dilapidate

[ dih-lap-i-deyt ]

verb (used with object)

, di·lap·i·dat·ed, di·lap·i·dat·ing.

1. to cause or allow (a building, automobile, etc.) to fall into a state of disrepair, as by misuse or neglect (often used passively):

   The house had been dilapidated by neglect.

2. Archaic. to squander; waste.

verb (used without object)

, di·lap·i·dat·ed, di·lap·i·dat·ing.

1. to fall into ruin or decay.

dilapidate

/ dɪˈlæpɪˌdeɪt /

verb

1. to fall or cause to fall into ruin or decay

Other Words From

• di·lapi·dation noun
• di·lapi·dator noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of dilapidate¹

1560–70; < Medieval Latin dīlapidātus, past participle of dīlapidāre to squander (compare dīlapidātiō disrepair), Latin: to pelt with stones; di- ², lapidate

Word History and Origins

Origin of dilapidate¹

C16: from Latin dīlapidāre to scatter, waste, from dis- apart + lapidāre to stone, throw stones, from lapis stone

Example Sentences

An area previously known as Motel Drive, where illicit sex and drug sales once were rampant, has been transformed as the city bought up dilapidated motels.

From Los Angeles Times

They endure greater exposure to toxic industrial pollution, dangerously dilapidated housing, gun violence, and other social conditions linked to higher incidence of cancer, asthma, chronic stress, maternal and infant mortality, and myriad other health problems.

From Salon

Parents have raised safety fears about a dilapidated East Dunbartonshire school, after a teacher narrowly avoided being hit when a "repaired" section of ceiling fell down.

From BBC

The infamous Griffith J. Griffith — who in a bout of paranoia once shot his wife in the eye— all but forced the city to accept his “gift” of a dilapidated ostrich farm.

From Los Angeles Times

Kelce has gone the extra mile, buying a onetime muffler shop to expand Operation Breakthrough’s campus and create the Ignition Lab, in which students convert dilapidated jalopies into lacquered, showroom-ready electric vehicles.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• batter
• decimate
• demolish
• destroy
• devastate
• impair
• injure
• mangle
• mar
• ravage
• raze
• ruin
• sabotage
• shatter
• sink
• smash
• spoil
• torpedo
• trash
• undermine