devastating
adjective
dev·as·tat·ing
ˈde-və-ˌstā-tiŋ 
1
: causing great damage or harm
a devastating flood/earthquake
a devastating injury
A devastating coastal tsunami could also result from a severe displacement of the San Andreas Fault.—
Gary Sandquist
Gary Sandquist2
: causing extreme emotional pain
a devastating loss
Even the most banal domestic melodramas, readers come to understand, are experienced as devastating tragedies by children living them for the first time.—Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly3
: extremely effective or powerful
a devastating satire
He had a devastating wit and an utter contempt for shoddy work in physics.—Jeremy Bernstein
Jeremy Bernstein
devastatingly
adverb
Some people recover readily from the infection, but in others it becomes disseminated, spreading rapidly and devastatingly from lungs to bones, skin and nervous system
—Lawrence Galton
Lawrence Galton
Postcards from the Edge is a devastatingly savvy, bitingly funny, yet sad movie based on Carrie Fisher's autobiographical novel about Hollywood.
—Jeffrey Lyons
Jeffrey Lyons
… is portrayed as a devastatingly effective power broker in the Senate.
—Alan Brinkley
Alan Brinkley
Examples of devastating in a Sentence
a devastating blow to our morale
Recent Examples on the Web
His defensive partner Cam Fowler called the injury devastating.
—Jeremy Rutherford, The Athletic, 7 Mar. 2025
One player tries to make a big move, only to watch that move ricochet in devastating fashion.
—Dalton Ross, EW.com, 6 Mar. 2025
Turner served eight years as Houston’s mayor, leading the nation’s fourth-largest city through various challenges, including devastating flooding from Hurricane Harvey in 2017.
—Juan A. Lozano, Los Angeles Times, 5 Mar. 2025
The Los Angeles County's lawsuit, filed on Wednesday, alleges the utility company's equipment caused the devastating blaze, which ignited on Jan. 7 and resulted in the deaths of 17 people and the destruction of thousands of structures.
—Meredith Deliso, ABC News, 5 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for devastating
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Jeremy Rutherford, The Athletic, 7 Mar. 2025
One player tries to make a big move, only to watch that move ricochet in devastating fashion.
—Dalton Ross, EW.com, 6 Mar. 2025
Turner served eight years as Houston’s mayor, leading the nation’s fourth-largest city through various challenges, including devastating flooding from Hurricane Harvey in 2017.
—Juan A. Lozano, Los Angeles Times, 5 Mar. 2025
The Los Angeles County's lawsuit, filed on Wednesday, alleges the utility company's equipment caused the devastating blaze, which ignited on Jan. 7 and resulted in the deaths of 17 people and the destruction of thousands of structures.
—Meredith Deliso, ABC News, 5 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for devastating
Articles Related to devastating
Cite this Entry
“Devastating.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/devastating. Accessed 9 Mar. 2025.
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