raze to the ground

R

raze to the ground

Meaning

• destroy or demolish.
• tear down something, often a building, to ground level.
• delete
• erase
• level
• annihilate

Example Sentences

1. We will raze the old, rickety building to the ground.
2. The wildfire ravaged the town and razed several buildings to the ground.
3. The council razed the old city hall to the ground.
4. The bombing raid razed the town to the ground.
5. The fire razed several buildings in the school to the ground.
6. Developers razed the old buildings to the ground to construct modern ones.
7. Shopping centers are constructed in ways that make them straightforward to raze.
8. The city decided to eliminate the “El” tracks running across the bridge and raze the transport terminals at either end.
9. The slums in this city are an eyesore, and it is best to raze them to the ground.
10. No one can forget the sight of families fleeing for their lives during the war, their villages and homes razed to the ground.
11. At least 20 ancient buildings should be razed to the ground.

Origin

The idiom “raze to the ground” traces its origins to the 16th century. Henry Howard, the Earle of Surrey, used the word “razed” in Aeneid II in 1547. William Shakespeare also used it in 1592 in Henry VI, Part II. It comes from the term “rasen,” which means to erase or scrape. The word “raze” sounds similar to “erase,” which can help one remember its meaning. Once something is razed, it has been erased in a way. It does not exist in its former form. The earliest example of the precise phrase “raze to the ground” is found in The Glory of England, a book that Thomas Gainsford wrote in 1620.

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