as in to destroy
to bring to a complete end the physical soundness, existence, or usefulness of
the army's attack decimated the enemy's defenses beyond repair
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Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of decimate
What to Know Gas prices surged 4.4 percent in December, while egg prices jumped 3.2 percent, continuing to feel the ripple effects of an ongoing avian flu outbreak that has decimated chicken flocks.
—
Michael Gfoeller and David H. Rundell, Newsweek, 15 Jan. 2025
By Angela Haupt January 14, 2025 2:18 PM EST
The Los Angeles wildfires have killed at least two dozen people and decimated thousands of structures.
—Angela Haupt, TIME, 14 Jan. 2025
The story is set in a post-apocalyptic world where an unnamed pandemic has decimated American society.
—Samantha Bergeson, IndieWire, 14 Jan. 2025
Wildfires have decimated more than 37,000 acres of the Los Angeles metropolitan area over the last several days, charring more than 12,000 structures, displacing over 150,000 residents and leaving at least 24 people dead.
—Matt Lavietes, NBC News, 13 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for decimate 
Michael Gfoeller and David H. Rundell, Newsweek, 15 Jan. 2025
By Angela Haupt January 14, 2025 2:18 PM EST
The Los Angeles wildfires have killed at least two dozen people and decimated thousands of structures.
—Angela Haupt, TIME, 14 Jan. 2025
The story is set in a post-apocalyptic world where an unnamed pandemic has decimated American society.
—Samantha Bergeson, IndieWire, 14 Jan. 2025
Wildfires have decimated more than 37,000 acres of the Los Angeles metropolitan area over the last several days, charring more than 12,000 structures, displacing over 150,000 residents and leaving at least 24 people dead.
—Matt Lavietes, NBC News, 13 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for decimate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for decimate
Verb
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Some 12,000 structures — buildings and cars — have been destroyed so far, and with them many tons of property of all levels of sentimental meaning.—
Steven Zeitchik,
The Hollywood Reporter,
15 Jan. 2025
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Related article Tracking the damage and devastation from the Los Angeles wildfires in maps As many as 12,000 homes, businesses and other structures may have been destroyed in the wildfires raging in Los Angeles County, rendering entire communities ashen piles of rubble.—
Dakin Andone,
CNN,
15 Jan. 2025
Verb
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What Happened in Hawaii? In August 2023, the Hawaiian town of Lahaina, on the northwest coast of the island of Maui, was devastated by a raging wildfire which killed 102 people and displaced thousands.—
Michael Gfoeller And David H. Rundell,
Newsweek,
15 Jan. 2025
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Our friends and our neighbors have lost homes, and entire communities have been devastated, and there’s still more work to do.—
Patrick Hipes,
Deadline,
14 Jan. 2025
Verb
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However, for some, gambling is an addiction that can ruin lives and families.—
Don Sweeney,
Kansas City Star,
9 Jan. 2025
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Well, Neptune and his Wildcats might just be ruining the convenient narrative.—
CJ Moore,
The Athletic,
9 Jan. 2025
Verb
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The plan is a major change for Jackson Memorial Hospital, which would demolish two office buildings across from a Metrorail station in 2027 to make way for affordable and workforce housing in two towers filled with shops, a hotel and more than 800 apartments.—
Michelle Marchante,
Miami Herald,
10 Jan. 2025
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At least one of the buildings was soon to be demolished altogether, its red-brick walls dumped into its 1921 foundation.—
Jon Marcus,
NPR,
8 Jan. 2025
Verb
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Today, that internationalist consensus has shattered.—
Charles A. Kupchan,
The Atlantic,
10 Jan. 2025
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The cameras came back to the duo, who revealed Kotb’s glass had shattered during the commercial break, and she was covered in wine.—
Toni Fitzgerald,
Forbes,
10 Jan. 2025
Verb
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For so long, the Steelers needed Watt to put on his cape and wreck a game to steal a win against a top-tier opponent.—
Mike DeFabo,
The Athletic,
9 Jan. 2025
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The new proposal would allow homeowners to down trees with trunks smaller than 18 inches in diameter, anything wrecked by a hurricane or during hurricane cleanup, anything considered diseased or damaged and anything non-native — a massive expansion of current policy.—
Alex Harris,
Miami Herald,
7 Jan. 2025
Verb
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Perhaps the elder Buffett has softened his opinion on dividends as Berkshire’s cash pile continued to smash records.—
Yun Li,
CNBC,
19 Jan. 2025
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Instead, Villain tried to smash her face into the food.—
Brenda Goodman,
CNN,
18 Jan. 2025
Articles Related to decimate
Thesaurus Entries Near decimate
Cite this Entry
“Decimate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/decimate. Accessed 22 Jan. 2025.
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