catastrophe

noun

kə-ˈta-strə-(ˌ)fē How to pronounce catastrophe (audio)
Definition of catastrophenext
1
as in disaster
a sudden violent event that brings about great loss or destruction more than one natural catastrophe has threatened to destroy their farm over the years

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in failure
something that has failed the movie was a catastrophe, nearly bankrupting the studio that produced it

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of catastrophe Both sides blame each other for bringing the city to the brink of a humanitarian catastrophe. — Samya Kullab, Los Angeles Times, 19 Oct. 2026 With that in mind, here’s a look at three new books shaped by catastrophes large and small. — Lisa Henricksson, Air Mail, 17 Oct. 2026 This is the kind of situation that can rapidly spiral into a humanitarian catastrophe if assistance cannot move safely and reach those who need it most. — Mark Osborne, CBS News, 14 Oct. 2026 This palette also has a latch tab that locks the lid in place, avoiding any potential catastrophes. — Elleanna Revell, Condé Nast Traveler, 14 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for catastrophe
Recent Examples of Synonyms for catastrophe
  1. disaster
  2. failure
  3. tragedy
  4. apocalypse
  5. calamity
Noun
  • Residents, meanwhile, can give firefighters the best shot at stopping a potential disaster by clearing flammable vegetation in their yards and fire-hardening their homes.
    — Noah Haggerty, Los Angeles Times, 22 Oct. 2026
  • The goal, ultimately, is not to eat our way out of an ecological disaster.
    — Victoria Malloy, Time, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of disaster
Noun
  • Even if Theranos had a functioning testing machine, the economic model on which is was based would result in failure.
    — Torie Bosch, STAT, 24 Oct. 2026
  • Even among voters who want Republicans to retain control, 17% cited weak AI and data center oversight — second only to a failure to bring down prices.
    — Luke Fountain, CNBC, 24 Oct. 2026
Definition of failure
Noun
  • The tragedy is the deadliest among those that have claimed thousands of lives in recent decades as people attempt to cross the border from Mexico.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 21 Oct. 2026
  • Those deaths, those tragedies, unimaginable losses, became my win.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 20 Oct. 2026
Definition of tragedy
Noun
  • The bell, sans artist, continues to mark the passage of time, ringing every hour over the pavilion and its guests, a grotesque altar to the ongoing Venetian apocalypse.
    — Tessa Solomon, ARTnews.com, 21 Oct. 2026
  • Kayla Cottingham’s This Delicious Death is a fresh, fun, sapphic entry into the zombie apocalypse catalog.
    — Rebekah Faubion, PEOPLE, 17 Oct. 2026
Definition of apocalypse
Noun
  • In Eatontown, Daunt got out of the car in a strip mall, to contemplate a mild calamity.
    — Nathan Heller, New Yorker, 19 Oct. 2026
  • Further calamity struck in June 2023 when floodwaters inundated the city after the Kakhovka Dam collapsed from an explosion that an Associated Press investigation found was likely caused by the Russian military, killing hundreds of residents.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 17 Oct. 2026
Definition of calamity

Browse Nearby Words

cat (around)
catastrophe
catastrophes
See all Nearby Words

Podcast

Cite this Entry

“Catastrophe.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/catastrophe. Accessed 26 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on catastrophe

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about catastrophe

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of disparate

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Can' vs. 'May'

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE
See More

Popular

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
different halloween monsters in silhouette
A Monstrous Vocab Quiz Words That Go Bump in the Night
See All