Etymologically
Log in

destruction

Etymology and origin of the English word destruction

History Permalink
Confidence
Established
Formation
Borrowing
First attested
c. 1300
Borrowed from
Old French destruction
Ultimate origin
Latin (destructio)

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /dɪˈstrʌk.ʃən/[1]

Etymology

It is Middle English destruccioun, borrowed from Old French destruction and directly borrowed from Latin dēstrūctiō (“a pulling down”),[2][3][4] a noun of action from the past participle of dēstruere (“to tear down, demolish”) (see destroy), literally “to un-build”,[2][3] from dē- (“un-, down”) and struere (“to pile, build”),[2] from PIE *streu-, an extension of the root Proto-Indo-European *stere- (“to spread”).[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

Ruin: about 1300 in Barnhart and Etymonline; the state of being destroyed is from about 1314 in the OED.[3][2][5]

Semantic evolution

Laying waste and havoc are from about 1330, and the demolition of a building from 1340.[5] A cause or means of destruction, as in drink was his destruction, is from the late 14th century in Etymonline, 1526 in the OED,[2][5] and the killing of great numbers of people or animals from 1526.[5] Destructible is from 1755,[3] and the back-formation destruct from 1957, first in military jargon, as in a missile's self-destruct mechanism.[3]

Timeline

  • c. 1300 – ruin.[3][2]
  • c. 1314 – the state of being destroyed.[5]
  • 1340 – demolition.[5]
  • 1526 – slaughter; a cause of ruin.[5]
  • 1755 – destructible.[3]
  • 1957 – destruct.[3]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. The act of destroying something, or the state of being destroyed.
  2. A cause or means of destroying; ruin: gambling was his destruction.

Word family

  • destructionist
  • nondestruction
  • mutual assured destruction

References

  1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  4. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Destruction.” Etymologically, 16 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/destruction. Accessed 16 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·