Synonyms of catastrophic

catastrophic

adjective

as in disastrous

bringing about ruin or misfortune

a catastrophic tornado destroyed the hamlet's only house of worship

Synonyms & Similar Words

• disastrous
• fatal
• unfortunate
• destructive
• calamitous
• ruinous
• fateful
• damning
• apocalyptic
• cataclysmal
• adverse
• damaging
• detrimental
• harmful
• deleterious
• hapless
• injurious
• pernicious
• luckless
• evil
• baneful
• ill-fated
• prejudicial
• ill-starred
• hurtful
• noxious
• baleful
• ill

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• fortuitous
• happy
• fortunate
• lucky
• providential
• fluky
• promising
• optimistic
• fair
• golden
• hopeful
• bright
• rosy
• encouraging
• propitious
• auspicious
• upbeat
• heartening
• rose-colored

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of catastrophic

The honest tension is that this speed and coherence has not extended to what China exports through open weights and the Digital Silk Road, where catastrophic-risk evaluation still lags US and international peer efforts. — Ashish Bhatia, Forbes.com, 4 Aug. 2026

Like a certain hero of Greek myth and big-screen blockbuster, the Etna of Yoon's title is the veteran of a catastrophic war, scarred in body and mind, dogged in pursuit of an improbable homecoming. — Colin Dwyer, NPR, 4 Aug. 2026

Galliano seems to have had one catastrophic public episode and immediately suffered enormous consequences. — Seth Abramovitch, HollywoodReporter, 4 Aug. 2026

For now, Earth remains safe from any immediate catastrophic impact. — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 3 Aug. 2026

The threat from this flash flood is labeled as 'catastrophic, ' indicating the potential for unprecedented, life-threatening damage and exceptionally rare flood levels. — Nc Weather Bot, Charlotte Observer, 2 Aug. 2026

Even this season, one catastrophic start in Philadelphia and the persistent inability of the Mets’ bullpen to strand runners inherited from Peralta have made his ERA look worse than his start-to-start performance. — Tim Britton, New York Times, 2 Aug. 2026

Its emergency powers focus on catastrophic harm or a genuine loss of control. — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 2 Aug. 2026

The rebirth of the Durutti Column suggests Reilly’s catastrophic imagination is just as potent as his world-building one. — Jazz Monroe, Pitchfork, 30 July 2026