Made someone financially ruined and unable to pay debts; or exhausted someone's resources completely.
From Italian 'banca rotta' (broken bench)—medieval money changers who failed would have their benches broken as a public shame. The term entered English in the 1500s.
The original bankruptcy shame was literal—they'd smash the failed banker's bench in public—so the word carries ancient shame language, and that's why personal bankruptcy still feels culturally humiliating even though modern law treats it as a practical financial tool.
Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.