destroy
part of speech
verb (destroy, destroys, destroyed, destroying)
meaning for a pupil
1) To destroy something means to damage it so badly that it is ruined or no longer exists. tree →
2) To destroy can mean to completely beat someone in a game (informal). tree →
3) To destroy someone's hopes or plans means to end them. tree →
sense in the lessons
In stories fires, storms, floods and wars destroy houses and forests; villains try to destroy things. In science, habitats can be destroyed by cutting down forests, which harms animals. In everyday life, people safely destroy old papers with personal information. Phrases: «completely destroyed», «destroy evidence», «destroyed by fire».
examples
- The fire destroyed the old barn. tree →
- The storm destroyed many homes. tree →
- Cutting down rainforests destroys animals' habitats. tree →
- The dog destroyed my slippers. tree →
- Bacteria are destroyed by boiling water. tree →
- Our team destroyed them 10–0! tree →
- The news destroyed his hopes of winning. tree →
- Shred old letters to destroy your details. tree →
- Shall we never be able to destroy him? tree →
note
Regular: destroyed, destroying (keep y after a vowel). Noun: destruction. Adjective: destructive. «Destroy» is stronger than «damage»: damaged things can be fixed; destroyed things usually cannot.
In the corpora
- Atoms are not destroyed when ice melts or a smell spreads; the same atoms just move about and change partners.
- "Bit the dust" means died, or was destroyed or broke; it is slang.
- "Collateral damage" is official military language for ordinary people killed or property destroyed by accident in an attack.
- "Went west" means died or was destroyed; it is old-fashioned British English.
- "Humanely destroyed" (official) means an animal was killed by officials.
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «destroy» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.