ruinous

[ roo-uh-nuhs ]
See synonyms for ruinous on Thesaurus.com
adjective
  1. bringing or tending to bring ruin; destructive; disastrous: a ruinous war.

  2. fallen into ruin; dilapidated: a ruinous house.

  1. consisting of ruins: a ruinous city from antiquity.

Origin of ruinous

1
1350–1400; Middle English ruynouse<Latin ruīnōsus, equivalent to ruīn(a) ruin + -ōsus-ous

Other words for ruinous

Other words from ruinous

  • ru·in·ous·ly, adverb
  • ru·in·ous·ness, noun
  • non·ru·in·ous, adjective
  • non·ru·in·ous·ly, adverb
  • non·ru·in·ous·ness, noun
  • un·ru·in·ous, adjective
  • un·ru·in·ous·ly, adverb
  • un·ru·in·ous·ness, noun

Words Nearby ruinous

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use ruinous in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for ruinous

ruinous

/ (ˈruːɪnəs) /


adjective
  1. causing, tending to cause, or characterized by ruin or destruction: a ruinous course of action

Derived forms of ruinous

  • ruinously, adverb
  • ruinousness, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012