devastate
Americanverb (used with object)
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devastates,
present (3rd person singular)
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devastated,
past participle, past
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devastating
present participle
-
to lay waste; render desolate.
The invaders devastated the city.
-
to overwhelm, as with grief or dismay: Those rumors appeared to have devastated her.
We are devastated by this news and deeply saddened by the unexpected loss of our friend.
Those rumors appeared to have devastated her.
verb
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to lay waste or make desolate; ravage; destroy
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to confound or overwhelm, as with grief or shock
Synonym Usage
See ravage.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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devastatesimple
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devastatessimple
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have devastatedperfect
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has devastatedperfect
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am devastatingprogressive
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are devastatingprogressive
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is devastatingprogressive
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have been devastatingperfect progressive
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has been devastatingperfect progressive
Past
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devastatedsimple
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had devastatedperfect
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was devastatingprogressive
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were devastatingprogressive
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had been devastatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of devastate
First recorded in 1630–40; from Latin dēvastātus “laid waste” (past participle of dēvastāre ), equivalent to dē- + vast(āre) “to lay waste” (akin to vastus “empty”) + -ātus; see origin at de-, waste ( def. ), -ate 1
Explanation
If a storm devastates your town, it comes pretty close to destroying it. To devastate is to cause destruction to or overwhelm. Really bad news can devastate a person, or leave them devastated. They are so upset, they feel crushed. A basketball team can devastate an opponent by running roughshod over their defense. The root of the word is the Latin vastare which means to lay waste, which comes from vastus meaning desolate or empty. Imagine a city laid waste after a major earthquake and you've got the picture!
Vocabulary lists containing devastate
List 5
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Divergent
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Tears of a Tiger
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Hibbs said: "Natural England's approach will devastate the Dartmoor hill pony population, it will make farms financially unviable and it's extremely doubtful there will be any environmental benefit."
From BBC ● Jun. 16, 2026
Discovery, expressing fears the blockbuster merger would devastate the industry and shrink production jobs.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 13, 2026
If both spouses eventually need care, the numbers can devastate even substantial nest eggs.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 27, 2026
Surging memory prices are expected to devastate the electronics market, forcing rival phone makers to raise prices and affecting Android devices.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 4, 2026
His tears now devastate me even more than listening to his entire story.
From "Finding Junie Kim" by Ellen Oh
It’s a burden that not only devastates families financially but also takes a toll on their health.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 23, 2026
However, this is a moment of real hope in a disease that hits people in their prime and devastates families.
From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2025
In the Sierra Nevada, private lands used for logging are more likely to experience high-severity fire that devastates forest ecosystems compared to public lands like National Forests.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2025
“I think it’s that scarring, mental-health-wise. It just really devastates a person in a way they can’t come back from.”
From New York Times ● Jun. 6, 2024
Agricultural societies are ravaged by famine when drought, fire or earthquake devastates the annual rice or potato crop.
From "Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind" by Yuval Noah Harari
In the most devastated areas, workers are using heavy machinery to remove pieces of roofs and walls.
From Barron's ● Aug. 16, 2026
Jacky Seagroatt, Malcolm King's younger sister, said losing her brother had "devastated" her.
From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2026
Angie Wade, the tribal historic preservation officer for Chickaloon Village, one of the tribes involved in the lawsuit against the mine, said rampant mining has devastated Chickaloon areas in decades past.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
The quake comes less than two months after twin quakes devastated the north of neighbouring Venezuela, killing more than 6,100 people.
From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026
He was very conscious of being an only child, and he knew his mom would be devastated if something bad happened to him.
From "Hoot" by Carl Hiaasen
But for residents who developed close relationships with the affected caregivers, he said, “it’s a personal, devastating loss.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 17, 2026
Along with her death comes the painful realization that the chances of finding survivors are dwindling, as rescue teams continue to search for hundreds of missing people after this week's devastating 7.4 magnitude earthquake.
From Barron's ● Aug. 16, 2026
People who had to flee their houses during the devastating Stourbridge fires are starting to return home.
From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2026
And we’re still recovering here from Hurricane Helene, a devastating climate disaster almost two years ago.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 15, 2026
We were forced deeper and deeper underwater, the devastating roaring receding into a dull, faraway drone.
From "City of the Plague God" by Sarwat Chadda
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
