Definitions and meaning of ruin
ruin
English
Etymology
From Middle English ruyne, ruine, from Old French ruine, from Latin ruīna (“overthrow, ruin”), from ruō (“I fall down, tumble, sink in ruin, rush”).
Pronunciation
- (UK, US) IPA(key): /ˈɹuː.ɪn/, [ˈɹuwɪn]
-
- Rhymes: -uːɪn
Noun
ruin (countable and uncountable, plural ruins)
- (countable, sometimes in the plural) The remains of a destroyed or dilapidated construction, such as a house or castle.
- (uncountable) The state of being a ruin, destroyed or decayed.
- (uncountable) Something that leads to serious trouble or destruction.
- The act of ruining something.
- (obsolete) A fall or tumble.
- A change that destroys or defeats something; destruction; overthrow.
- (uncountable) Complete financial loss; bankruptcy.
Derived terms
Translations
Verb
ruin (third-person singular simple present ruins, present participle ruining, simple past and past participle ruined or (dialectal, nonstandard) ruint)
- (transitive) To cause the fiscal ruin of; to bankrupt or drive out of business.
- To destroy or render something no longer usable or operable.
- To upset or overturn the plans or progress of, or to have a disastrous effect on something.
- To make something less enjoyable or likeable.
- To reveal the ending of (a story); to spoil.
- (obsolete) To fall into a state of decay.
- (transitive, historical) To seduce or debauch, and thus harm the social standing of.
Synonyms
- destroy
- fordo
- ruinate
- wreck
- See also Thesaurus:spoil
Antonyms
- build
- construct
- found
- produce
- unruin
Related terms
- ruination
- ruinable
- ruiner
- ruinous
- ruint
Translations
Further reading
- “ruin”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
- William Dwight Whitney, Benjamin E[li] Smith, editors (1911), “ruin”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., →OCLC.
- “ruin”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.
Anagrams
Asturian
Pronunciation
-
- IPA(key): /ˈrwin/ [ˈrwĩŋ]
Adjective
ruin m sg (feminine singular ruina, neuter singular ruino, masculine plural ruinos, feminine plural ruines)
- weedy
Dutch
Etymology
From Middle Dutch rûun. Cognate with Middle Low German rûne, Middle High German rūn. Further origin unknown; possibly from Proto-Indo-European *(H)rewH- (“to dig out, rip off”).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /rœy̯n/
-
- Hyphenation: ruin
- Rhymes: -œy̯n
Noun
ruin m (plural ruinen, diminutive ruintje n)
- gelding (castrated male horse)
Derived terms
See also
Norwegian Bokmål
Etymology
From Latin ruina.
Noun
ruin m (definite singular ruinen, indefinite plural ruiner, definite plural ruinene)
- ruin (often in plural form when referring to buildings)
References
- “ruin” in The Bokmål Dictionary.
Norwegian Nynorsk
Etymology
From Latin ruina.
Noun
ruin m (definite singular ruinen, indefinite plural ruinar, definite plural ruinane)
- ruin (often in plural form when referring to buildings)
References
- “ruin” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.
Spanish
Etymology
From an earlier *ruino, from ruina, or from a Vulgar Latin root *ruīnus, ultimately from Latin ruīna. Compare Portuguese ruim, Catalan roí. The lack of a final /-o/ may suggest a borrowing.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈrwin/ [ˈrwĩn]
- Rhymes: -in
- Syllabification: ruin
Adjective
ruin m or f (masculine and feminine plural ruines)
- contemptible, mean, heartless
- Synonyms: vil, despreciable
- mean, stingy
- Synonyms: avaro, mezquino, tacaño, usurero, agarrado, cicatero
- wild; unruly
- Synonyms: salvaje, agresto
- rachitic
- Synonym: raquítico
Derived terms
Further reading
- “ruin”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2024 December 10
Swedish
Noun
ruin c
- a ruin (remains of a building)
- ruin (financial bankruptcy)
Declension
Derived terms
Related terms
References
- ruin in Svensk ordbok (SO)
- ruin in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)
- ruin in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)
- ruin in Elof Hellquist, Svensk etymologisk ordbok (1st ed., 1922)
Anagrams
Tetum
Etymology
From Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *duRi (“thorn, splinter, fish bone”), akin to Agutaynen doli and Malay duri (“thorn”).
Noun
ruin
- bone
Source: wiktionary.org