English verb: devastate | |||
1. | devastate (change) cause extensive destruction or ruin utterly | ||
Samples | The enemy lay waste to the countryside after the invasion. | ||
Synonyms | desolate, lay waste to, ravage, scourge, waste | ||
Pattern of use | Somebody ----s something. Something ----s something | ||
Broader (hypernym) | destroy, ruin | ||
Narrower (hyponym) | ruin | ||
2. | devastate (change) overwhelm or overpower | ||
Samples | He was devastated by his grief when his son died. | ||
Examples | The bad news will devastate him | ||
Pattern of use | Something ----s somebody | ||
Broader (hypernym) | overcome, overpower, overtake, overwhelm, sweep over, whelm | ||