- 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
In the Mood? 100 Words to Describe Emotions
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Hatchet
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The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian
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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.
“I strayed on my wife, and it’s devastating to her and not a very pretty picture. What it isn’t is a crime,” he said at the time.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 28, 2026
For three quarters, Allen looked nothing like the devastating double-threat quarterback who tore through the first two games, wins over Houston and Detroit in which Buffalo scored a combined 77 points.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 27, 2026
That storm came weeks after the region recovered from a devastating winter weather system that was linked to more than 100 deaths.
From Barron's ● Sep. 26, 2026
The UN has made a similar appeal, warning against a wider and more devastating conflict.
From BBC ● Sep. 25, 2026
“I don’t know this man!” said Mr. Jaggers, in the same devastating strain: “What does this fellow want?”
From "Great Expectations" by Charles Dickens
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.
