as in disasters
a sudden violent event that brings about great loss or destruction
this latest breakdown of the car is inconvenient, but not a calamity
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Recent Examples of calamities
To grade the 50 states and the District of Columbia on their relative natural disaster risks, five measures were developed that account for the frequency and damage of calamities, weighted against population and geographic size.
—
Jonathan Lansner,
Oc Register,
21 June 2026
In early times, most humans barely paid attention to weather calamities because the region was so sparsely populated.
—
Martin E. Comas,
The Orlando Sentinel,
14 June 2026
Madonna has made music through various calamities that at the time felt world-ending — wars, political unrest, financial collapse — so the terrors of 2026 don’t seem to faze her.
—
Scottie Andrew,
CNN Money,
2 June 2026
The winter had been a season of calamities, with one emergency or challenge after another.
—
Moira McCarthy,
Boston Herald,
10 May 2026
Farmers markets — that humble and charming throwback to a bygone era — are also struggling with higher fuel prices, after weathering the economic calamities of the pandemic and other misfortunes.
—
Andrew J. Campa,
Los Angeles Times,
9 May 2026
For certain great artists, Meis believes, the creative act is a safe harbor where life’s pressures, exigencies, and calamities aren’t so much denied or resolved as reimagined as pictorial dramas.
—
Jed Perl,
The New York Review of Books,
4 Apr. 2026
The difference is that those calamities were largely external shocks, as with the Iranian attacks, while censorship and draconian arrests are entirely self-made and self-defeating.
—
Charlie Campbell,
Time,
1 Apr. 2026
Colorado went 43-119, a record that belongs in a museum exhibit beside other modern-era calamities, behind glass.
—
Jenny Catlin,
New York Times,
25 Mar. 2026
Jonathan Lansner,
Oc Register,
21 June 2026
In early times, most humans barely paid attention to weather calamities because the region was so sparsely populated.
—
Martin E. Comas,
The Orlando Sentinel,
14 June 2026
Madonna has made music through various calamities that at the time felt world-ending — wars, political unrest, financial collapse — so the terrors of 2026 don’t seem to faze her.
—
Scottie Andrew,
CNN Money,
2 June 2026
The winter had been a season of calamities, with one emergency or challenge after another.
—
Moira McCarthy,
Boston Herald,
10 May 2026
Farmers markets — that humble and charming throwback to a bygone era — are also struggling with higher fuel prices, after weathering the economic calamities of the pandemic and other misfortunes.
—
Andrew J. Campa,
Los Angeles Times,
9 May 2026
For certain great artists, Meis believes, the creative act is a safe harbor where life’s pressures, exigencies, and calamities aren’t so much denied or resolved as reimagined as pictorial dramas.
—
Jed Perl,
The New York Review of Books,
4 Apr. 2026
The difference is that those calamities were largely external shocks, as with the Iranian attacks, while censorship and draconian arrests are entirely self-made and self-defeating.
—
Charlie Campbell,
Time,
1 Apr. 2026
Colorado went 43-119, a record that belongs in a museum exhibit beside other modern-era calamities, behind glass.
—
Jenny Catlin,
New York Times,
25 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for calamities
Noun
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Hanging Lake Trail in Glenwood Canyon CBS The project, led by a partnership of federal, state and local organizations, was designed to create a trail capable of withstanding future disasters while preserving the experience that has made Hanging Lake one of Colorado's most popular destinations.
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And some satellites are even able to watch over humanmade disasters, such as this one that caught Blue Origin's rocket explosion from space.
Noun
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Hardening operations to withstand those catastrophes is imperative for lowering risk.
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For example, that the economy is cratering, as was the case in Detroit, or that demand to live somewhere is falling for other reasons, like a rise in crime or natural catastrophes.
Noun
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But the real solution is mandatory speed limits in whale hot spots, which have been shown to dramatically reduce the risk of tragedies like this.
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Over 100 mourners gathered last week around a memorial of flowers and photos to remember two young sisters slain by their father — another in a frustratingly long line of domestic violence tragedies.
Noun
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Based on Thornton Wilder’s The Skin of Our Teeth, the surrealist musical follows one nuclear family across thousands of years and three apocalypses.
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And a lot of the pseudepigrapha, like the fake gospels and fake apocalypses, fill in gaps in the record that can serve latter-day, post-biblical purposes.
Cite this Entry
“Calamities.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/calamities. Accessed 26 Jun. 2026.
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