- present participle of devastate.
devastating
Americanadjective
-
tending or threatening to devastate.
a devastating fire.
-
satirical, ironic, or caustic in an effective way.
a devastating portrayal of society.
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of devastating
First recorded in 1625–35; devastat(e) + -ing 2
Explanation
Something that's shocking and distressing is devastating. Watching the local ice cream shop burn to the ground would be devastating to many neighborhood kids. Incredibly destructive events like earthquakes are devastating, although anything that's tragic, even on a personal level, can also be devastating. It's also used informally to mean incredibly affecting or impressive, like a photographer's devastating images of urban poverty. This meaning came into use in the late 1800s — before that, devastating came right from the Latin word devastare, "to lay waste completely."
Vocabulary lists containing devastating
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Hatchet
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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.
Unbowed by a devastating 1871 fire, Chicago grew from fewer than 4,500 residents in 1840 to more than a million 50 years later.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jul. 1, 2026
"With broken hearts, we share the devastating news that our baby boy passed away during pregnancy," she wrote.
From BBC • Jun. 30, 2026
It means any significant pullback in global AI spending could be devastating for a market dependent on a single investment thesis.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 29, 2026
The Po River has never fallen this low so early in the year, raising fears of a devastating drought in July in this corner of northern Italy.
From Barron's • Jun. 27, 2026
"Then he gained Abubu, the Sky Cutter. A weapon so devastating it could literally slice the heavens."
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.
