self-de·struct

(sĕlf′dĭ-strŭkt′)

A mechanism for causing a device to destroy itself.

intr.v. self-de·struct·ed, self-de·struct·ing, self-de·structs

To destroy oneself or itself: "died at 28, wasted from years of self-destructing on drugs" (Jack Kroll).

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

self-destruct

1. (intr) to explode or disintegrate automatically as a result of pre-programming: the missile self-destructed.

2. to destroy oneself, one's reputation, etc, through one's habits or actions: I totally self-destructed with drugs.

(as modifier): hit the self-destruct button.

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

self′-destruct′

v.i.

1. to destroy itself or oneself.

adj.

2. causing something to self-destruct.

[1965–70, Amer.]

self-destruct

Past participle: self-destructed
Gerund: self-destructing

Imperative
self-destruct
self-destruct

Present
I self-destruct
you self-destruct
he/she/it self-destructs
we self-destruct
you self-destruct
they self-destruct

Preterite
I self-destructed
you self-destructed
he/she/it self-destructed
we self-destructed
you self-destructed
they self-destructed

Present Continuous
I am self-destructing
you are self-destructing
he/she/it is self-destructing
we are self-destructing
you are self-destructing
they are self-destructing

Present Perfect
I have self-destructed
you have self-destructed
he/she/it has self-destructed
we have self-destructed
you have self-destructed
they have self-destructed

Past Continuous
I was self-destructing
you were self-destructing
he/she/it was self-destructing
we were self-destructing
you were self-destructing
they were self-destructing

Past Perfect
I had self-destructed
you had self-destructed
he/she/it had self-destructed
we had self-destructed
you had self-destructed
they had self-destructed

Future
I will self-destruct
you will self-destruct
he/she/it will self-destruct
we will self-destruct
you will self-destruct
they will self-destruct

Future Perfect
I will have self-destructed
you will have self-destructed
he/she/it will have self-destructed
we will have self-destructed
you will have self-destructed
they will have self-destructed

Future Continuous
I will be self-destructing
you will be self-destructing
he/she/it will be self-destructing
we will be self-destructing
you will be self-destructing
they will be self-destructing

Present Perfect Continuous
I have been self-destructing
you have been self-destructing
he/she/it has been self-destructing
we have been self-destructing
you have been self-destructing
they have been self-destructing

Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been self-destructing
you will have been self-destructing
he/she/it will have been self-destructing
we will have been self-destructing
you will have been self-destructing
they will have been self-destructing

Past Perfect Continuous
I had been self-destructing
you had been self-destructing
he/she/it had been self-destructing
we had been self-destructing
you had been self-destructing
they had been self-destructing

Conditional
I would self-destruct
you would self-destruct
he/she/it would self-destruct
we would self-destruct
you would self-destruct
they would self-destruct

Past Conditional
I would have self-destructed
you would have self-destructed
he/she/it would have self-destructed
we would have self-destructed
you would have self-destructed
they would have self-destructed

Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Verb

self-destruct - do away with oneself or itself; "The machine will self-destruct if you tamper with it"

self-destroy

destroy, destruct - do away with, cause the destruction or undoing of; "The fire destroyed the house"

Translations

self-destruct

[ˌselfdɪsˈtrʌkt] VI → autodestruirse

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

Mentioned in

References in classic literature

"I wonder if I can ever make her care for me," he thought, with a pang of self-destruct.

View in context

The S-200 missile that crashed into an area in the north in the early hours of Monday had likely self-destructed in the air, a geopolitical analyst has told the Cyprus Mail.

Missile most likely self-destructed in air

One landed in Syria; the other one self-destructed. Both missed their targets.

An Israeli David's Sling Missile Falls into Russian and Syrian Hands

"I allowed them to self-destruct, so all the media, all the people in the world went: 'Tottenham lost the title'."

CLOTTEN BURG; TOTTENHAM SECRETS BEHIND THAT MATCH; Ref admits he was soft on Spurs in fiery 2016 Chelsea clash as he didn't want the blame for their title collapse

Clattenburg told NBC's Men in Blazers podcast: "I allowed them (Spurs) to self-destruct so all the media, all the people in the world went, 'Tottenham lost the title'.

Referee 'let Spurs lose title'

Then, on January 26, the following news item showed up in her Artnet News feed: "First ever self-destruct novel launched by James Patterson." The Telegraph was reporting that for Au200,000 the famous writer was offering one avid reader a private lunch and a pre-release copy of Private Vegas that would explode.

Life Imitates Art / USPRwire

For the uninitiated, Snapchat is a photo-sharing app which allows users to send across photos and videos which can self-destruct after a limited time from being viewed.

Facebook to launch photo-sharing app to compete with Snapchat: Report

Celebrity scandals fueled by leaked text messages or emailed images inspired a new application to give users of Apple gadgets uncrackable communications that can be made to self-destruct.

Wickr gives iPhone messages military-grade protection

The self-destruct command was evidently sent after Flame was exposed and investigations commenced.

Flame spy virus gets order to vanish

If Raith win promotion, they have to be asking themselves why they should spend a quarter of a million quid on a self-destruct button.

SPL grass isn't always greener