cataclysm

noun

cat·​a·​clysm ˈka-tə-ˌkli-zəm 

1

: flood, deluge

2

: catastrophe sense 3a

3

: a momentous and violent event marked by overwhelming upheaval and demolition

broadly : an event that brings great changes

an international economic cataclysm

cataclysmal

ˌka-tə-ˈkliz-məl 

adjective

or cataclysmic

ˌka-tə-ˈkliz-mik 

cataclysmically

ˌka-tə-ˈkliz-mi-k(ə-)lē 

adverb

Synonyms

• flood
• torrent

Examples of cataclysm in a Sentence

floods, earthquakes, and other cataclysms

The country barely survived the cataclysm of war.

The revolution could result in worldwide cataclysm.

Recent Examples on the Web

The travelers that interested her were not those seeking plain or ordinary pleasures but those chasing a profound personal cataclysm. —Nicole Flattery, Harpers Magazine, 19 Sep. 2025

Ours is a geography of cataclysm: Santa Anas wreak their psychic wrath; the odor of disaster seeps from the street like that sulfurous egg smell of the La Brea Tar Pits. —John Lopez, HollywoodReporter, 6 Sep. 2025

In eras past, the re-assignment of a Bosley Crowther in film or a Frank Rich in theater would have prompted a cataclysm from the readership. —Peter Bart, Deadline, 17 July 2025

Humanity has been dealing with nefarious arch-villains, fire-breathing kaiju and world-ending cataclysms caused by forces beyond human comprehension for centuries. —Adam B. Vary, Variety, 12 July 2025

Word History

Etymology

French cataclysme, from Latin cataclysmos, from Greek kataklysmos, from kataklyzein to inundate, from kata- + klyzein to wash — more at clyster

First Known Use

1599, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for cataclysm

• alyssum
• aneurysm

Kids Definition

cataclysm

noun

cat·​a·​clysm ˈkat-ə-ˌkliz-əm 

1

: a great flood

2

: a violent and destructive natural event (as an earthquake)

3

: a violent social or political change

cataclysmal

ˌkat-ə-ˈkliz-məl 

adjective

or cataclysmic

-mik