1
as in disaster
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
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in failure
something that has failed
the movie was a catastrophe, nearly bankrupting the studio that produced it
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for catastrophe
Noun
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Bureau staff were told the group itself, already gutted as part of mass layoffs at the State Department in July, would refocus on migration diplomacy and disaster response rather than its traditional refugee focus.—
Ted Hesson,
USA Today,
12 Sep. 2025 -
That question frames an episode that opens not with battle, but with the kind of stillness that comes before disaster.—
JP Mangalindan,
Time,
12 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Wilson argued the Charlotte attack resulted from several failures, from lax ticket enforcement to reliance on private security, rather than policies from Cooper’s tenure.—
Samantha-Jo Roth,
The Washington Examiner,
11 Sep. 2025
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Now, as a photojournalist working with the Kansas City Defender and as the creator of the upcoming podcast Fountain City Files, Harrison focuses on stories involving missing Black women, systemic failures in law enforcement and community neglect.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
10 Sep. 2025
Noun
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The Dead Don't Die In Jim Jarmusch's absurdist apocalypse comedy, flesh-craving zombies raid the once-tranquil town of Centerville, picking off its residents one by one.—
James Mercadante,
PEOPLE,
4 Sep. 2025
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Though, really, podcasting has been living in this particular post-apocalypse for a while.—
Nicholas Quah,
Vulture,
28 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Watts said the child welfare agency also will maintain collaboration with public health officials, law enforcement and treatment providers to prevent tragedies connected to fentanyl and other drugs.—
Laura Bauer,
Kansas City Star,
7 Sep. 2025
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Here is the emphasis on the hardscrabble beginnings and obstacles to be overcome, here is the recognition of a truly raw but once-in-a-lifetime talent that converts the nonbelivers, here are the early wins and the training montages and the tragedies and the comebacks.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
6 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Going to the theatre in that period was hardly an entertainment for the fainthearted, and calamity was not confined to the stage.—
Anthony Lane,
New Yorker,
8 Sep. 2025
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Levine Cava bristled, saying the only money left to fund the choppers would be the county’s emergency fund — dollars reserved for hurricanes or other calamities.—
Douglas Hanks,
Miami Herald,
5 Sep. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Catastrophe.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/catastrophe. Accessed 14 Sep. 2025.
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