Transcription
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- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
- UK Pronunciation
- UK IPA
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- [dev-uh-steyt]
- /ˈdɛv əˌsteɪt/
- /ˈdev.ə.steɪt/
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- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
-
- [dev-uh-steyt]
- /ˈdɛv əˌsteɪt/
Definitions of devastate word
- verb devastate If something devastates an area or a place, it damages it very badly or destroys it totally. 3
- verb devastate to lay waste or make desolate; ravage; destroy 3
- verb devastate to confound or overwhelm, as with grief or shock 3
- verb transitive devastate to lay waste; make desolate; ravage; destroy 3
- verb transitive devastate to make helpless; overwhelm 3
- verb with object devastate to lay waste; render desolate: The invaders devastated the city. Synonyms: destroy, sack, despoil, raze, ruin, level. Antonyms: create, erect, develop. 1
Information block about the term
Origin of devastate
First appearance:
before 1625 One of the 42% oldest English words
1625-35; < Latin dēvastātus laid waste (past participle of dēvastāre), equivalent to dē- de- + vast(āre) to lay waste (akin to vastus empty) + -ātus -ate1
Historical Comparancy
Parts of speech for Devastate
noun
adjective
verb
adverb
pronoun
preposition
conjunction
determiner
exclamation
devastate popularity
A pretty common term. Usually people know it’s meaning, but prefer to use a more spread out synonym. About 66% of English native speakers know the meaning and use word.
This word is included in each student's vocabulary. Most likely there is at least one movie with this word in the title.
devastate usage trend in Literature
This diagram is provided by Google Ngram ViewerSynonyms for devastate
verb devastate
- ruin — 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.
- raze — to tear down; demolish; level to the ground: to raze a row of old buildings.
- ravage — to work havoc upon; damage or mar by ravages: a face ravaged by grief.
- wreck — any building, structure, or thing reduced to a state of ruin.
- smash — to break to pieces with violence and often with a crashing sound, as by striking, letting fall, or dashing against something; shatter: He smashed the vase against the wall.
Antonyms for devastate
verb devastate
- construct — to draw (a line, angle, or figure) so that certain requirements are satisfied
- create — To create something means to cause it to happen or exist.
- improve — to bring into a more desirable or excellent condition: He took vitamins to improve his health.
- guard — to keep safe from harm or danger; protect; watch over: to guard the ruler.
- protect — to defend or guard from attack, invasion, loss, annoyance, insult, etc.; cover or shield from injury or danger.
Top questions with devastate
- what does devastate mean?
- how green smoothies can devastate your health?
- what year did mount vesuvius eruption devastate pompeii?
- what is devastate?
- what is the meaning of devastate?
See also
Matching words
- Words starting with d
- Words starting with de
- Words starting with dev
- Words starting with deva
- Words starting with devas
- Words starting with devast
- Words starting with devasta
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- Words starting with devastate