ravage

[rav-ij]

verb (used with object)

ravaged, ravaging 

1. to work havoc upon; damage or mar by ruinous or destructive action.

   a face ravaged by grief.

   Synonyms: sack, pillage, plunder, despoil, ruin
   Antonyms: repair, build

verb (used without object)

ravaged, ravaging 

1. to work havoc; do ruinous damage.

noun

1. havoc; ruinous damage.

   the ravages of war.

2. devastating or destructive action.

   Synonyms: desolation, waste, ruin
   Antonyms: creation

ravage

/ ˈrævɪdʒ /

verb

1. to cause extensive damage to

noun

1. (often plural) destructive action

   the ravages of time

Other Word Forms

• ravagement noun
• ravager noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of ravage¹

First recorded in 1605–15; from French, Middle French, equivalent to rav(ir) “to snatch away, ravish” + -age -age ( def. ); ravish

Word History and Origins

Origin of ravage¹

C17: from French, from Old French ravir to snatch away, _ravish

Synonym Study

Ravage, devastate, lay waste all refer, in their literal application, to the wholesale destruction of a countryside by an invading army (or something comparable). Lay waste has remained the closest to the original meaning of destruction of land: The invading army laid waste the towns along the coast. But ravage and devastate are used in reference to other types of violent destruction and may also have a purely figurative application. Ravage is often used of the results of epidemics: The Black Plague ravaged 14th-century Europe; and even of the effect of disease or suffering on the human countenance: a face ravaged by despair. Devastate, in addition to its concrete meaning ( vast areas devastated by bombs ), may be used figuratively: a devastating remark.

Example Sentences

While MacLeod’s body was ravaged — he had an enormous gash in his right shoulder where the lightning entered and a gaping hole in his back where it exited — Nordbrock barely had a scratch.

From Los Angeles Times

The headline-grabbiest passage is Harris’ suggestion that Biden, felled by a thoroughly wretched debate performance that showed the ravages of his advanced age, should have stepped aside before being effectively forced off the Democratic ticket.

From Los Angeles Times

In April, after wildfires ravaged the area, 50% had an unfavorable view of her.

From Los Angeles Times

In an L.A. ravaged by fires, ICE and a doom-stricken mood in its hallmark entertainment industries, Oasis’ return is a rare spectacle to look forward to as well.

From Los Angeles Times

Both have both been ravaged by floods after extreme monsoon rains.

From BBC

Related Words

• consume 
• damage 
• demolish 
• devastate 
• disrupt 
• gut 
• impair 
• overrun 
• overwhelm 
• pillage 
• plunder 
• raze 
• ruin 
• shatter 
• sweep away www.thesaurus.com
• wreck