variants
also débâcles
1
as in disasters
a sudden violent event that brings about great loss or destruction
the financial debacle that was the stock market crash of 1929
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in failures
something that has failed
the movie, which some had predicted would be a blockbuster, turned out to be the summer's biggest debacle at the multiplexes
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 debacles
The one tiny potential upside of the populist movement was its apparent reluctance to plunge the nation into foreign debacles.
—
Steven Greenhut, Oc Register, 6 Mar. 2026
From shocking district alignments to puzzling travel debacles, many coaches were left shaking their heads in disbelief.
—Greg Riddle, Dallas Morning News, 3 Feb. 2026
Several similar debacles have plagued the team over the last six years, but this one may just take the cake.
—Gabrielle Starr, Boston Herald, 12 Jan. 2026
Reduced runway capacity and de-icing debacles, with the airport’s supplies of de-icing fluid at one point running low this week, also have contributed to flight backlogs, creating a domino effect across flight networks in Europe and beyond.
—Blane Bachelor, AFAR Media, 8 Jan. 2026
After the Utah and Arizona debacles, CU fans have been looking for a reason to stay invested.
—Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 8 Nov. 2025
The concept was so sticky and compelling, though, that others started mining histories of notorious debacles for more examples of the same.
—David Merritt Johns, The Atlantic, 2 Nov. 2025
Those debacles not only angered voters but showed to the bond markets that Labour would struggle to shore up Britain’s public finances.
—Christian Edwards, CNN Money, 30 Sep. 2025
Japan is also looking at political uncertainty as Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba is set to step down, following electoral debacles that saw the ruling Liberal Democratic Party lose its majority in both the lower and upper houses of parliament.
—Lim Hui Jie, CNBC, 16 Sep. 2025
Steven Greenhut, Oc Register, 6 Mar. 2026
From shocking district alignments to puzzling travel debacles, many coaches were left shaking their heads in disbelief.
—Greg Riddle, Dallas Morning News, 3 Feb. 2026
Several similar debacles have plagued the team over the last six years, but this one may just take the cake.
—Gabrielle Starr, Boston Herald, 12 Jan. 2026
Reduced runway capacity and de-icing debacles, with the airport’s supplies of de-icing fluid at one point running low this week, also have contributed to flight backlogs, creating a domino effect across flight networks in Europe and beyond.
—Blane Bachelor, AFAR Media, 8 Jan. 2026
After the Utah and Arizona debacles, CU fans have been looking for a reason to stay invested.
—Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 8 Nov. 2025
The concept was so sticky and compelling, though, that others started mining histories of notorious debacles for more examples of the same.
—David Merritt Johns, The Atlantic, 2 Nov. 2025
Those debacles not only angered voters but showed to the bond markets that Labour would struggle to shore up Britain’s public finances.
—Christian Edwards, CNN Money, 30 Sep. 2025
Japan is also looking at political uncertainty as Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba is set to step down, following electoral debacles that saw the ruling Liberal Democratic Party lose its majority in both the lower and upper houses of parliament.
—Lim Hui Jie, CNBC, 16 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for debacles
Noun
-
Mining disasters are common in China, where rapid industrialization came with intense resource exploitation, poor working conditions and a weak regulatory framework.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
23 May 2026
-
Mining disasters have been common although authorities had implemented measures to improve safety over the past years.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
23 May 2026
Noun
-
Yet those cables currently carry less than 1 percent of global international bandwidth, according to TeleGeography, a telecom research firm, and the network as a whole is engineered to route around routine failures.—
Ramin Skibba,
Scientific American,
27 May 2026
-
That gap explains a large share of AI failures.—
Usman Shuja,
Forbes.com,
27 May 2026
Noun
-
Global natural catastrophes now generate hundreds of billions of dollars in economic losses annually, with a significant portion uninsured.—
Jim Williamson,
Fortune,
26 May 2026
-
The kind of tiny culinary catastrophes most diners would never notice, but that a young chef chasing greatness apparently sees in his sleep.—
Noel Burgess,
Forbes.com,
18 May 2026
Noun
-
Her compelling personal perspective on 40-plus years of post-Revolutionary Iran provides a chronicle of great hopes and even greater disappointments.—
Guy Lodge,
Variety,
22 May 2026
-
Then came a series of playing disappointments.—
Langston Wertz Jr,
Charlotte Observer,
22 May 2026
Noun
-
There are many perspectives regarding the question of genocide, but none more relevant than to an institution dedicated to preserving the memories and preventing future tragedies than one of the Holocaust.—
Samuel S. Flax,
The Orlando Sentinel,
24 May 2026
-
Other players have dealt with personal and national tragedies and still thrived on the court.—
Louisa Thomas,
New Yorker,
24 May 2026
Noun
-
Based on Thornton Wilder’s The Skin of Our Teeth, the surrealist musical follows one nuclear family across thousands of years and three apocalypses.—
Jason P. Frank,
Vulture,
10 Dec. 2025
-
And a lot of the pseudepigrapha, like the fake gospels and fake apocalypses, fill in gaps in the record that can serve latter-day, post-biblical purposes.—
JSTOR Daily,
JSTOR Daily,
16 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
The winter had been a season of calamities, with one emergency or challenge after another.—
Moira McCarthy,
Boston Herald,
10 May 2026
-
Farmers markets — that humble and charming throwback to a bygone era — are also struggling with higher fuel prices, after weathering the economic calamities of the pandemic and other misfortunes.—
Andrew J. Campa,
Los Angeles Times,
9 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Debacles.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/debacles. Accessed 28 May. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
