different between wrecking vs devastation

English

Verb

wrecking

1. present participle of wreck

Noun

wrecking (plural wreckings)

1. The act by which something is wrecked.
   • 1850, The Edinburgh Review, Or Critical Journal (volume 91, page 93)

     The propriety of the dissolution, too, was speedily seen in the improved state of the public peace: for twelve years we hear little of Orange riots, and nothing of such burnings and wreckings as those of Maghera, Maghery, and Annahagh.

2. The taking of valuables from a shipwreck close to the shore.

English

Etymology

From Middle French dévastation.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?d?.v??ste?.??n/
• Rhymes: -e???n

Noun

devastation (countable and uncountable, plural devastations)

1. The act of devastating, or the state of being devastated; a laying waste.
   • 2012 October 31, David M. Halbfinger, "[1]," New York Times (retrieved 31 October 2012):

     Perhaps as startling as the sheer toll was the devastation to some of the state’s well-known locales. Boardwalks along the beach in Seaside Heights, Belmar and other towns on the Jersey Shore were blown away. Amusement parks, arcades and restaurants all but vanished. Bridges to barrier islands buckled, preventing residents from even inspecting the damage to their property.

2. (law) Waste or misapplication of the assets of a deceased person by an executor or administrator; devastavit.

   Synonym: devastavit

Translations