Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • transitive & intransitive verb To bring or fall into a state of partial ruin, decay, or disrepair.
  • transitive & intransitive verb Archaic To squander; waste.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • To bring into a ruinous condition; impair or reduce to a state of ruin; especially, to ruin by misuse or neglect.
  • To waste; squander
  • To give the appearance of dilapidation to.
  • To fall into partial or total ruin; fall by decay.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • intransitive verb To get out of repair; to fall into partial ruin; to become decayed.
  • transitive verb To bring into a condition of decay or partial ruin, by misuse or through neglect; to destroy the fairness and good condition of; -- said of a building.
  • transitive verb To impair by waste and abuse; to squander.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • verb To fall into ruin or disuse.
  • verb To cause to become ruined or put into disrepair.
  • verb figuratively To squander or waste.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • verb fall into decay or ruin
  • verb bring into a condition of decay or partial ruin by neglect or misuse

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Latin dīlapidāre, dīlapidāt-, to demolish, destroy : dī-, dis-, apart; see dis– + lapidāre, to throw stones (from lapis, lapid-, stone).]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Latin dilapidātus, past participle of dilapidō ("I destroy with stones"), from dis ("intensifier") + lapidō ("I stone"), from lapis ("stone")

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Examples

  • If you are left alone, that quality of education you are boasting about will crumble and dilapidate.

    Obama, Peres and Colbert on the Persian New Year - The Lede Blog - NYTimes.com 2009

  • The blatant lies of their elites continue to dilapidate the little crumbs that are still left, of what was once the "Great American Dream," - and has now become the "Great American Nightmare."

    Framing the $700 Billion Question 2008

  • The church of Elgin had, in the intestine tumults of the barbarous ages, been laid waste by the irruption of a highland chief, whom the bishop had offended; but it was gradually restored to the state, of which the traces may be now discerned, and was at last not destroyed by the tumultuous violence of Knox, but more shamefully suffered to dilapidate by deliberate robbery and frigid indifference.

    A Journey to the Western Isles of Scotland 2003

  • In this manner innumerable low ruffians have obtained the estates and houses of their lords; but, faithful to their old habits and early origin, they abuse only what they possess; live in the stables, and convert the castle into a barn, a granary, a brew-house, a manufactory, or sometimes dilapidate it brick by brick, as their convenience may require.

    Travels through the South of France and the Interior of Provinces of Provence and Languedoc in the Years 1807 and 1808 Lt-Col. Pinkney

  • They tax the country according to their pleasure, and dilapidate the estates of the

    A Legend of Montrose 1871

  • They were too prone to dilapidate and destroy their dwellings; they were therefore required to pay for the locks, cupboards, and doors.

    The History of Tasmania , Volume II John West 1840

  • The story of the second, or scapegoat, Virgil would be much damaged by the character given to the real bishop, if there were anything in it to dilapidate.

    A Budget of Paradoxes, Volume I (of II) Augustus De Morgan 1838

  • Dumouriez grumbles and they dilapidate abroad: within the walls there is sinning, and without the walls there is sinning.

    The French Revolution Thomas Carlyle 1838

  • It looks like Cheney/Bus Titus Pullo 11 minutes ago 11:24 AM "Iraq has been importing refined products since 2003 because of the dilapidate ­d refining sector and booming local demand."

    The Full Feed from HuffingtonPost.com The Huffington Post News Editors 2011

  • Taking a middle point of time between the Parthian revolution and the fatal overthrow of Forum Terebronii, we may fix upon the reign of Philip the Arab, [who naturalized himself in Rome by the appellation of Marcus Julius,] as the epoch from which the Roman empire, already sapped and undermined by changes from within, began to give way, and to dilapidate from without.

    The Caesars Thomas De Quincey 1822

Comments

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  • From the Latin, literally means take apart the stones.

    September 13, 2007

  • Would make a good threat. E.g. 'I'm gonna dilapidate your sorry ass!'

    May 2, 2008

  • Don't make me go all dilapidate on your sorry ass!

    May 2, 2008