destroy - Definitions from Dictionary.com

7 results for: destroy

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)

]

—Related forms

de·stroy·a·ble, adjective

—Synonyms 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.

—Antonyms 1, 2. create.

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

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destroy

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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.

To ruin completely; spoil: The ancient manuscripts were destroyed by fire.
To tear down or break up; demolish. See Synonyms at ruin.
To do away with; put an end to: "In crowded populations, poverty destroys the possibility of cleanliness" (George Bernard Shaw).
To kill: destroy a rabid dog.
To subdue or defeat completely; crush: The rebel forces were destroyed in battle.
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.]

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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.

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"

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

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.

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