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Another word for ruin

a-z
Noun

  1. The act of destroying or state of being destroyed

    See also:

    leftover

    help

  2. Something that causes total loss or severe impairment, as of one's health, fortune, honor, or hopes

    See also:

    help

  3. The remains of something destroyed, disintegrated, or decayed

    See also:

    leftover

Verb

  1. To cause the complete ruin or wreckage of

      1. An amount obtained by addition; a sum.
      2. The whole amount of something; the entirety:
      3. Of, relating to, or constituting the whole amount; entire:
      1. The act of destroying or the state of being destroyed; destruction:
      2. Accidental destruction of a ship; a shipwreck.
      3. The stranded hulk of a severely damaged ship.
      1. Destruction or ruin. Used chiefly in the phrase wrack and ruin.
      1. (UK, intransitive) To clean the utensils, dishes etc. used in preparing and eating a meal.
      2. (US, intransitive) To wash one's hands and/or face, often around mealtimes.
      3. (intransitive, of water) To carry an object to land.
      1. To reverse or erase; annul:
      2. To untie, disassemble, or loosen:
      3. To open (a parcel, for example); unwrap.
      1. A cigar-shaped, self-propelled underwater projectile launched from a submarine, aircraft, or ship and designed to detonate on contact with or in the vicinity of a target.
      2. Any of various submarine explosive devices, especially a submarine mine.
      3. A small explosive placed on a railroad track that is fired by the weight of the train to sound a warning of an approaching hazard.
      1. To impair or destroy the value or quality of; ruin:
      2. To harm the character of (a child) by overindulgence or leniency.
      3. To plunder; despoil.
      1. To break (something) into pieces suddenly, noisily, and violently; shatter.
      2. To render (something) into a mush or pulp, as by throwing or crushing:
      3. To strike with a heavy blow or impact:
      1. To go below the surface of water or another liquid:
      2. To descend to the bottom of a body of water or other liquid:
      3. To fall or drop to a lower level, especially to go down slowly or in stages:
      1. To cause to break or burst suddenly into pieces, as with a violent blow.
      2. To damage seriously; disable:
      3. To cause the destruction or ruin of; destroy:
      1. To stop (doing an activity or task) after reaching the point at which there is nothing left to do:
      2. To bring to a required or desired state:
      3. To arrive at or attain the end of:
      1. To break apart the structure of, render physically unusable, or cause to cease to exist as a distinguishable physical entity:
      2. To put an end to; eliminate:
      3. To render useless or ruin:
      1. To tear down or break apart the structure of; raze.
      2. To do away with completely; put an end to:
      3. To damage (someone's reputation, for example) severely.
      1. Alternative form of breakdown.
      2. (intransitive) to fail, to cease to function
      3. (ergative, figuratively) to render or to become unstable due to stress, to collapse physically or mentally
      1. A person, business, or organization legally declared insolvent because of inability to pay debts.
      2. A person who is totally lacking in a specified resource or quality:
      3. Having been legally declared insolvent.
    Idioms:
    See also:

    help

  2. To make or become unusable or inoperative

      1. A sculpture representing a person's head, shoulders, and upper chest.
      2. A woman's breasts.
      3. The human chest.
      1. To prove deficient or lacking; perform ineffectively or inadequately:
      2. To be unsuccessful:
      3. To be unsuccessful in being acted upon:
      1. To cause to separate into pieces suddenly or violently; smash.
      2. To divide into pieces, as by bending or cutting:
      3. To separate into components or parts:
    See also:

    help

  3. To impair severely something such as the spirit, health, or effectiveness of

      1. To surge over and submerge; engulf:
      2. To defeat completely and decisively:
      3. To affect deeply in mind or emotion:
      1. To break apart the structure of, render physically unusable, or cause to cease to exist as a distinguishable physical entity:
      2. To put an end to; eliminate:
      3. To render useless or ruin:
      1. To press between opposing bodies so as to break, compress, or injure:
      2. To break, pound, or grind (stone or ore, for example) into small fragments or powder.
      3. To put down with force; subdue:
      1. To cause to separate into pieces suddenly or violently; smash.
      2. To divide into pieces, as by bending or cutting:
      3. To separate into components or parts:
    See also:

    help

  4. To reduce to financial insolvency

    See also:

    money

© Roget’s II: The New Thesaurus Copyright © 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio. Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Another word for ruin

Noun

  1. The act of destruction

      1. To bring about the downfall, destruction, or ending of, especially by force or concerted action:
      2. To throw a ball or other object over and beyond (an intended target):
      3. To throw or push over; overturn:
      1. The act or process of wrecking or destroying, especially destruction by explosives.
      2. Explosives, especially when designed or used as weapons.
      1. The act of extinguishing.
      2. The condition of being extinguished.
      3. The fact of being extinct or the process of becoming extinct:
    See also:

    wreck

    destruction

  2. A building fallen into decay

      1. A loose mass of angular fragments of rock or masonry crumbled by natural or human forces.
      2. Irregular fragments or pieces of rock used in masonry.
      3. The masonry made with such rocks.
      1. All that is left after other parts have been taken away, used up, or destroyed.
      2. A dead body or parts of a dead body.
      3. The unpublished writings of a deceased author.
      1. A visible trace, evidence, or sign of something that once existed but exists or appears no more:
      2. A rudimentary or degenerate, usually nonfunctioning, structure that is the remnant of an organ or part that was fully developed or functioning in a preceding generation or an earlier stage of development.
      1. The act of destroying or the state of being destroyed; destruction:
      2. Accidental destruction of a ship; a shipwreck.
      3. The stranded hulk of a severely damaged ship.
    See also:

    wreck

    ruins

  3. The state of destruction

      1. The act of destroying or the state of being destroyed; destruction:
      2. Accidental destruction of a ship; a shipwreck.
      3. The stranded hulk of a severely damaged ship.
      1. To use, consume, spend, or expend thoughtlessly or carelessly.
      2. To cause to lose energy, strength, or vigor; exhaust, tire, or enfeeble:
      3. To fail to take advantage of or use for profit; lose:
      1. a dilapidating or becoming dilapidated
      2. a dilapidated condition
    See also:

    destruction

    destruction

Verb

  1. To destroy

      1. To tear down or break apart the structure of; raze.
      2. To do away with completely; put an end to:
      3. To damage (someone's reputation, for example) severely.
      1. To bring about the downfall, destruction, or ending of, especially by force or concerted action:
      2. To throw a ball or other object over and beyond (an intended target):
      3. To throw or push over; overturn:
      1. To cause physical harm to; hurt:
      2. To experience injury in (oneself or a body part):
      3. To cause damage to; impair:
    See also:

    ravage

    destroy

  2. To cause to become bankrupt

    Antonyms:

  3. To destroy chastity

      1. To force (another) to have sexual intercourse; rape.
      2. To overwhelm with emotion; enrapture:
      3. To seize and carry away by force.
      1. To deprive of something valuable, especially by force; rob:
      2. To ruin, especially by destroying or removing what is valuable:
      1. The crime of using force or the threat of force to compel a person to submit to sexual intercourse.
      2. The crime of using force or threat of force to compel a person to submit to some other sexual penetration.
      3. Other unlawful sexual intercourse or penetration, as with an unconscious person or person below the age of or incapable of consent.
    See also:

    rape

Synonym Study

  • Dilapidation implies a state of ruin or shabbiness resulting from neglect the dilapidation of a deserted house
  • Havoc suggests total destruction or devastation, as following an earthquake or hurricane the storm wreaked havoc along the coast
  • Destruction implies annihilation or demolition, as by fire, explosion, flood, etc. the destruction of the village in an air raid
  • Ruin implies a state of decay, disintegration, etc. especially through such natural processes as age and weather the barn is in a state of ruin
© WEBSTER’S NEW WORLD® ROGET’S A-Z THESAURUS by Charlton Laird and the editors of Webster’s New World dictionaries. Copyright © 1999 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Sentence Examples

  • First you ruin my tie, now my shoes.

  • Nothing was going to ruin this magnificent day.

  • Why get in a rush to ruin your trip?

  • A portion of old Balvenie Castle, a ruin, is considered to be of Pictish origin, but most of it is in the Scots Baronial.

  • Some one is trying to ruin me.

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Words that mention ruin in the Dictionary

Words near ruin in the Thesaurus