
destrer
destress
destrie
destrier
destrier's
destriers
destriers'
destrin
destroy
destroyable
destroyed
destroyer
destroyer escort
destroyer's
destroyers
destroyers'
destroying
destroying angel
destroys
destruct
destruct's
destructed
destructibility
destructibility of contin..
destructible

View results from: Dictionary | Thesaurus | Encyclopedia | All Reference | the Web

Share This:   Share This: del.icio.usShare This: digg.comShare This: FacebookShare This: furl.netShare This: www.netscape.comShare This: myweb2.search.yahoo.comShare This: www.stumbleupon.comShare This: www.google.comShare This: www.technorati.comShare This: blinklist.comShare This: newsvine.comShare This: ma.gnolia.comShare This: reddit.comShare This: favorites.live.comShare This: tailrank.com

Perform a new search, or try your search for "destroy" at: