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REFERENCE

destroy

v.
US //dɪˈstɹɔɪ// UK //dɪstɹˈɔɪ// de·stroy
  1. 1 to damage beyond repair (v.)
    A2 Elementary

    to damage something so badly that it no longer exists or cannot be fixed.

    to damage an object or entity to the point that it effectively ceases to exist or cannot be restored to its original state.

    Example

    The fire destroyed the old wooden house in less than an hour.

    Example

    The earthquake destroyed several historic landmarks, leaving the city with the difficult task of rebuilding its cultural heritage from the ground up.
  2. 2 to ruin someone's life (v.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate

    to make someone's life or happiness very bad.

    to severely disrupt or ruin the well-being, reputation, or emotional state of a person.

    Example

    The scandal destroyed his career as a politician.

    Example

    Losing her business in the recession destroyed her confidence, making it hard for her to start over in a new industry.
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  1. 3 to defeat completely (v.)
    B1 Intermediate Informal

    to win against someone very easily or by a large score.

    to utterly defeat or crush an opponent in a competition or argument.

    Example

    Our team destroyed the visitors with a five-zero win.

    Example

    The champion destroyed his challenger in the first round, proving that he was still the most dominant athlete in the league.
    • lose to
  2. 4 to delete data (v.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate Technical Computing

    to remove information from a computer or disk forever.

    to permanently remove or overwrite data so that it cannot be recovered.

    Example

    Make sure you destroy all personal files before selling your old laptop.

    Example

    The security protocol was designed to destroy all sensitive data on the server if an unauthorised login attempt was detected.
  3. 5 to euthanize an animal (v.)
    C1 Advanced Formal

    to kill an animal because it is very sick or dangerous.

    to put down or euthanize an animal, typically for safety or welfare reasons.

    Example

    The vet had to destroy the horse after it broke its leg in the race.

    Example

    Authorities were forced to destroy the stray dogs after several reports of aggressive behaviour toward local residents.
    • euthanize
    • put down
  4. 6 to eat quickly (v.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate Slang Cooking

    to eat a large amount of food very fast.

    to consume food rapidly and completely.

    Example

    The teenagers destroyed three large pizzas in ten minutes.

    Example

    After the long hike, the group destroyed the entire buffet, leaving almost nothing for the other guests.
    • pick at
Origin

From Middle English destroyen, from Old French destruire, Vulgar Latin *destrugō, from Classical Latin dēstruō, from dē- (“un-, de-”) + struō (“I build”).

Word family

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