destruyó
“destruyó” means “destroyed” in Spanish ((he/she/it/you formal) demolished).
destroyed, ruined
Also: wrecked
📝 In Action
El fuego destruyó la mitad del bosque.
A2The fire destroyed half of the forest.
Él destruyó todas las pruebas antes de que llegara la policía.
B1He destroyed all the evidence before the police arrived.
¿Quién destruyó el proyecto de arte? ¡Era hermoso!
B1Who ruined the art project? It was beautiful!
Usted destruyó la confianza que teníamos en usted.
B2You (formal) shattered the trust we had in you.
🔄 Conjugations
subjunctive
imperfect
present
indicative
preterite
imperfect
present
✏️ Quick Practice
Quick Quiz: destruyó
Question 1 of 2
Which of these sentences correctly uses 'destruyó'?
📚 More Resources
👥 Word Family▼
🎵 Rhymes▼
📚 Etymology▼
Comes from the Latin verb *destruere*, meaning 'to unbuild' or 'to tear down.' The root *struere* means 'to build' or 'to pile up,' and the prefix *de-* reverses that action.
First recorded: 13th century
Cognates (Related words)
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Frequently Asked Questions
Why is there an accent mark on the 'ó' in destruyó?
The accent mark is required because 'destruyó' is in the simple past (preterite) tense, third-person singular. In Spanish, all simple past forms ending in 'ó' must carry an accent to show where the stress falls.
Does 'destruyó' mean the action is still happening?
No. 'Destruyó' uses the simple past tense, which means the destroying action started and finished completely at a specific point in the past.