devastate
pronunciation
How to pronounce devastate in British English:
UK [ˈdevəsteɪt]
How to pronounce devastate in American English:
US [ˈdevəsteɪt]
-
- Verb:
- devastate or ravage
- overwhelm or overpower
Word Origin
- devastate
- devastate: [17] Etymologically as well as semantically, devastate is related to ‘lay waste’. It comes from the past participle of Latin dēvāstāre, a compound verb formed from the intensive prefix dē- and vāstāre ‘lay waste’. This was a derivative of vāstus ‘waste’, source of English waste.=> vast, waste
- devastate (v.)
- 1630s, perhaps a back-formation from devastation. Apparently not common until 19c.; earlier verb form devast is attested from 1530s, from Middle French devaster. Related: devastated; devastating.
Example
- 1. So a permanent shift toward smaller cars would devastate industry profits .
- 2. Devaluation in weak economies and currency appreciation in strong ones would devastate rich-country producers .
- 3. In doing so they served notice that they have regained the ability to devastate armoured military vehicles .
- 4. The protesters probably haven 't stopped to examine how demographic trends are set to devastate government finances in the developed world .
- 5. Such an attack would devastate china 's relationship with the west as well as with other asian countries , and could cripple the economic growth that the party regards as so vital .