means To damage something so badly it's beyond saving, or the broken remains left behind when that happens.

from From Latin 'ruina,' a falling-down or collapse, built on the verb 'ruere,' to rush, fall, or tumble headlong. It reached English through Old French 'ruine.' The same violent toppling sense lingers in 'ruinous' and in the cousin word 'rush' is unrelated, but the Latin 'ruere' also gave us the rare 'ruinate.' What began as the sound of something crashing down became the polite noun we use for crumbled abbeys and bankrupted fortunes alike.