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After the debacle of his first novel, he had trouble getting a publisher for his next book.
the financial debacle that was the stock market crash of 1929
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'debacle.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Debacle comes from the French noun débâcle, which comes from the verb débâcler, meaning "to clear," "to unbolt," or "to unbar." That verb is from Middle French desbacler, which joined the prefix des- (equivalent to our de-, meaning "to do the opposite of") with the verb "bacler" ("to block"). In its original uses, "debacle" meant a breaking up of ice, or the rush of ice or water that follows such an occurrence. Eventually, "debacle" was used also to mean "a violent, destructive flood." Naturally, such uses led to meanings such as "a breaking up," "collapse," and finally "disaster" or "fiasco."
bomb, bummer, bust, catastrophe, clinker, clunker, disaster, dud, failure, fiasco, fizzle, flop, frost, lemon, loser, miss, turkey, washout;
blockbuster, hit, smash, success, winner;
corker, crackerjack (also crackajack), dandy, jim-dandy, phenomenon;
also-ran, disappointment, dog, has-been, near miss;
: a great disaster or complete failure
See words that rhyme with debacle Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for debacle Spanish Central: Translation of debacle Nglish: Translation of debacle for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of debacle for Arabic speakers
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