Other forms: devastations
Devastation is the ruin left across a wide area. The devastation of the storm, survey the devastation, complete devastation.
It describes a whole landscape rather than one building, which is what makes it a stronger word than damage. It is also used of feeling, and the everyday devastation of hearing bad news has softened the word considerably.
1noundevastationThe ruin left across a wide area.
“The hurricane left a trail of devastation across the islands.”
devastation is a ruin.
Latin devastare means to lay waste — de, thoroughly, plus vastare, to make empty.
Middle French
dévastation
English, today
devastation
From Middle French dévastation.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA