уничто́жить
uničtóžitʹperfective
The English verb 'destroy' can be translated into Russian using уничто́жить (uničtóžitʹ). Wiktionary also lists уничтожа́ть (uničtožátʹ) and разруша́ть (razrušátʹ).
Meaning: to damage beyond use or repair (verb)
Ways to say it
| Russian | Romanization (Wiktionary) | Note |
|---|---|---|
| уничто́жить | uničtóžitʹ | perfective |
| уничтожа́ть | uničtožátʹ | imperfective |
| разруша́ть | razrušátʹ | imperfective |
| разру́шить | razrúšitʹ | perfective |
уничто́жить is the standard term for the total elimination or liquidation of something. It is used when the focus is on the complete annihilation of an object, a file, a population or an enemy.
Which one should you use?
Russian uses different words based on the type of destruction occurring. уничто́жить is the perfective form used when emphasizing the completed act of total annihilation or the destruction of evidence. In contrast, разру́шить is the perfective form used when the focus is on the physical demolition or ruining of structures, buildings or systems. The imperfective counterparts are уничтожа́ть and разруша́ть respectively.
How does it change in a sentence?
The masculine past tense form of the perfective verb уничто́жить is уничтожи́л.
How do you pronounce it?
uničtóžitʹ
Did you know?
- While уничто́жить means 'destroy', its root ничто́ means 'nothing'. Literally, to destroy something in Russian is to 'reduce it to nothing'.
- In Russian slang, the word разне́сти is often used instead of разру́шить to describe destroying a room or a place, but it also means to harshly criticize someone in an argument.
- The verb разру́шить is closely linked to the Russian word ру́ина, which is a direct loanword from the Latin 'ruina'. This connects the act of destroying a building to the ancient Roman terminology for falling debris.
Examples in context
- Война разрушила множество городов и деревень.War destroyed many cities and villages.
- Они решили уничто́жить все документы.Oni reshili unichtozhit' vse dokumenty.They decided to destroy all the documents.
- Война может уничто́жить целые города.Voyna mozhet unichtozhit' tselyye goroda.War can destroy entire cities.
- Ошибки могут уничто́жить твою репутацию.Oshibki mogut unichtozhit' tvoyu reputatsiyu.Mistakes can destroy your reputation.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “destroy” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
