verb
ravage
RA-vihj
verb
1
To cause severe damage or destruction to something.
"The wildfire ravaged thousands of acres of forest."
"Years of neglect had ravaged the old mansion."
noun
1
Severe damage or destruction, usually used in the plural.
"The village never fully recovered from the ravages of the flood."
How to Use Ravage
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishTo wreck or devastate something badly, or the destruction itself.
Common pairings
ravaged by fire
the ravages of time
ravage the land
Word Forms
ravaged past tense, ravages plural, ravages singular
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Etymology
From French ravage, from ravir ("to snatch away"), ultimately from Latin rapere ("to seize"), the same root behind "rapid" and "rapture."