Etymology of the English word destroy
the English word
destroyderived from the Old French word
destruirederived from the Latin word
destruere (demolish, pull, tear down)
using the Late Latin prefix
de-derived from the Latin word
de (away; down)
derived from the Latin word
struere (build, construct)
derived from the Proto-Indo-European root
*ster-Date
The earliest known usage of destroy in English dates from the 13th century.
Derivations in English
destroyer,
destroyed,
destroyingDerivations in other languages
French
destroyCognates
French
détruire, Italian
distruggere, Spanish
destruirUsage
Word found in Modern English
