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
There's also the brute force approach, triggering chains of cataclysmic explosions to get the deconstruction rolling.
—
Alan Bradley, Space.com, 7 Oct. 2025
With war looming and chaos consuming the kingdom — drawing in the ruthless kings of other Scandinavian countries and even a powerful English ruler — the stage is set for a thundering, cataclysmic, compelling and utterly magical new Norse Saga.
—Rosy Cordero, Deadline, 6 Oct. 2025
One of them was Segar, his former coworker, who was in the middle of his workday and didn’t have the bandwidth to engage with Jon’s fantasies about a cataclysmic event.
—Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 1 Oct. 2025
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
Alan Bradley, Space.com, 7 Oct. 2025
With war looming and chaos consuming the kingdom — drawing in the ruthless kings of other Scandinavian countries and even a powerful English ruler — the stage is set for a thundering, cataclysmic, compelling and utterly magical new Norse Saga.
—Rosy Cordero, Deadline, 6 Oct. 2025
One of them was Segar, his former coworker, who was in the middle of his workday and didn’t have the bandwidth to engage with Jon’s fantasies about a cataclysmic event.
—Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 1 Oct. 2025
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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cataclysmal
Adjective
-
Moulton’s Senate primary rationale, stated or otherwise, rests on the enduring public image of former President Joe Biden, who withdrew from his 2024 reelection bid after a disastrous debate against Trump revealed limitations of being in office at age 82 and beyond.—
David Mark,
The Washington Examiner,
3 Oct. 2025
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No one has been sent home or saved because of a disastrous technical.—
Brian Moylan,
Vulture,
3 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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That’s a devastating blow because Pionk’s second-pair success is somewhat dependent on having Samberg as his partner.—
Harman Dayal,
New York Times,
7 Oct. 2025
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That devastating loss solidified the TV personality’s resolve to use her platform not just as entertainment, but as a lifeline to stand beside fellow survivors and to create tangible resources through her non-profit, the Big Heart Foundation.—
Essence,
Essence,
6 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
This rapid descent keeps the drone stable in turbulent air and minimizes wind interference.—
Sujita Sinha,
Interesting Engineering,
6 Oct. 2025
-
But the recent shift from season 50 to season 51, which premiered on Saturday, was even more turbulent.—
Ryan Coleman,
Entertainment Weekly,
5 Oct. 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 9 Oct. 2025.
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