El terremoto destruyó el edificio.

Because Spanish uses the definite article el before both nouns here:

• el terremoto = the earthquake
• el edificio = the building

In English, we also say the earthquake destroyed the building, so this matches quite closely.

In Spanish, articles are often used more regularly than in English, so seeing el twice is completely normal.

Destruyó is the preterite form, which is used for a completed action in the past:

• destruye = destroys / is destroying (present, depending on context)
• destruyó = destroyed (past, completed)

So El terremoto destruyó el edificio means the destruction happened and was completed in the past.

It is third person singular of destruir in the preterite.

That means it goes with:

• él = he
• ella = she
• usted = you (formal)
• or any singular noun, like el terremoto

So here:

• El terremoto = singular subject
• therefore destruyó = it destroyed

The accent mark shows the correct stress: des-tru-YÓ.

It is especially important here because it helps distinguish pronunciation and form. In this verb, the ending in the preterite for él/ella/usted is -yó:

• destruir → destruyó

Many verbs ending in -uir behave like this in some forms:

• construyó = built
• incluyó = included
• huyó = fled

So the accent is a normal part of the spelling of this tense form.

Because destruir belongs to a group of verbs ending in -uir that change slightly in some conjugations.

In the preterite, the i changes to y in certain forms:

• yo destruí
• tú destruiste
• él/ella/usted destruyó
• nosotros destruimos
• vosotros destruisteis
• ellos/ustedes destruyeron

This happens to avoid awkward vowel combinations and is simply part of the verb pattern.

Yes, in this case terremoto is masculine, and that fits the common pattern that nouns ending in -o are often masculine.

So:

• el terremoto

But remember: endings are only a tendency, not a perfect rule. Still, terremoto is definitely masculine.

Yes. That means The building was destroyed by the earthquake.

It is grammatically correct, but it is a passive structure. Spanish often prefers the more direct active version:

• El terremoto destruyó el edificio.

This is usually more natural and common in everyday Spanish.

So both are correct, but the original sentence is simpler and more typical.

This follows the basic subject + verb + object order:

• El terremoto = subject
• destruyó = verb
• el edificio = direct object

This is the same basic order as English:

• The earthquake destroyed the building

Spanish can sometimes change word order for emphasis, but this neutral order is the most straightforward one.

You know because of both meaning and verb agreement.

• El terremoto is singular and matches the verb destruyó
• el edificio is the thing receiving the action

So:

• the earthquake does the destroying
• the building receives the destruction

That makes el terremoto the subject and el edificio the direct object.

In Spain, edificio is pronounced approximately eh-dee-FEE-thyo.

A few helpful points:

• the stress is on fi: e-di-FI-cio
• in much of Spain, ci is pronounced like thyo in this word
• in Latin America, it is usually more like syo

So:

• Spain: eh-dee-FEE-thyo
• much of Latin America: eh-dee-FEE-syo

Yes, grammatically it could, because Spanish often drops subject pronouns and sometimes even noun subjects when the context is clear.

• Destruyó el edificio = Destroyed the building / It destroyed the building

But without context, that sentence is less clear because we do not know who or what destroyed it. Including El terremoto makes the sentence complete and clear.

The infinitive is destruir, which means to destroy.

So the sentence breaks down like this:

• el terremoto = the earthquake
• destruyó = destroyed
• el edificio = the building

A learner will often want to recognize that destruyó comes from destruir, since the spelling changes a little in the preterite.