Meaning & use
destroyer
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Meanings
nouncountable
A small, fast warship designed to protect larger ships and attack submarines.
Grammar: Countable: one destroyer, two destroyers. Often used with 'a' or in the plural.
Patterns
- a destroyer
- destroyers
- a fleet of destroyers
The navy sent two destroyers to guard the aircraft carrier.
During the exercise, the destroyer practiced hunting submarines.
The old destroyer is now a museum ship.
nouncountable
A person or thing that ruins or puts an end to something.
Grammar: Countable, often used in phrases like 'a destroyer of worlds' or 'the destroyer of hope'.
Patterns
- a destroyer of something
- the destroyer of something
He was the destroyer of her dreams.
The disease is a destroyer of families.
Word forms
| plural | destroyers |
|---|
Common combinations
- naval destroyer
- The naval destroyer sailed into the harbor.
- destroyer escort
- The destroyer escort protected the convoy.
- destroyer of worlds
- In the poem, he is called the destroyer of worlds.
- a fleet of destroyers
- A fleet of destroyers was stationed in the region.
Synonyms and how they differ
- warship
- A general term for any military ship; a destroyer is a specific type of warship.
- ruiner
- A person who ruins something; 'destroyer' is stronger and more dramatic.
Opposites
Word family
- destroy verb
- To damage something so badly that it no longer exists or works.
- destruction noun
- The act of destroying something, or the state of being destroyed.
- destructive adjective
- Causing great damage or harm.
Commonly confused: destroyer or destructor?
destroyer vs destructor
In computing, a destructor is a function that cleans up an object; a destroyer is a warship or a person who ruins things.
Practice
The navy sent a ______ to protect the larger ships.
Choose one answer.
A destroyer is a type of warship. 'Destructor' is a computing term, 'destruction' is a noun meaning the act of destroying, and 'destroy' is a verb.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “destroyer”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.