Nearby Words
noun
1.
ruins, the remains of a building, city, etc., that has been destroyed or that is in disrepair or a state of decay: We visited the ruins of ancient Greece.
2.
a destroyed or decayed building, town, etc.
3.
a fallen, wrecked, or decayed condition: The building fell to ruin.
4.
the downfall, decay, or destruction of anything.
5.
EXPANDthe complete loss of health, means, position, hope, or the like.
6.
something that causes a downfall or destruction; blight: Alcohol was his ruin.
7.
the downfall of a person; undoing: the ruin of Oedipus.
8.
a person as the wreck of his or her former self; ravaged individual.
9.
COLLAPSEthe act of causing destruction or a downfall.
verb (used with object)
10.
to reduce to ruin; devastate.
11.
to bring (a person, company, etc.) to financial ruin; bankrupt.
12.
to injure (a thing) irretrievably.
13.
to induce (a woman) to surrender her virginity; deflower.
:10
:09
:08
:07
:06
:05
:04
:03
:02
:01
Ruin
is one of our favorite verbs.
So is absquatulate. Does it mean:
| to flee; abscond: |
| chat, to converse |
verb (used without object)
14.
to fall into ruins; fall to pieces.
15.
to come to ruin.
Origin:
1325–75; (noun) Middle English ruine < Middle French < Latin ruīna headlong rush, fall, collapse, equivalent to ru(ere) to fall + -īna -ine2; (v.) (< Middle French ruiner) < Medieval Latin ruīnāre, derivative of Latin ruīna
1325–75; (noun) Middle English ruine < Middle French < Latin ruīna headlong rush, fall, collapse, equivalent to ru(ere) to fall + -īna -ine2; (v.) (< Middle French ruiner) < Medieval Latin ruīnāre, derivative of Latin ruīna
Related forms
ru·in·a·ble, adjective
ru·in·er, noun
half-ru·ined, adjective
non·ru·in·a·ble, adjective
self-ru·in, noun
EXPANDSynonyms
3. Ruin, destruction, havoc imply irrevocable and often widespread damage. Destruction may be on a large or small scale (destruction of tissue, of enemy vessels); it emphasizes particularly the act of destroying, while ruin and havoc emphasize the resultant state. Ruin, from the verb meaning to fall to pieces, suggests a state of decay or disintegration (or an object in that state) that is apt to be more the result of the natural processes of time and change than of sudden violent activity from without: The house has fallen to ruins. Only in its figurative application is it apt to suggest the result of destruction from without: the ruin of her hopes. Havoc, originally a cry that served as the signal for pillaging, has changed its reference from that of spoliation to devastation, being used particularly of the destruction following in the wake of natural calamities: the havoc wrought by flood and pestilence. Today it is used figuratively to refer to the destruction of hopes and plans: This sudden turn of events played havoc with her carefully laid designs. 4. fall, overthrow, defeat, wreck. 10. demolish, destroy, damage. See spoil.
3. Ruin, destruction, havoc imply irrevocable and often widespread damage. Destruction may be on a large or small scale (destruction of tissue, of enemy vessels); it emphasizes particularly the act of destroying, while ruin and havoc emphasize the resultant state. Ruin, from the verb meaning to fall to pieces, suggests a state of decay or disintegration (or an object in that state) that is apt to be more the result of the natural processes of time and change than of sudden violent activity from without: The house has fallen to ruins. Only in its figurative application is it apt to suggest the result of destruction from without: the ruin of her hopes. Havoc, originally a cry that served as the signal for pillaging, has changed its reference from that of spoliation to devastation, being used particularly of the destruction following in the wake of natural calamities: the havoc wrought by flood and pestilence. Today it is used figuratively to refer to the destruction of hopes and plans: This sudden turn of events played havoc with her carefully laid designs. 4. fall, overthrow, defeat, wreck. 10. demolish, destroy, damage. See spoil.
Antonyms
4. construction, creation.
4. construction, creation.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source
|
Link To ruin
Example Sentences
- Never underestimate the power of pests to ruin a good thing on college campuses.
- The death of a leader at such a critical time can ruin a company.
- The reptiles ruin landscaping, spark power outages, and weaken protective sand dunes with their burrows.
Collins
World English Dictionary
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
ruin
late 14c., "act of giving way and falling down," from O.Fr. ruine, from L. ruina "a collapse" (cf. Sp. ruina, It. rovina), related to ruere "to rush, fall violently, collapse," of unknown origin. Meaning "complete destruction of anything" is from 1670s. The verb is first recorded 1580s, from the noun;
EXPANDfinancial sense is attested from 1660. Ruins "remains of a decayed building or town" is from mid-15c.
COLLAPSE
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Cite This Source
American Heritage
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
Cite This Source
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
Cite This Source
Word Dynamo By Dictionary.com
Idioms & Phrases
Image for ruin
Dictionary.com, LLC. Copyright © 2012. All rights reserved.