demolition

Definition

The process of demolishing or destroying buildings or other structures.

Etymology

From Old French demolition, from Latin dēmōlītiō (“a tearing down”). Equivalent to demolish + -ion.

Example Sentences

• "During the war, but unrecorded because of the requirements of censorship, a link with the now partly-abandoned Cardiff Railway disappeared with the demolition of Rhydyfelin Viaduct, near Treforest, South Wales, in the latter part of 1942. The steelwork in this structure, amounting to nearly 1,150 tons, was salvaged as scrap metal to assist the war effort."
• "At Kiwi, 40 miles from Nelson [New Zealand], eight women installed themselves in the goods shed, taking with them their knitting, and a supply of food and magazines. The demolition crew was unable to pull the building down without injuring them."