destructor

[dih-struhk-ter]

noun

British. a furnace for the burning of refuse; incinerator.
Rocketry. a destruct mechanism or device for destroying an off-course airborne missile or launch vehicle.

Origin of destructor

1685–95; < Late Latin dēstructor, equivalent to Latin dēstruc- variant stem of dēstruere (see destruction) + -tor -tor

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for destructor

Historical Examples of destructor

She was the Destructor, just over, and trying to get into Havana.
"Where Angels Fear to Tread" and Other Stories of the Sea
Morgan Robertson
And they would not find out why this boy wants to be a Destructor—nor even what a Destructor is.'
When I Grow Up
Richard E. Lowe
He said he had been told to take them to the Destructor, and he was going to do so.
The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists
Robert Tressell
The Hessian fly (Cecidomyia destructor) has two broods, the fly appearing both in spring and autumn.
Our Common Insects
Alpheus Spring Packard
Another troublesome insect is the Scolytus destructor, which makes its radiating tunnels between the bark and the tree.
Insect Architecture
James Rennie

British Dictionary definitions for destructor

destructor

noun

a furnace or incinerator for the disposal of refuse, esp one that uses the resulting heat to generate power
a device used to blow up a dangerously defective missile or rocket after launching

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012