calamitous

adjective

ca·​lam·​i·​tous kə-ˈla-mə-təs 

: being, causing, or accompanied by calamity

calamitous events

a calamitous earthquake

calamitously adverb

Synonyms

• cataclysmal
• cataclysmic
• catastrophic
• damning
• destructive
• disastrous
• fatal
• fateful
• ruinous
• unfortunate

Examples of calamitous in a Sentence

the calamitous state of the nation's economy

a calamitous decision to sell their products online exclusively ruined the business

Recent Examples on the Web

They had just been relegated to the fifth tier of English football and were reeling from three years of calamitous mismanagement under Italian businessman Francesco Becchetti. —Matt Slater, New York Times, 30 Apr. 2025

In the United States alone, several popular tourism destinations are in varying stages of recovery following calamitous natural disasters. —Shoshi Parks, Smithsonian Magazine, 14 Apr. 2025

Will Belinda and the Doctor gradually pick up on clues to our big blue marble’s calamitous fate? —Matt Webb Mitovich, TVLine, 12 Apr. 2025

Red-hot at the time, Fif swoops in with a verse that could never top the calamitous theatrics that Elliott brought to the original. —Steven J. Horowitz, Vulture, 11 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Middle French & Latin; Middle French calamiteux "suffering misfortune, miserable," borrowed from Latin calamitōsus "liable to damage or disaster, afflicted by disaster, ill-starred, involving damage or disaster, ruinous," by haplology from *calamitātōsus, from calamitāt-, calamitās "disaster, misfortune, calamity" + -ōsus -ous

First Known Use

1545, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

calamitous

adjective

ca·​lam·​i·​tous kə-ˈlam-ət-əs 

: causing or accompanied by calamity

calamitous events

calamitously adverb

calamitousness noun