depredation
/ˌdɛpɹəˈdeɪʃən/
depredation means an act of consuming agricultural resources (crops, livestock), especially as plunder. Lexicurio rates it Rare gem — a strength score of 82 out of 100.
depredation is pronounced /ˌdɛpɹəˈdeɪʃən/.
Why “depredation” is a great word
DEPREDATION — [Noun] An act of plundering, predatory attack, or destructive inroad, typically resulting in damage or loss. From Middle French déprédation, from Late Latin depraedationem (nominative depraedatio), from Latin depraedari ("to plunder thoroughly"), from de- ("thoroughly") + praedari ("to plunder"), from praeda ("booty, prey"). First attested in English in the late 15th century. Unlike "pillage," which emphasizes the violent seizure of goods in conflict, or "ravage," which centers on the ruin left behind, depredation names the predatory act itself—a systematic, consuming advance. It is the locust swarm darkening the sky over a ripe field, the silent termite hollowing a foundation beam, and the methodical stripping of copper from an abandoned factory. The word's particular melancholy lies in its marriage of intention and consequence, the cold fact that to live off prey is to leave a ruin behind.
Etymology
From Middle French déprédation, from Latin depraedatio.
noun
- An act of consuming agricultural resources (crops, livestock), especially as plunder.“An animal that produces only two to four young per year cannot suffer vast depredations on the adult population without drastic effects.”
- A raid or predatory attack.“Union Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman had long known that his fragile supply and communication lines through Tennessee were in serious jeopardy because of depredations by Forrest's cavalry raids. (Battle of Brice's Crossroads)”