1
as in devastating
causing or tending to cause destruction
the destructive storm blew down trees all over town, and blew the roof off our neighbor's house
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in disastrous
bringing about ruin or misfortune
technology used for destructive ends
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of destructive
In fact, NotPetya was a highly destructive file shredder only ever intended to destroy data, while masking its true purpose.
—
Bernard Marr, Forbes.com, 4 July 2025
After destructive winds struck the city in the 1990s, Barnett said Latino construction workers soon arrived to help rebuild.
—Alexandria Burris, IndyStar, 3 July 2025
Federal investigators on Thursday joined the probe into the destructive blast as the search for answers and victims entered a third day in Esparto.
—Darrell Smith
july 3, Sacbee.com, 3 July 2025
Ultimately, that limits their ability to save for long-term goals, like paying for college or buying a house, and to respond to crises, like a health emergency, job loss or destructive hurricane.
—Miami Herald, 3 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for destructive
Bernard Marr, Forbes.com, 4 July 2025
After destructive winds struck the city in the 1990s, Barnett said Latino construction workers soon arrived to help rebuild.
—Alexandria Burris, IndyStar, 3 July 2025
Federal investigators on Thursday joined the probe into the destructive blast as the search for answers and victims entered a third day in Esparto.
—Darrell Smith
july 3, Sacbee.com, 3 July 2025
Ultimately, that limits their ability to save for long-term goals, like paying for college or buying a house, and to respond to crises, like a health emergency, job loss or destructive hurricane.
—Miami Herald, 3 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for destructive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for destructive
Adjective
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As a result, more children were vaccinated against devastating viruses, and more were lives saved.—
Jennifer Lotito,
Forbes.com,
2 July 2025
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During a time when our city should be rejoicing and celebrating members of our diverse LGBTQ+ community, incidents like this are devastating.—
Jordan King,
MSNBC Newsweek,
30 June 2025
Adjective
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That does not mean people place blind faith in AI or use it to displace human-to-human interactions; that would be disastrous.—
Yasmin Green,
Foreign Affairs,
7 July 2025
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It was largely forgotten about until closer to release (December 2020 was launch, and its disastrous release was all anyone could talk about).—
Paul Tassi,
Forbes.com,
5 July 2025
Adjective
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Most had gone to sleep by the time of the fatal brawl.—
Emma Seiwell,
New York Daily News,
5 July 2025
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An attack in Boulder, Colorado, in June and the fatal shooting of two Israeli embassy employees in Washington, D.C., in May, are two recent incidents of anti-Jewish violence that have rocked communities in the U.S. Advertisement Read More: The Rise of Antisemitism and Political Violence in the U.S.—
Rebecca Schneid,
Time,
5 July 2025
Adjective
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Instead, like so many unfortunate accidents since cell phones were invented, this was caused by a distracted driver.—
Anne Marie D. Lee,
CBS News,
14 July 2025
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Fortunately for him, that gaffe will be a little easier to live down than Teal and Weinberg’s unfortunate comments.—
Krista Kafer,
Denver Post,
12 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Destructive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/destructive. Accessed 19 Jul. 2025.
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