ruin
part of speech
verb (ruin, ruins, ruined, ruining); noun (a ruin, ruins; in ruins)
meaning for a pupil
1) To ruin something means to damage or spoil it so badly that it is no good any more: rain ruined the picnic. tree →
2) A ruin is what is left of an old building that has fallen down, or the ruins of a town. tree →
3) Ruin can mean losing all your money: the business faced ruin. tree →
sense in the lessons
In the Tanakh and Jewish tradition: Here it means that the land was destroyed or spoiled by the swarms in the plague of flies. It also means ruins, the broken remains of cities, and the downfall of people or places. Interpretation: Tradition counts this as the fourth plague, which struck Egypt and not Goshen, to show God's rule over all. The prophets use ruins to picture the fall of Israel and cities, and the psalm says the wicked are hurled to ruin. In the primary lessons: In history lessons, pupils visit or study ruins — old castles, abbeys, Roman forts — to learn how people lived. In everyday life, «ruin» is used when plans or things are spoilt: muddy shoes ruin the carpet, one spoiler ruins the film. In stories it shows disaster. Phrases: in ruins, ruin the surprise, ruin someone's day, castle ruins, go to ruin.
examples
- And the LORD did so; and there came grievous swarms of flies into the house of Pharaoh, and into his servants' houses; and in all the land of Egypt the land was ruined by reason of the swarms of flies. (Torah EXO.8.24, JPS 1917) tree →
- O Israel, thy prophets have been like foxes in ruins. (Prophets EZK.13.4, JPS 1917) tree →
- In the city is left desolation, and the gate is smitten unto ruin. (Prophets ISA.24.12, JPS 1917) tree →
- Surely Thou settest them in slippery places; Thou hurlest them down to utter ruin. (Writings PSA.73.18, JPS 1917) tree →
- The rain ruined our picnic. tree →
- Don't tell me the ending — you'll ruin the book! tree →
- We explored the ruins of an old castle. tree →
- The city was left in ruins after the earthquake. tree →
- Spilling juice ruined my drawing. tree →
- Romans built the fort, and now only ruins remain. tree →
- Too much salt can ruin the soup. tree →
- My little brother ruined the surprise by telling Mum. tree →
- "It's enough to ruin one's nerves. tree →
note
Regular verb: ruined. Noun is often plural for buildings: «the ruins of Rome». «In ruins» means badly destroyed. Ruined things usually cannot be fixed easily, but a «ruined» day can be just a disappointing day — people exaggerate.
In the corpora
- And what will ye do in the day of visitation, and in the ruin which shall come from far?
- In the city is left desolation, and the gate is smitten unto ruin.
- Be not a ruin unto me; Thou art my refuge in the day of evil.
- O Israel, thy prophets have been like foxes in ruins.
- Surely Thou settest them in slippery places; Thou hurlest them down to utter ruin.
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «ruin» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.