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ruin

noun

  1. Archaic a falling down, as of a building, wall, etc.
  2. the remains of a fallen building, city, etc., or of something devastated, decayed, etc.
    1. a destroyed or dilapidated building, town, etc.
    2. a person regarded as being physically, mentally, or morally a wreck of what he or she was
  3. the state of being destroyed, decayed, dilapidated, etc.
  4. downfall, destruction, devastation, etc.; specif.,
    1. complete loss of means, solvency, position, etc.
    2. moral downfall
    3. loss of chastity in a woman
  5. any cause of a person's downfall, destruction, etc.: gambling was his ruin

transitive verb

to bring or reduce to ruin; specif.,
  1. to destroy, spoil, or damage irreparably
  2. to impoverish or make bankrupt
  3. to deprive (a woman) of chastity

intransitive verb

to go or come to ruin

Related Forms:

See ruin in American Heritage Dictionary 4

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