Démolir (en. Demolish)

/de.mɔ.lir/

Meaning & Definition

EnglishFrench
verb
To completely destroy something, to be the cause of its destruction.
They had to demolish the old building to construct a new project.
Ils ont dû démolir l'ancien immeuble pour construire un nouveau projet.
To render obsolete or worthless.
This critique demolished all of the opponent's arguments.
Cette critique a démoli tous les arguments de l'opposant.
To annihilate, to break in a figurative sense.
His poor performance demolished his chances of success.
Sa mauvaise performance a démoli ses chances de succès.

Etymology

Originating from the Latin 'demoliri', which means 'to destroy'.

Common Phrases and Expressions

to demolish a reputation
To destroy someone's image or reputation.
démolir une réputation
to demolish an argument
To contradict and render insignificant a limited argument.
démolir un argument
to get demolished
To be severely criticized.
se faire démolir

Related Words

demolition
The act of demolishing, destruction of a building.
démolition
demolisher
A person who demolishes, often a professional.
démolisseur
demolisseur
A device used to demolish structures.
demolisseur

Slang Meanings

To crush or destroy someone in a debate.
He demolished his opponent during the discussion.
Il a démoli son adversaire lors de la discussion.
To quickly cause a project or plan to fail.
These new rules will demolish our project.
Ces nouvelles règles vont démolir notre projet.