as in disastrous
bringing about ruin or misfortune
a catastrophic tornado destroyed the hamlet's only house of worship
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Recent Examples of catastrophic
In 2009, 36-year-old Diane Schuler drove her minivan in the wrong direction on the Taconic State Parkway, resulting in a catastrophic collision with an SUV that killed herself, her daughter, three nieces, and three people in the other vehicle.
—
James Mercadante, Entertainment Weekly, 4 June 2026
Anywhere some of those choices turn out to be catastrophic mistakes.
—Thomas Lake, AJC.com, 4 June 2026
In Massachusetts, hospitalizations for septicemia — the body’s catastrophic response to infection, a condition that is genuinely life-threatening and expensive to treat — have more than tripled since 2010, reaching more than 42,000 cases in the year ending last September.
—Darshak Sanghavi, STAT, 3 June 2026
Frustrated at the lack of evidence and feeling the heat of the gutter press, their determination to hone in on their sole suspect would be laughable if not for the catastrophic consequences.
—Jon O'Brien, IndieWire, 3 June 2026
The federal government bailed out Fannie and Freddie in September 2008 to stave off catastrophic losses during the financial crisis, and their future has been a conundrum for policymakers in Washington ever since.
—Bloomberg, Oc Register, 3 June 2026
This isn’t some precautionary move—metal debris left in the engine during assembly is causing sudden and catastrophic failure, a previous attempt to stop it didn’t work, and so far Toyota has had to replace engines for free.
—Joel Feder, The Drive, 3 June 2026
Still, that catastrophic stretch means every loss now puts the Tigers one game closer to effectively ending their season, leaving them with no choice but to trade Tarik Skubal later this summer.
—Cody Stavenhagen, New York Times, 3 June 2026
Meanwhile, in the ‘Before Times,’ journalist Helen Drew (Jessica Henwick) and Congressman Daniel Keene (Ashley Zukerman) uncover a conspiracy that pulls them into a chain of events with catastrophic, irreversible consequences.
—ArsTechnica, 2 June 2026
James Mercadante, Entertainment Weekly, 4 June 2026
Anywhere some of those choices turn out to be catastrophic mistakes.
—Thomas Lake, AJC.com, 4 June 2026
In Massachusetts, hospitalizations for septicemia — the body’s catastrophic response to infection, a condition that is genuinely life-threatening and expensive to treat — have more than tripled since 2010, reaching more than 42,000 cases in the year ending last September.
—Darshak Sanghavi, STAT, 3 June 2026
Frustrated at the lack of evidence and feeling the heat of the gutter press, their determination to hone in on their sole suspect would be laughable if not for the catastrophic consequences.
—Jon O'Brien, IndieWire, 3 June 2026
The federal government bailed out Fannie and Freddie in September 2008 to stave off catastrophic losses during the financial crisis, and their future has been a conundrum for policymakers in Washington ever since.
—Bloomberg, Oc Register, 3 June 2026
This isn’t some precautionary move—metal debris left in the engine during assembly is causing sudden and catastrophic failure, a previous attempt to stop it didn’t work, and so far Toyota has had to replace engines for free.
—Joel Feder, The Drive, 3 June 2026
Still, that catastrophic stretch means every loss now puts the Tigers one game closer to effectively ending their season, leaving them with no choice but to trade Tarik Skubal later this summer.
—Cody Stavenhagen, New York Times, 3 June 2026
Meanwhile, in the ‘Before Times,’ journalist Helen Drew (Jessica Henwick) and Congressman Daniel Keene (Ashley Zukerman) uncover a conspiracy that pulls them into a chain of events with catastrophic, irreversible consequences.
—ArsTechnica, 2 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for catastrophic
Adjective
-
The study, published on May 31, highlights an ongoing trend toward wildfires becoming increasingly extreme, costly, and disastrous — both economically and in lives lost.—
Doyle Rice,
USA Today,
31 May 2026
-
Leigh Ann, boy, so striking to hear the former first lady talk about that disastrous debate performance.—
NBC news,
NBC news,
31 May 2026
Adjective
-
Iyo Sky, Roxanne Perez, Giulia and Lash Legend squared off in a fatal four-way match with a spot in the semifinals waiting for the winner.—
Ryan Gaydos,
FOXNews.com,
2 June 2026
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Underscoring the stakes for Louisville residents is the March fatal shooting of a 28-year-old woman named Katelyn Hall, who was experiencing a mental health crisis when police gunned her down in her own apartment.—
Topher Sanders,
ProPublica,
2 June 2026
Adjective
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There’s no question that this unfortunate cocktail of corruption, inefficiency, and simple incompetence is holding the country back.—
Daniel Alarcón,
New Yorker,
4 June 2026
-
Unfortunately, going cold turkey off a central nervous system depressant like GHB has some pretty unfortunate side-effects.—
Bethy Squires,
Vulture,
3 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Catastrophic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/catastrophic. Accessed 7 Jun. 2026.
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