self-destruct
Americanverb (used without object)
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to destroy itself or oneself.
The missile is built so that a malfunction will cause it to self-destruct.
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to cause itself or oneself to reach a state of collapse, dysfunction, confusion, or the like.
The committee is so disorganized it will probably self-destruct before it can accomplish anything.
adjective
verb
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(intr) to explode or disintegrate automatically as a result of pre-programming
the missile self-destructed
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to destroy oneself, one's reputation, etc, through one's habits or actions
I totally self-destructed with drugs
noun
Etymology
Origin of self-destruct
An Americanism dating back to 1965–70
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
His administration accelerated a computer attack called Stuxnet designed to destroy Iran’s nuclear program by forcing centrifuges to spin until they self-destructed.
Caspase-8 plays a central role in regulating immune responses and can trigger a process that causes a cell to self-destruct.
From Science Daily
"But it doesn't help our chances of success if Ben Stokes keeps encouraging our batsmen to attack, attack with one finger hovering over the self-destruct button," Boycott wrote in his Daily Telegraph column.
From Barron's
These shoot a virus such as herpes into tumors, causing them to self-destruct.
What makes Melissa unusual is that it stalled and intensified in the same spot -- a sign that the water was so warm, and the warmth ran so deep, it avoided the usual self-destructing effect.
From Barron's
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
