1
2
: causing or tending to cause ruin
ruinously
adverb
ruinousness
noun
Synonyms
Examples of ruinous in a Sentence
The house has fallen into a ruinous state.
a ruinous miscalculation of the financial markets left them bankrupt
Recent Examples on the Web
But what Buber considered ruinous is what many fundamentalist Christians, knowingly or not, continue to prize: the idea that history is already written and that a state of permanent imminence not only exists in the future but also overlaps with our harsh or meaningless present.
—
Arthur Krystal, The New Yorker, 27 Jan. 2025
The government’s ruinous racial policies over the past half century were created primarily by executive order, not legislation, and what was done with the mere stroke of a presidential pen can be undone by the same means.
—The Editors, National Review, 23 Jan. 2025
After Trump threatened to impose ruinous 25% tariffs on all Canadian imports, Trudeau flew to Mar-a-Lago, hoping his charm would win the day.
—Stephen Maher, TIME, 7 Jan. 2025
The ruinous fires that occurred that year in Hawaii provided a stark lesson.
—Bloomberg, The Mercury News, 22 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for ruinous 
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Arthur Krystal, The New Yorker, 27 Jan. 2025
The government’s ruinous racial policies over the past half century were created primarily by executive order, not legislation, and what was done with the mere stroke of a presidential pen can be undone by the same means.
—The Editors, National Review, 23 Jan. 2025
After Trump threatened to impose ruinous 25% tariffs on all Canadian imports, Trudeau flew to Mar-a-Lago, hoping his charm would win the day.
—Stephen Maher, TIME, 7 Jan. 2025
The ruinous fires that occurred that year in Hawaii provided a stark lesson.
—Bloomberg, The Mercury News, 22 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for ruinous
Dictionary Entries Near ruinous
Cite this Entry
“Ruinous.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ruinous. Accessed 12 Feb. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
ruinous
adjective
ru·in·ous
ˈrü-ə-nəs 
: causing or tending to cause ruin : destructive
ruinously
adverb
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share