the act of destroying or state of being destroyed; demolition a cause of ruin or means of destroying
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
de•struc•tion /dɪˈstrʌkʃən/USA pronunciation
n. [uncountable]
de•struc•tive•ly, adv.
de•struc•tive•ness, n. [uncountable]See -stru-.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- the act of destroying or the condition of being destroyed:The fire caused the destruction of two famous landmarks in the area.
de•struc•tive•ly, adv.
de•struc•tive•ness, n. [uncountable]See -stru-.
de•struc•tion
(di struk′shən),USA pronunciation n.
- the act of destroying:wanton destruction of a town.
- the condition of being destroyed;
demolition;
annihilation. - a cause or means of destroying.
- Latin dēstructiōn- (stem of dēstructiō), equivalent. to dēstruct(us) (past participle of dēstruere; see destroy) + -iōn- -ion
- Anglo-French)
- Middle English (1275–1325
- 1.See corresponding entry in Unabridged See ruin.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
'mass destruction' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):