devastate

verb

dev·​as·​tate ˈde-və-ˌstāt How to pronounce devastate (audio)
devastated; devastating

transitive verb

1
: to bring to ruin or desolation by violent action
a country devastated by war
The typhoon devastated the island.
2
: to reduce to chaos, disorder, or helplessness : overwhelm
devastated by grief
Her wisecrack devastated the class.
devastation noun
devastative adjective
devastator noun
Choose the Right Synonym for devastate

ravage, devastate, waste, sack, pillage, despoil mean to lay waste by plundering or destroying.

ravage implies violent often cumulative depredation and destruction.

a hurricane ravaged the coast

devastate implies the complete ruin and desolation of a wide area.

an earthquake devastated the city

waste may imply producing the same result by a slow process rather than sudden and violent action.

years of drought had wasted the area

sack implies carrying off all valuable possessions from a place.

barbarians sacked ancient Rome

pillage implies ruthless plundering at will but without the completeness suggested by sack.

settlements pillaged by Vikings

despoil applies to looting or robbing without suggesting accompanying destruction.

the Nazis despoiled the art museums

Examples of devastate in a Sentence

The flood devastated the town. The disease has devastated the area's oak tree population. The hurricane left the island completely devastated.
Recent Examples on the Web Prebble was devastated, particularly on behalf of the cast and crew, who were suddenly unemployed. Rebecca Mead, The New Yorker, 4 Mar. 2024 Price, a longtime civil rights attorney who became DA in January, has called lengthy prison sentences a vestige of the country’s racist overreaction to crime, one that has devastated communities of color and led to unnecessary mass incarceration of criminals. Jakob Rodgers, The Mercury News, 4 Mar. 2024 The Israeli airstrikes have devastated Gaza's infrastructure and led to widespread food shortages. Jane Arraf, NPR, 1 Mar. 2024 Ukrainian songs cheering on the Turkish Baykar company's Bayraktar drone went viral as drones devastated Russian armor. Ariel Cohen, Forbes, 29 Feb. 2024 Some 250 miles away from Ishigaki, wariness of both U.S. and Japanese militarization runs deep on the main island of Okinawa, which was devastated by the U.S. assault during World War II. Stephanie Yang, Los Angeles Times, 28 Feb. 2024 Kwon, 32, was arrested nearly a year ago in Montenegro on an international arrest warrant in connection with a $40 billion crash of Terraform Labs’ cryptocurrency, which devastated retail investors around the world. Predrag Milic, Quartz, 22 Feb. 2024 As many as 1 in 6 children are acutely malnourished in the isolated and devastated northern part of the enclave, according to a study by the organization. Doha Madani, NBC News, 21 Feb. 2024 Infrastructure has been devastated by the relentless pounding of mortar and rockets. John Bacon, USA TODAY, 22 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'devastate.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Latin devastatus, past participle of devastare, from de- + vastare to lay waste — more at waste

First Known Use

1638, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of devastate was in 1638

Dictionary Entries Near devastate

Cite this Entry

“Devastate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/devastate. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

devastate

verb
dev·​as·​tate ˈdev-ə-ˌstāt How to pronounce devastate (audio)
devastated; devastating
1
: to reduce to ruin : lay waste
2
: overwhelm sense 2, overpower
devastated by grief
devastatingly adverb
devastation noun

More from Merriam-Webster on devastate

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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