variants
or cataclysmic
1
as in disastrous
bringing about ruin or misfortune
a cataclysmal decision to plunge the nation into war
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in devastating
causing or tending to cause destruction
a cataclysmal landslide that virtually wiped out the village
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in turbulent
marked by sudden or violent disturbance
the French Revolution was one of the great cataclysmal events in modern history
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of cataclysmal
But that is how the future always feels during times of cataclysmic conflict.
—
Yair Rosenberg, The Atlantic, 30 Sep. 2025
In the cataclysmic civil war at Kuru-kshetra, both the divine Pandava brothers and their treacherous cousins, the Kauravas, end up breaking the rules of war to achieve victory at any cost.
—Seamus Sullivan
september 29, Literary Hub, 29 Sep. 2025
More than two dozen girls and counselors died after torrential rainfall and cataclysmic flooding ripped through parts of the camp in the predawn hours of July 4.
—Holly Yan, CNN Money, 24 Sep. 2025
Twenty-one years is a long time to run a restaurant nightly, through the Great Recession of 2008, through vandalism during the Black Lives Matter protests, through the COVID-19 epidemic, a cataclysmic event that caused tens of thousands of restaurants nationally to shut their doors for good.
—Eric Adler, Kansas City Star, 23 Sep. 2025
In this soft dystopia, our military forces will not be destroyed in a cataclysmic confrontation with the armies of Communism, as befell Nazi Germany on the Eastern Front.
—Seth Harp, Harpers Magazine, 19 Sep. 2025
The younger black hole, the product of a cataclysmic cosmic event known as a black hole merger, was first spotted in 2019.
—Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 16 Sep. 2025
Back then, many conservatives treated the Epstein files as a skeleton key promising cataclysmic revelations about elite depravity and corruption.
—Michelle Goldberg, Mercury News, 6 Sep. 2025
However, this peaceful present is only the result of the planet’s past cataclysmic events.
—Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 28 Aug. 2025
Yair Rosenberg, The Atlantic, 30 Sep. 2025
In the cataclysmic civil war at Kuru-kshetra, both the divine Pandava brothers and their treacherous cousins, the Kauravas, end up breaking the rules of war to achieve victory at any cost.
—Seamus Sullivan
september 29, Literary Hub, 29 Sep. 2025
More than two dozen girls and counselors died after torrential rainfall and cataclysmic flooding ripped through parts of the camp in the predawn hours of July 4.
—Holly Yan, CNN Money, 24 Sep. 2025
Twenty-one years is a long time to run a restaurant nightly, through the Great Recession of 2008, through vandalism during the Black Lives Matter protests, through the COVID-19 epidemic, a cataclysmic event that caused tens of thousands of restaurants nationally to shut their doors for good.
—Eric Adler, Kansas City Star, 23 Sep. 2025
In this soft dystopia, our military forces will not be destroyed in a cataclysmic confrontation with the armies of Communism, as befell Nazi Germany on the Eastern Front.
—Seth Harp, Harpers Magazine, 19 Sep. 2025
The younger black hole, the product of a cataclysmic cosmic event known as a black hole merger, was first spotted in 2019.
—Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 16 Sep. 2025
Back then, many conservatives treated the Epstein files as a skeleton key promising cataclysmic revelations about elite depravity and corruption.
—Michelle Goldberg, Mercury News, 6 Sep. 2025
However, this peaceful present is only the result of the planet’s past cataclysmic events.
—Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 28 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cataclysmal
Adjective
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Pittman, 63, was credited with stabilizing the program in the wake of the disastrous 4-20 run in two years under Chad Morris (2018-19), and had a 32-34 record in his first FBS head coaching job.—
Tom Murphy,
Arkansas Online,
28 Sep. 2025
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Inconsistencies in recent years, along with a disastrous 56-13 loss to Notre Dame on Saturday, spelled the end of Pittman's tenure at Arkansas.—
Reice Shipley,
MSNBC Newsweek,
28 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Unfortunately for the Giants, this win was marred by a devastating injury for superstar second-year wide receiver Malik Nabers.—
Matt Audilet,
MSNBC Newsweek,
29 Sep. 2025
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Lariosaurus valceresii was a small aquatic reptile that appeared shortly after the devastating Permian mass extinction 252 million years ago.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
29 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Palace’s results this season are all the more impressive on the back of a turbulent summer that was totally overshadowed by the decisions made by UEFA and the Court of Arbitration for Sport to demote the club from the Europa League to the Conference League.—
Stuart James,
New York Times,
29 Sep. 2025
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While hundreds of people who were arrested went free without charge during that turbulent year, prosecutors are now pointing to those past protests in a warning to people who hope to send a message about ICE.—
Andy Rose,
CNN Money,
28 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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The floods will return – and some will be catastrophic.—
Alaa Elassar,
CNN Money,
1 Oct. 2025
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The law defines catastrophic risk narrowly as incidents potentially causing 50+ deaths or $1 billion in damage through weapons assistance, autonomous criminal acts, or loss of control.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
30 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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The crossover came amid recent turmoil, including Colbert’s show being canceled by in July and Kimmel's temporary suspension by ABC in September following controversial comments about the fatal shooting of political activist Charlie Kirk.—
Megan Cartwright,
MSNBC Newsweek,
1 Oct. 2025
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And one expert has suggested that steel or concrete barriers can also help guard against deadly attacks like the one in Grand Blanc Township, as well as unintentional fatal wrecks and may even help businesses stave off plaintiff lawsuits.—
Frank Witsil,
Freep.com,
1 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Cataclysmal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cataclysmal. Accessed 6 Oct. 2025.
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