different between demolish vs lay_waste

English

Etymology

Attested since the 16th century; from Middle French demoliss-, the stem of some conjugated forms of the verb demolir (“to destroy”, “to tear down”), from Latin d?m?lior (“I tear down”).

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /d??m?l.??/

Verb

demolish (third-person singular simple present demolishes, present participle demolishing, simple past and past participle demolished)

1. To destroy.
2. (transitive, figuratively) To defeat or consume utterly (as a theory, belief or opponent).
   • 1992, Robert Rankin, The Antipope (page 68)

     The Captain folded his brow into a look of intense perplexity. 'You seem exceedingly spry for a man who demolished an entire bottle of brandy and better part of an ounce of shag in a single evening.'
     'And very nice too,' said the tramp. 'Now as to breakfast?'

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:destroy

Related terms

• demolition

Translations

References

• Douglas Harper (2001–2021) , “demolish”, in Online Etymology Dictionary

Anagrams

• modelish

English

Verb

lay waste (third-person singular simple present lays waste, present participle laying waste, simple past and past participle laid waste)

1. (transitive) To completely destroy, especially of a geographical area or region.
   • 1990, Peter Hopkirk, The Great Game, Folio Society 2010, p. 16:

     Thirsting for revenge, his troops stormed the fortress of Kazan on the upper Volga in 1553, slaughtering the defenders just as the Mongols had done when they laid waste Russia's great cities.

Usage notes

Sometimes takes "to" instead of being simply transitive. Thus, "...they laid waste to Russia's great cities" would be an acceptable alternative to the quote above.

Translations

Verb

lay waste

1. simple past tense of lie waste