destroy

destroy
\ \ [13] As in the case of demolish, to destroy something is almost literally to ‘unbuild’ it. The word comes via Old French destruire from *dēstrūgere, a Vulgar Latin alteration of Latin dēstrūere. This was a compound verb formed from the prefix -, denoting reversal of a previous state, and strūerepile up, build’ (source of English construct and structure). Its past participle, dēstructus, has produced English destruction [14], destructive [15], and the verb destruct (recorded once in the 17th century but revived in the 1950s by backformation from destruction).
\ \ Cf.CONSTRUCT, DESTRUCTION, STRUCTURE

Word origins - 2ed. . 2005.

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  • Destroy — De*stroy , v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Destroyed}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Destroying}.] [OE. destroien, destruien, destrien, OF. destruire, F. d[ e]truire, fr. L. destruere, destructum; de + struere to pile up, build. See {Structure}.] 1. To unbuild; to pull… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • destroy — destroy, demolish, raze mean to pull or tear down. Destroy is so general in its application that it may imply the operation of any force that wrecks, kills, crushes, or annihilates {idestroy a nest of caterpillars} {destroy affection} {a building …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • destroy — [di stroi′] vt. [ME destroien < OFr destruire < L destruere < de , down + struere, to build: see STRUCTURE] 1. to tear down; demolish 2. to break up or spoil completely; ruin 3. to bring to total defeat; crush 4. to put an end to; do… …   English World dictionary

  • destroy — {{/stl 13}}{{stl 7}}[wym. destroj] {{/stl 7}}{{stl 8}}rz. mnż ndm {{/stl 8}}{{stl 7}} młodzieżowy styl bycia cechujący się wprowadzanymi celowo elementami bałaganu, nieładu; artystyczny nieład : {{/stl 7}}{{stl 10}}Destroy, czyli artystyczny… …   Langenscheidt Polski wyjaśnień

  • destroy — (v.) early 13c., from O.Fr. destruire (12c., Mod.Fr. détruire) destroy, ravage, lay waste, from V.L. *destrugere (Cf. It. distruggere), refashioned (influenced by destructus), from L. destruere tear down, demolish, lit. un build, from de un ,… …   Etymology dictionary

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