Definition

1. Verb:
   • To ruin; to destroy: To cause severe and often irreversible damage to something, leading to its complete or partial loss of function, value, or existence.
   • To main; to mutilate: To inflict serious physical injury on a living being, especially by violently damaging a limb or body part.
   • To devastate; to wreck: To bring something to a state of total disorder, collapse, or decay.

Usage Examples

• Verb:
  • Lũ lụt đã hủy hoại mùa màng. (The flood ruined the crops.)
  • Chất độc đó có thể hủy hoại thần kinh. (That toxin can destroy nerve tissue.)
  • Chiến tranh hủy hoại nhiều thành phố. (The war devastated many cities.)

Advanced Usage

• "hủy hoại bản thân": to self-destruct; to engage in behavior that is physically or psychologically damaging to oneself.

  • Anh ta dùng rượu và ma túy để hủy hoại bản thân. (He used alcohol and drugs to destroy himself.)

• "hủy hoại môi trường": to cause environmental destruction.

  • Hành động đó góp phần hủy hoại môi trường sống. (That action contributes to the destruction of the living environment.)

Variants and Related Words

• Hủy diệt (v): to annihilate, to exterminate. Often implies total, complete destruction.

  • Một vụ nổ có thể hủy diệt toàn bộ tòa nhà. (An explosion could annihilate the entire building.)

• Tàn phá (v): to ravage, to lay waste. Often used for large-scale destruction by natural forces or war.

  • Cơn bão tàn phá vùng duyên hải. (The storm ravaged the coastal region.)

Synonyms

• Destroy: To put an end to the existence of something by damaging or attacking it.
• Wreck: To destroy or severely damage something.
• Maim: To injure someone severely, especially causing permanent damage to a part of the body.
• Devastate: To cause great damage or destruction.

Related Idioms

• Hủy hoại thanh danh: to ruin one's reputation.

  • Vụ bê bối đã hủy hoại thanh danh của ông ấy. (The scandal ruined his reputation.)

• Hủy hoại tương lai: to wreck/destroy one's future.

  • Quyết định nông nổi đó hủy hoại tương lai của cô ấy. (That rash decision wrecked her future.)

verb

1. to main, to ruin