Jump To:

• apocalypse
  apocalypse

  noun
• Apocalypse
  Apocalypse

  noun

  Bible (in the Vulgate and Douay versions of the Bible) the Book of Revelation

apocalypse

American  

[uh-pok-uh-lips] / əˈpɒk ə lɪps /

noun

1. 1. a prophecy or revelation, especially regarding a final cataclysmic battle between good and evil.

   2. the apocalypse, in some belief systems, a final cataclysmic battle of this kind, in which evil is defeated and the present age brought to a close.

      According to traditional evangelical teaching, the apocalypse will begin with a time of persecution.

   3. the apocalypse, the end of civilization; the complete destruction or collapse of the world as we know it (sometimes used facetiously).

      On both ends of the political spectrum, visions of the apocalypse and predictions of doom abound.

      We thought this recession might be the apocalypse, and sales would go down to 1 percent.

2. any universal or widespread destruction or disaster.

   If humanity is to avoid a nuclear apocalypse, a whole new level of international cooperation is urgently required.

3. Apocalypse. Revelation.

4. any piece of literature belonging to a genre of Jewish or Christian writings that appeared from about 200 b.c. to the late Middle Ages and were assumed to reveal God’s ultimate purpose.

---

apocalypse ¹ British  

/ əˈpɒkəlɪps /

noun

1. a prophetic disclosure or revelation

2. an event of great importance, violence, etc, like the events described in the Apocalypse

---

Apocalypse ² British  

/ əˈpɒkəlɪps /

noun

1. Bible (in the Vulgate and Douay versions of the Bible) the Book of Revelation

---

Apocalypse Cultural  

1. Another name for the New Testament Book of Revelation; from the Greek word for “revelation.”

---

Discover More

An “apocalypse” is a final catastrophe.

The Apocalypse is supposed to come at the end of the world or of time.

Etymology

Origin of apocalypse

First recorded in 1125–75; Middle English, from Late Latin apocalypsis, from Greek apokálypsis “revelation,” from apokalýp(tein) “to uncover, reveal” (from apo- apo- + kalýptein “to cover, conceal”; cf. eucalyptus) + -sis -sis

Explanation

Apocalypse is a word that means "the end of the world" — or something so destructive it seems like the world has ended, like the event of a major earthquake. The apocalypse is the total destruction of the world, as prophesied in the Biblical book of Revelation. Apocalypse can be used to describe utter destruction caused by war or natural disaster. The nuclear bomb attack on Hiroshima during World War II can be called an apocalypse because the devastation was so severe and so many lives were lost.

Example Sentences

IGLOO, S. D.—Row upon row of concrete bunkers with steel blast doors peek up from the rolling grasslands—like hobbit holes for the apocalypse.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 26, 2026

I find it perplexing that people talk about the apocalypse as if it’s happening later.

From Los Angeles Times • May 25, 2026

If there were “a Terminator- or Matrix-like apocalypse, the rebellion will be right here.”

From Slate • May 8, 2026

Don’t miss: Even OpenAI’s top economist thinks the AI job apocalypse is overstated.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 27, 2026

It feels like we're the last survivors of a zombie apocalypse.

From "Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda" by Becky Albertalli

Related Words

• annihilation
• cataclysm
• catastrophe
• devastation