1
as in fatal
bringing about ruin or misfortune
a split-second, disastrous decision that I would forever regret
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in devastating
causing or tending to cause destruction
a disastrous fire from which the town never fully recovered
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of disastrous
Dabo Swinney and the Clemson Tigers are off to a disastrous start to the 2025 college football season.
—
Matt Audilet, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Sep. 2025
There was also The Fantastic Four: First Steps, an attempt to reintroduce Marvel’s first family just a decade after a disastrous 2015 reboot.
—George Yang, Rolling Stone, 30 Sep. 2025
Or that’s what play-by-play announcer Chris Fowler says on TV, and his pointed prophecy is proven out by the disastrous decisions Russ makes in the present.
—Ben Travers, IndieWire, 29 Sep. 2025
Bush’s disastrous campaign to democratize the Middle East soured the American public on such policies, which in turn allowed Trump to position himself as an opponent of democracy promotion and foreign assistance more broadly.
—Omar G. Encarnación, Foreign Affairs, 29 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for disastrous
Matt Audilet, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Sep. 2025
There was also The Fantastic Four: First Steps, an attempt to reintroduce Marvel’s first family just a decade after a disastrous 2015 reboot.
—George Yang, Rolling Stone, 30 Sep. 2025
Or that’s what play-by-play announcer Chris Fowler says on TV, and his pointed prophecy is proven out by the disastrous decisions Russ makes in the present.
—Ben Travers, IndieWire, 29 Sep. 2025
Bush’s disastrous campaign to democratize the Middle East soured the American public on such policies, which in turn allowed Trump to position himself as an opponent of democracy promotion and foreign assistance more broadly.
—Omar G. Encarnación, Foreign Affairs, 29 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for disastrous
Recent Examples of Synonyms for disastrous
Adjective
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The crossover came amid recent turmoil, including Colbert’s show being canceled by in July and Kimmel's temporary suspension by ABC in September following controversial comments about the fatal shooting of political activist Charlie Kirk.—
Megan Cartwright,
MSNBC Newsweek,
1 Oct. 2025
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And one expert has suggested that steel or concrete barriers can also help guard against deadly attacks like the one in Grand Blanc Township, as well as unintentional fatal wrecks and may even help businesses stave off plaintiff lawsuits.—
Frank Witsil,
Freep.com,
1 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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That’s a devastating blow because Pionk’s second-pair success is somewhat dependent on having Samberg as his partner.—
Harman Dayal,
New York Times,
7 Oct. 2025
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That devastating loss solidified the TV personality’s resolve to use her platform not just as entertainment, but as a lifeline to stand beside fellow survivors and to create tangible resources through her non-profit, the Big Heart Foundation.—
Essence,
Essence,
6 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
All the rest are likely to shine in movies by good directors, and most actors whose reputations aren’t illustriously artistic have mainly been unfortunate in their collaborations.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
30 Sep. 2025
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Irish butter may now an internationally marketable commodity, but in Swift’s day, the Irish peasantry fought back against their replacement by cattle by maiming and driving the unfortunate cattle off cliffs.—
Matthew Wills,
JSTOR Daily,
30 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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When the federal government reached an agreement with Alabama officials last October to address destructive flooding in the predominantly Black Shiloh community, residents thought their calls for help had finally been answered.—
Maia Rosenfeld,
ABC News,
1 Oct. 2025
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Smart fabric for roads Road maintenance has long relied on visible surface wear or destructive core drilling to assess deeper damage.—
Georgina Jedikovska,
Interesting Engineering,
1 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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The floods will return – and some will be catastrophic.—
Alaa Elassar,
CNN Money,
1 Oct. 2025
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The law defines catastrophic risk narrowly as incidents potentially causing 50+ deaths or $1 billion in damage through weapons assistance, autonomous criminal acts, or loss of control.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
30 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Disastrous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/disastrous. Accessed 8 Oct. 2025.
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