in ruins
idiom
: destroyed with some pieces or parts remaining
The building was/lay in ruins.
—sometimes used figurativelyAfter her death, the family was in ruins.
Examples of in ruins in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
After Hurricane Milton swept through Tampa, Tropicana Field was left in ruins, requiring the Rays to look for a new home.
—
Paul Du Quenoy, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 Mar. 2025
Gaza is in ruins, nearly 50,000 people have been killed in the war, and polls show that Palestinian hostility toward Hamas has risen.
—TIME, 23 Mar. 2025
Now the courtyard lies in ruins, and in his anguish, Grade’s voice takes on the proclamatory cadences of a prophet.
—Judith Shulevitz, The Atlantic, 16 Mar. 2025
The video shows residential homes lying in ruins, roads scattered with debris and the bodies of soldiers killed in combat.
—Christian Edwards, CNN, 15 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for in ruins
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Paul Du Quenoy, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 Mar. 2025
Gaza is in ruins, nearly 50,000 people have been killed in the war, and polls show that Palestinian hostility toward Hamas has risen.
—TIME, 23 Mar. 2025
Now the courtyard lies in ruins, and in his anguish, Grade’s voice takes on the proclamatory cadences of a prophet.
—Judith Shulevitz, The Atlantic, 16 Mar. 2025
The video shows residential homes lying in ruins, roads scattered with debris and the bodies of soldiers killed in combat.
—Christian Edwards, CNN, 15 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for in ruins
Cite this Entry
“In ruins.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/in%20ruins. Accessed 2 Apr. 2025.
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