Verb

(undermin)

To dig underneath (something), to make a passage or for destructive or military purposes; to sap.

* 2009 , (Diarmaid MacCulloch), A History of Christianity , Penguin 2010, p. 312:

Martin, for instance, had on one occasion undermined a tree sacred to old gods, then stood in the path of its fall, but forced it to fall elsewhere by making the sign of the Cross.

(figuratively) To weaken or work against; to hinder, sabotage.

* {{quote-news, year=2012, date=April 19, author=Josh Halliday, work=the Guardian

, title= Free speech haven or lawless cesspool – can the internet be civilised? , passage=The growing use of social media to spread anger and dissent in the Arab world has been hailed by western governments as one of the chief justifications for a completely unfettered internet. The US is reportedly funding the secret rollout of technology in Iran in an effort to undermine internet censors in the country.}}

Verb

To damage beyond use or repair.

The earthquake destroyed several apartment complexes.

To cause destruction.

''Hooligans destroy unprovoked

To neutralize, undo a property or condition.

''Smoking destroys the natural subtlety of the palate

To put down or euthanize.

Destroying a rabid dog is required by law.

(colloquial) To defeat soundly.

(computing) To remove data.

The memory leak happened because we forgot to destroy the temporary lists.