1
as in catastrophes
a sudden violent event that brings about great loss or destruction
hurricanes are natural disasters
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in failures
something that has failed
an utter disaster, the play opened and closed on the same miserable night
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of disasters
Homeowners are left to mediate a system that was never designed for neighborhood-scale disasters.
—
Michelle Edgar, Daily News, 27 Feb. 2026
Both nights were disasters, in very different ways.
—Luis Palomares, Miami Herald, 27 Feb. 2026
Camp Mystic’s emergency instructions directed kids to stay in their cabins during floods, even though Texas rules require youth camps to have evacuation plans for disasters, the lawsuit states.
—Emily Foxhall, Los Angeles Times, 25 Feb. 2026
There is insight into other historical financial disasters (a scene involving the stock market crash of 1929 is particularly haunting), but not much mention of the impacts of Reaganomics in the 1980s, and the late 2000s dynamics of subprime mortgages and home foreclosures.
—David John Chávez, Mercury News, 25 Feb. 2026
Millions of dollars from the program have gone in recent years to schools at the center of high-profile shootings and disasters.
—Zachary Schermele, USA Today, 25 Feb. 2026
In 2024, the country experienced 27 separate billion-dollar disasters, totaling roughly $183 billion, up from nearly $93 billion the year before.
—Yoca Arditi-Rocha, The Orlando Sentinel, 20 Feb. 2026
This designation places the mission on the same official level of seriousness as the fatal Challenger (1986) and Columbia (2023) shuttle disasters.
—Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 20 Feb. 2026
The bill seeks to speed up federal assistance by reducing redundant paperwork and creating a faster payment system for small disasters.
—Lauren Sommer, NPR, 17 Feb. 2026
Michelle Edgar, Daily News, 27 Feb. 2026
Both nights were disasters, in very different ways.
—Luis Palomares, Miami Herald, 27 Feb. 2026
Camp Mystic’s emergency instructions directed kids to stay in their cabins during floods, even though Texas rules require youth camps to have evacuation plans for disasters, the lawsuit states.
—Emily Foxhall, Los Angeles Times, 25 Feb. 2026
There is insight into other historical financial disasters (a scene involving the stock market crash of 1929 is particularly haunting), but not much mention of the impacts of Reaganomics in the 1980s, and the late 2000s dynamics of subprime mortgages and home foreclosures.
—David John Chávez, Mercury News, 25 Feb. 2026
Millions of dollars from the program have gone in recent years to schools at the center of high-profile shootings and disasters.
—Zachary Schermele, USA Today, 25 Feb. 2026
In 2024, the country experienced 27 separate billion-dollar disasters, totaling roughly $183 billion, up from nearly $93 billion the year before.
—Yoca Arditi-Rocha, The Orlando Sentinel, 20 Feb. 2026
This designation places the mission on the same official level of seriousness as the fatal Challenger (1986) and Columbia (2023) shuttle disasters.
—Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 20 Feb. 2026
The bill seeks to speed up federal assistance by reducing redundant paperwork and creating a faster payment system for small disasters.
—Lauren Sommer, NPR, 17 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for disasters
Noun
-
Kennedy has made no bones about his misplaced skepticism of mRNA vaccines, pinging off the proliferating conspiracies around the COVID vaccines — incredible innovations that saved countless lives during one of the worst global catastrophes in recent memory.—
The Orlando Sentinel,
The Orlando Sentinel,
21 Feb. 2026
-
While Scarry’s books present such catastrophes with bright colors and good humor, Gomez undermines this cheer by superimposing on the mural a nearly all-black painting of a desolate tent encampment in front of a home destroyed by the Eaton fire.—
Sharon Mizota,
Los Angeles Times,
16 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Increasingly, the aging building has been experiencing system failures that include the boilers and chillers, electrical infrastructure, plumbing and roof leaks, the City Council was told.—
Lori Weisberg,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
25 Feb. 2026
-
These failures help contribute to the lack of confidence Americans in general have in Democrats’ ability to run things — their governmental competence.—
The Editorial Board,
Chicago Tribune,
25 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
As of Monday evening, there have been no tragedies reported in relation to the storm, Hooley said.—
Gayla Cawley,
Boston Herald,
24 Feb. 2026
-
The lawsuit Paxton brought against the company sought compensation for economic losses, civil penalties and a court order compelling the company to take corrective measures to prevent future tragedies.—
Lana Ferguson,
Dallas Morning News,
23 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Mercury stationing retrograde can bring disappointments that are informative.—
USA TODAY,
USA Today,
26 Feb. 2026
-
Losing a board game becomes a small, safe rehearsal for larger disappointments later in life.—
Lauryn Higgins,
Parents,
17 Feb. 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 mixture of high-tech drones and World War I-style trench fighting has seen small groups of infantry — often just two or three soldiers — try to infiltrate enemy positions into towns flattened by Russian heavy artillery and glide bombs.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
22 Feb. 2026
-
Ruslan Tyshchenko was a sapper who defused bombs in Kharkiv, in northeastern Ukraine.—
Carol Guzy,
NPR,
22 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
What Trump is most certainly reviewing is the viability of Noem as a Cabinet secretary, who has rapidly become a scapegoat for the predictable calamities of the high-visibility deployment of border guards as SWAT troops in urban centers.—
Chris Stirewalt,
The Hill,
27 Jan. 2026
-
The calamities of war shuttered many of the earliest kissa, as entire collections of jazz records were lost.—
Nneka M. Okona,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
21 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
This is a twisted travelogue of sorts, each chapter devoted to a circle of hell populated by one group of sports gambling’s myriad losers.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
26 Feb. 2026
-
Ravu were the losers, with Jessica being the biggest loser of all.—
Dalton Ross,
Entertainment Weekly,
26 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Disasters.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/disasters. Accessed 1 Mar. 2026.
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