1
as in disasters
a sudden violent event that brings about great loss or destruction
more than one natural catastrophe has threatened to destroy their farm over the years
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in failures
something that has failed
the movie was a catastrophe, nearly bankrupting the studio that produced it
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of catastrophes
The ongoing civil war has caused one of the world’s worst humanitarian catastrophes and diplomatic efforts to bring the conflict to an end have failed.
—
Nadeen Ebrahim, CNN Money, 10 Apr. 2025
Those cuts have been felt in the meager US response to the Myanmar quake, according to experts, exposing a void in international relief measures for major catastrophes.
—Rebecca Wright, CNN Money, 10 Apr. 2025
Nothing about this day is going right, and the pileup of catastrophes practically bust up Alyssa and Dreux’s friendship.
—Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 4 Apr. 2025
Mitch’s life has been an accumulation of catastrophes both big and small.
—Robert Rubsam, The Atlantic, 24 Mar. 2025
This theory claimed that for changes to occur, catastrophes occasionally reshaped the face of the Earth and caused some species to go extinct.
—Big Think, 18 Mar. 2025
Those catastrophes contributed to a 90% decline in orange production over the past two decades.
—Mike Schneider, Orlando Sentinel, 14 Mar. 2025
Nine out of 10 Americans believe the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA, should take ownership of catastrophes.
—Kelly McKinney, New York Daily News, 12 Mar. 2025
These near-catastrophes, which reportedly happen multiple times a week, are in part a result of a staffing shortage of air traffic controllers as well as a lack of warning systems at airports, according to the investigation.
—Natalia Senanayake, People.com, 10 Mar. 2025
Nadeen Ebrahim, CNN Money, 10 Apr. 2025
Those cuts have been felt in the meager US response to the Myanmar quake, according to experts, exposing a void in international relief measures for major catastrophes.
—Rebecca Wright, CNN Money, 10 Apr. 2025
Nothing about this day is going right, and the pileup of catastrophes practically bust up Alyssa and Dreux’s friendship.
—Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 4 Apr. 2025
Mitch’s life has been an accumulation of catastrophes both big and small.
—Robert Rubsam, The Atlantic, 24 Mar. 2025
This theory claimed that for changes to occur, catastrophes occasionally reshaped the face of the Earth and caused some species to go extinct.
—Big Think, 18 Mar. 2025
Those catastrophes contributed to a 90% decline in orange production over the past two decades.
—Mike Schneider, Orlando Sentinel, 14 Mar. 2025
Nine out of 10 Americans believe the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA, should take ownership of catastrophes.
—Kelly McKinney, New York Daily News, 12 Mar. 2025
These near-catastrophes, which reportedly happen multiple times a week, are in part a result of a staffing shortage of air traffic controllers as well as a lack of warning systems at airports, according to the investigation.
—Natalia Senanayake, People.com, 10 Mar. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for catastrophes
Noun
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Severe weather disasters that result in damage of at least $1 billion now average 23 per year and have doubled since the 2010s, according to Bank of America.—
Spencer Kimball,
CNBC,
24 Mar. 2025
-
Heroes protect people and society from accidents, disasters, and villains—criminals who use their Quirks for evil.—
Kevin Sabet,
Newsweek,
24 Mar. 2025
Noun
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As the fallout from this incident continues, the scandal has revealed significant failures of basic security principles that everyone should be aware of — but that White House cabinet members and government officials should absolutely abide by.—
Tony Bradley,
Forbes.com,
29 Mar. 2025
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Despite previous test failures and skepticism from space experts, Musk remains confident about his timeline.—
Sujita Sinha,
Interesting Engineering,
28 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Violence was entrenched as a byproduct of a government that ignored the tragedies faced by those like Shirley Vasquez and her neighbors.—
Cary Goodman,
New York Daily News,
5 Jan. 2025
-
In 1997, Peart was hit with the first of a double blast of tragedies.—
William Roberson,
Forbes,
4 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Like the tragedy of the recent California wildfires as well as so many other calamities of our time, each one impacts us all to one degree or another.—
Michael B. Teiger,
Hartford Courant,
31 Jan. 2025
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Everyone in the audience laughed when the capybara first appeared onscreen, even the little kid behind us who had cried earlier, scared of some of the calamities befalling the feline hero.—
Gary Shteyngart,
The New Yorker,
27 Jan. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Catastrophes.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/catastrophes. Accessed 25 Apr. 2025.
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