Destroys or badly damages something; emotionally shocks or upsets someone deeply.
From Latin 'devastare,' from 'de-' (completely) and 'vastare' (to lay waste), related to 'vastus' (empty, waste). The meaning has remained consistent—complete destruction.
Devastate is one of those rare words with equally powerful physical and emotional meanings—a hurricane devastates land AND heartbreak devastates a person. Both meanings capture total destruction of something important.
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