destructor

noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"destructor" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“destructor” is uncommon English (frequency #74,893 among 26,416 “D” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#74,893
frequency rank, English
26,416
“D” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - One who destructs.

Key facts for destructor
PropertyValue
Headworddestructor
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters10
Frequency rank#74,893
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “destructor” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). destructor lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

destructor is uncommon English at frequency #74,893 among 26,416 “D” headwords, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

destructor doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. Our dataset records no confusable match here, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

Etymologically, the entry records: From destruct + -or. The correct English form is destructor, spelled D-E-S-T-R-U-C-T-O-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    One who destructs.
  2. 2
    A furnace or oven for the burning or carbonizing of refuse.
  3. 3
    A function that runs when an object is no longer required, used to release any resources that it was using.

Etymology

From destruct + -or.

This word in other languages

destructor(Español)destructeur(Français)Zerstörer(Deutsch)destruidor(Português)

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "destructor"?
"destructor" is spelled D-E-S-T-R-U-C-T-O-R.
What does "destructor" mean?
As a noun, "destructor" means: One who destructs.
What is the origin of the word "destructor"?
From destruct + -or. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “destructor”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is D-E-S-T-R-U-C-T-O-R - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words

Other uncommon English words near this rank

Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list