English

Verb

lay waste ‎(third-person singular simple present lays waste, present participle laying waste, simple past and past participle laid waste)

1. (transitive) To completely destroy, especially of a geographical area or region.
   • 1990, Peter Hopkirk, The Great Game, Folio Society 2010, p. 16:

     Thirsting for revenge, his troops stormed the fortress of Kazan on the upper Volga in 1553, slaughtering the defenders just as the Mongols had done when they laid waste Russia's great cities.

Usage notes

Sometimes takes "to" instead of being simply transitive. Thus, "...they laid waste to Russia's great cities" would be an acceptable alternative to the quote above.

Translations