catastrophe

noun

ca·tas·tro·phe kə-ˈta-strə-(ˌ)fē

plural catastrophes

: a momentous tragic event ranging from extreme misfortune to utter overthrow or ruin

Deforestation and erosion can lead to an ecological catastrophe.

: utter failure : fiasco

the party was a catastrophe

: a violent and sudden change in a feature of the earth

: a violent usually destructive natural event (such as a supernova)

: the final event of the dramatic action especially of a tragedy

catastrophic

ˌka-tə-ˈsträ-fik

adjective

catastrophically

ˌka-tə-ˈsträ-fi-k(ə-)lē

adverb

Did you know?

When English speakers first borrowed the Greek word katastrophē (from katastrephein, meaning "to overturn") as catastrophe in the 1500s, they used it for the conclusion or final event of a dramatic work, especially of a tragedy. In time, catastrophe came to be used more generally of any unhappy conclusion, or disastrous or ruinous end. By the mid-18th century, it was being used to denote truly devastating events, such as earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Finally, it came to be applied to things that are only figuratively catastrophic—burnt dinners, lost luggage, really bad movies, etc.

Example Sentences

The oil spill was an environmental catastrophe. Experts fear a humanitarian catastrophe if food isn't delivered to the refugees soon. an area on the brink of catastrophe

Recent Examples on the Web The market for property catastrophe reinsurance is crumbling after a year of extreme weather events, and premiums are set to spike.

Eamon Barrett, Fortune, 30 Nov. 2022 Any overreliance on foreign inputs in drug supply chains could leave the U.S. open to dire shortages in the event of conflict or natural catastrophe.

Richard Vanderford, WSJ, 30 Nov. 2022 Which is a bureaucratic way of saying that plastic pollution—both macroplastics like bags and bottles, and microplastics like fibers from synthetic clothing—is a planetary catastrophe of the highest order, and one that’s getting exponentially worse.

WIRED, 29 Nov. 2022 This mysterious woman, fantastically imaginative, transforms their catastrophe and removes this metal shrapnel and turns it into sculptures of beauty and art.

David O. Russell, Los Angeles Times, 29 Nov. 2022 Alert to politics, Roth saw earlier than most that Hitler represented catastrophe.

Casey Schwartz, New York Times, 26 Nov. 2022 Like mass extinctions of the past, these scenarios posit a catastrophe that will filter out life on Earth until very little or even none remains.

Caroline Delbert, Popular Mechanics, 22 Nov. 2022 Waiting any longer would move the U.S. closer to the brink of a global health catastrophe.

Carlos Del Rio, STAT, 21 Nov. 2022 Collaborate closely with allies and take measures to avoid catastrophe.

George Packer, The Atlantic, 21 Nov. 2022 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'catastrophe.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.