Decimate vs. Destroy — What's the Difference?

To destroy or kill a large part of (a group of people or organisms).

To break apart the structure of, render physically unusable, or cause to cease to exist as a distinguishable physical entity

To inflict great destruction or damage on

To put an end to; eliminate

To reduce markedly in amount

To render useless or ruin

To select by lot and kill one in every ten of (a group of soldiers).

To put to death; kill

(archaic) To kill one-tenth of a group, as a military punishment in the Roman army selected by lot, usually carried out by the surviving soldiers.

To subdue or defeat completely; crush

To destroy or remove one-tenth of anything.

To cause emotional trauma to; devastate

(loosely) To devastate: to reduce or destroy significantly but not completely.

To be destructive; cause destruction

(obsolete) To exact a tithe or other 10% tax

(ambitransitive) To damage beyond use or repair.

To tithe: to pay a 10% tax.

(transitive) To neutralize, undo a property or condition.

(obsolete) To decimalize: to divide into tenths, hundredths, etc.

(transitive) To put down or euthanize.

(proscribed) To reduce to one-tenth: to destroy or remove nine-tenths of anything.

(transitive) To severely disrupt the well-being of (a person); ruin.

(computer graphics) To replace a high-resolution model with another of lower but acceptable quality.

To defeat soundly.

(obsolete) A tithe or other 10% tax or payment.

To remove data.

(obsolete) A tenth of something.

To sing a song poorly.

(obsolete) A set of ten items.

To exhaust duly and thus recreate or build up.

To take the tenth part of; to tithe.

To penetrate sexually in an aggressive way.

To select by lot and punish with death every tenth man of; as, to decimate a regiment as a punishment for mutiny.

To unbuild; to pull or tear down; to separate virulently into its constituent parts; to break up the structure and organic existence of; to demolish.

To destroy a considerable part of; as, to decimate an army in battle; to decimate a people by disease.

To ruin; to bring to naught; to put an end to; to annihilate; to consume.

Kill one in every ten, as of mutineers in Roman armies

To put an end to the existence, prosperity, or beauty of; to kill.

Kill in large numbers;

Do away with, cause the destruction or undoing of;

Destroy completely; damage irreparably;

Defeat soundly;

As of animals;