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delete

Calling delete on a query issues a single DELETE statement for every record it matches:

// Single DELETE statement — bypasses the model: no hooks, no `dependent: 'destroy'`
// cascade (database-level FK cascades still fire), and no soft delete, so the rows are
// permanently gone even on a `@SoftDelete()` model.
await LocalizedText.where({ localizable: host }).delete()

delete bypasses the model entirely — of the query-level writers, only delete() and the no-lock update(attrs, { skipHooks: true }) do. That means:

  • No lifecycle hooks run.
  • No dependent: 'destroy' cascade runs (though a database-level foreign key ON DELETE CASCADE, if one exists, still fires).
  • No soft delete applies — rows are permanently removed from the database even on a model decorated @SoftDelete().

When you want the model's lifecycle instead​

query.destroy(...), query.reallyDestroy(...), and query.undestroy(...) instantiate each matched record — even under { skipHooks: true } — so default scopes and any dependent: 'destroy' cascade still apply. Reach for these instead of delete when you need soft-delete semantics, cascading destroys, or lifecycle hooks to run. See destroying for the full instance- and association-level destroy reference.