dilapidate
Americanverb (used with object)
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to cause or allow (a building, automobile, etc.) to fall into a state of disrepair, as by misuse or neglect (often used passively).
The house had been dilapidated by neglect.
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Archaic. to squander; waste.
verb (used without object)
verb
Other Word Forms
- dilapidation noun
- dilapidator noun
Etymology
Origin of dilapidate
1560–70; < Medieval Latin dīlapidātus, past participle of dīlapidāre to squander (compare dīlapidātiō disrepair), Latin: to pelt with stones; di- 2, lapidate
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.
The Victorian houses that line the avenues have been allowed to dilapidate.
From New York Times • Aug. 27, 2015
They were too prone to dilapidate and destroy their dwellings; they were therefore required to pay for the locks, cupboards, and doors.
From The History of Tasmania , Volume II by West, John
Near this abode, but just beyond the gate, A simple cottage stood, old and dilapidate, The home of a poor weaver.
From Laura Secord, the heroine of 1812. A Drama. and Other Poems. by Curzon, Sarah Anne
Smilash had immediately promised to dilapidate it to its former state at the end of the year.
From An Unsocial Socialist by Shaw, Bernard
They were not such as I could combat; and I am driven to dilapidate the funds of my own country by a theft.
From The Works of Robert Louis Stevenson - Swanston Edition Vol. 7 (of 25) by Stevenson, Robert Louis
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.
