to scourge
1
9.1
- verb
- /ˈskaʊrdʒ/
- Formal
:
azotar
- The war scourged the country, leaving behind suffering and devastation.
- scourge the earth
Examples
-
Her small native village seemed to be worlds away from the violence-plagued, poverty-scourged ghetto she and the children now called home.
Fiction book (1995) -
We ought to scourge every tavernkeeper out of town into the river.
-
So many have died since this epidemic has scourged the world.
-
And leave these mongrels to scourge our land and our dignity?!
-
We move from land scourged by drought to the rolling ocean.
Fiction book (1995) -
Through vision quests, he had scourged his body and spirit with hunger and cold to let the knowledge in.
Fiction book (1996) -
Natural disasters such as hurricanes can scourge communities, causing significant destruction.
-
Many diseases scourge populations in the developing world, leading to high mortality rates.
Synonyms
221
4.9
To destroy something greatly or make people feel deeply shocked and sad
121
5.6
To cause constant trouble and suffering to people and things
107
7.2
To cause someone to feel great physical or mental pain
73
6.6
To damage a place or thing very badly
38
4.7
To destroy a place completely, leaving only ruins
30
8.7
To severely damage something so it cannot be used
12
7.9
To destroy a place and leave it ruined
1
7.2
Make a place empty and lifeless by destroying or leaving it
Compounds
- Literature
A name for Attila the Hun, the king who attacked the Roman Empire in the 400s
How Devastating
- Formal
1
9.1
221
4.9
∞
1.0
53
1.6
885
1.4
738
1.0
Surface Forms
Etymology
Scourge (verb) moved from the idea of a whip to a stronger image: from Latin excoriare 'to strip the skin', so to scourge a land is to cause great suffering or destruction.