ruinous

adjective

ru·​in·​ous ˈrü-ə-nəs How to pronounce ruinous (audio)
1
2
: causing or tending to cause ruin
ruinously adverb
ruinousness noun

Examples of ruinous in a Sentence

The house has fallen into a ruinous state. a ruinous miscalculation of the financial markets left them bankrupt
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
For typical investors, such high leverage can be ruinous. Shahar Ziv, Forbes, 3 Mar. 2025 Scandals that might otherwise have been ruinous—the Access Hollywood tape, for example—were spun as baseless attacks from enemies. Charlie Warzel, The Atlantic, 28 Feb. 2025 This is just the beginning of what may become the most ruinous four years in U.S. climate action and conservation history. Ryan Gellert, TIME, 25 Feb. 2025 And his high fly ball rate, which tended to be ruinous at Fenway Park, will likely play better at Petco Park. Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Feb. 2025 See All Example Sentences for ruinous

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of ruinous was in the 14th century

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Cite this Entry

“Ruinous.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ruinous. Accessed 12 Mar. 2025.

Kids Definition

ruinous

adjective
ru·​in·​ous ˈrü-ə-nəs How to pronounce ruinous (audio)
: causing or tending to cause ruin : destructive
ruinously adverb

More from Merriam-Webster on ruinous

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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