destroyer
/dis'trɔiə/
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
- Noun:
- A person or thing that destroys, ruins, or lays waste to something: An agent that causes complete destruction or termination.
- A small, fast, lightly armored but heavily armed warship: A type of naval vessel designed primarily for escort and anti-submarine warfare.
Usage and Examples
- As a person/thing that destroys:
- Pollution is a major destroyer of marine ecosystems.
- He was seen as the destroyer of the old traditions.
- As a type of warship:
- The navy deployed a guided-missile destroyer to the region.
- The destroyer escorted the aircraft carrier across the ocean.
Advanced Usage and Nuances
- Metaphorical Use: Often used to personify abstract concepts that cause ruin.
- Time is the great destroyer of all things.
- Military Context: Specifically refers to a surface combatant ship smaller than a cruiser, tasked with defending fleets from smaller, short-range attackers.
Variants and Related Words
- Destroy (verb): To damage something so severely that it no longer exists or functions.
- Destruction (noun): The act or process of destroying something.
- Destructive (adjective): Causing great and irreparable damage.
Synonyms
- Ravager: One who causes severe and extensive damage.
- Annihilator: One who completely destroys or obliterates.
- Warship, Naval vessel (for the military sense).
Related Phrases and Idioms
- (To be) a destroyer of worlds: A dramatic phrase, often alluding to immense destructive power, famously used in the context of nuclear weapons.
- The scientist reflected on having helped create a destroyer of worlds.
- Fleet destroyer: A destroyer serving as part of a larger naval fleet.
Noun
- a person who destroys or ruins or lays waste to
- a destroyer of the environment
- jealousy was his undoer
- uprooters of gravestones
- a small fast lightly armored but heavily armed warship