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PlainSpell

ravage

/ˈɹævɪd͡ʒ/verb, noun

ravage is spelled R-A-V-A-G-E: 6 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 3 million words in written English, the 48,230th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, ravage means “To devastate, destroy or lay waste to something” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).

How many letters and syllables are in ravage?

Letters6: R-A-V-A-G-E
Syllables2 (from its American pronunciation)
In writingabout once in every 3 million words; the 48,230th most frequent word form
Wrong spellings searchednone measured in search

Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).

How common is ravage?

Ravage appears about once in every 3 million words in written English, the 48,230th most frequent word form in the list.

Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).

How do you pronounce ravage?

  • /ˈɹævɪd͡ʒ/

Ravage has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-ravage.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).

Forms of ravage

  • ravages present, singular, he/she/it, plural
  • ravaging participle, present
  • ravaged participle, past

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What does ravage mean?

The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).

verb

  1. 1

    To devastate, destroy or lay waste to something.

  2. 2

    To pillage or plunder destructively; to sack.

  3. 3

    To wreak destruction.

  4. 4

    slangTo have vigorous sexual intercourse with.

  5. 5

    slangTo rape.

noun

  1. 1

    Grievous damage or havoc.

  2. 2

    Depredation or devastation.

    the ravages of fire or tempest

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

Ravage in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese

LanguageWords
Frenchravager (to devastate, destroy or lay waste to something)
Germanverwüsten, zerstören (to devastate, destroy or lay waste to something), Verwüstung (depredation or devastation)
Portuguesedevastar (to devastate, destroy or lay waste to something), devastação (depredation or devastation), saquear (to pillage or plunder destructively), arruinar (to wreak destruction), estrago (grievous damage or havoc)
Spanishestragar, arrasar, asolar, desfigurar, devastar (to devastate, destroy or lay waste to something), estrago (grievous damage or havoc)

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.

Where does ravage come from?

From French ravage (“ravage, havoc, spoil”), from ravir (“to bear away suddenly”), from Latin rapere (“to snatch, seize”), akin to Ancient Greek ἁρπάζω (harpázō, “to seize”).

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

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