Meaning & use

destruct

verb·Advanced

To destroy something deliberately, especially as part of a built-in safety mechanism.

See it in a sentence

The rocket was programmed to destruct automatically if it veered off course.

Engineers added a switch that would let them destruct the device remotely if needed.

A note on using this word

Rarely used alone; almost always appears as part of "self-destruct" or in technical contexts.

Words with a similar meaning

destroy

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