English > destruction: 3 senses > noun 1, act| Meaning | The termination of something by causing so much damage to it that it cannot be repaired or no longer exists. |
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| Synonym | devastation |
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| Narrower | annihilation, obliteration | Destruction by annihilating something |
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| decimation | Destroying or killing a large / large part of the population (literally every tenth person as chosen by lot) |
| demolition | The act of demolishing |
| disaster | An act that has disastrous consequences |
| extermination, liquidation | The act of exterminating |
| holocaust | An act of mass destruction and loss of life (especially in war or by fire) |
| kill | The destruction of an enemy / enemy plane or ship or tank or missile |
| laying waste, ruin, ruining, ruination, wrecking | Destruction achieved by causing something to be wrecked or ruined |
| neutralization, neutralisation | (euphemism) the removal of a threat by killing or destroying it (especially in a covert operation or military operation) |
| razing, leveling, tearing down, demolishing | complete destruction of a building |
| sabotage | A deliberate act of destruction or disruption in which equipment is damaged |
| self-destruction | The act of destroying yourself |
| spoliation | (law) the intentional destruction of a document or an alteration of it that destroys its value as evidence |
| vandalism, hooliganism, malicious mischief | Willful wanton and malicious destruction of the property of others |
| Broader | termination, ending, conclusion | The act of ending something |
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| Spanish | destrucción, devastación |
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| Catalan | destrucció, devastació |
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| Verbs | destroy | destroy completely |
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| destroy | do away with, cause the destruction or undoing of |
English > destruction: 3 senses > noun 2, event| Meaning | An event (or the result of an event) that completely destroys something. |
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| Synonyms | demolition, wipeout |
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| Narrower | annihilation, disintegration | Total destruction |
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| eradication, obliteration | The complete destruction of every trace of something |
| ravage, depredation | (usually plural) a destructive action |
| razing, wrecking | The event of a structure being completely demolished and leveled |
| ruin, ruination | An event that results in destruction |
| wrack, rack | The destruction or collapse of something |
| Broader | ending, conclusion, finish | event whose occurrence ends something |
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| Spanish | demolición, derribo, derrumbamiento, destrucción |
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| Catalan | demolició, destrucció, enderrocament, enderroc |
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| Verbs | destroy | destroy completely |
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