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destructor

[dih-struhk-ter]
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noun
  1. British. a furnace for the burning of refuse; incinerator.
  2. Rocketry. a destruct mechanism or device for destroying an off-course airborne missile or launch vehicle.
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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. 2018

Examples from the Web for destructor

Historical Examples

  • 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 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.

British Dictionary definitions for destructor

destructor

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