disaster
Americannoun
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disasters
plural
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a calamitous event, especially one occurring suddenly and causing great loss of life, damage, or hardship, as a flood, airplane crash, or business failure.
- Synonyms:
- affliction, adversity, reverse, blow, accident, mishap, misadventure, misfortune, mischance
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Obsolete. an unfavorable aspect of a star or planet.
noun
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an occurrence that causes great distress or destruction
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a thing, project, etc, that fails or has been ruined
Synonym Usage
Disaster, calamity, catastrophe, cataclysm refer to adverse happenings often occurring suddenly and unexpectedly. A disaster may be caused by carelessness, negligence, bad judgment, or the like, or by natural forces, as a hurricane or flood: a railroad disaster. Calamity suggests great affliction, either personal or general; the emphasis is on the grief or sorrow caused: the calamity of losing a child. Catastrophe refers especially to the tragic outcome of a personal or public situation; the emphasis is on the destruction or irreplaceable loss: the catastrophe of a defeat in battle. Cataclysm, physically an earth-shaking change, refers to a personal or public upheaval of unparalleled violence: a cataclysm that turned his life in a new direction.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of disaster
First recorded in 1585–95; from Middle French desastre, from Italian disastro, from dis- dis- 1 + astro “star” (from Latin astrum, from Greek ástron )
Explanation
An earthquake, an oil spill, an economic collapse, a party with inedible food and truly awful music: Each of these could be described as a disaster, a cataclysmic event causing extreme suffering, even total destruction. Disaster made its way into the English language from Greek. The second part of the word is derived from astron — "star" or "planet," familiar from words like astronomy and astronaut. Dis- is prefix with a meaning similar to "un-" or "mis-," but with clearly negative connotations. Translated literally, disaster means "bad or unlucky star," and it's a relic of a time when astrology was considered a serious science that could predict events — including disasters you might try to avoid — in your life on Earth!
Vocabulary lists containing disaster
Did You Planet? Words With Surprisingly Spacey Origins
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Oh, My Stars! A Solstice Sampler
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Calamity, Catastrophe, and Crisis: Disaster Words
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The Budhi Gandaki is a tributary of the Trishuli river, downstream from another tributary where a glacier collapse caused the previous disaster.
From BBC ● Oct. 11, 2026
"The disaster we are facing is massive," President Jose Raul Mulino said upon arriving in one of the affected areas.
From Barron's ● Oct. 10, 2026
Haldeman and John Ehrlichman at Camp David in 1973, while 12 years earlier John F. Kennedy received counsel there from Eisenhower after the Bay of Pigs disaster.
From Salon ● Oct. 10, 2026
In contrast not some, not a majority, but all of AI’s inventors and leaders admit it may bring about physical disaster, and most if not all expect at least one.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026
A French army sent to put down the rebellion met with disaster.
From "In the Shadow of Liberty" by Kenneth C. Davis
In a statement, the prime minister's office said it was "aware of the difficulties" the law may cause families in "exceptional circumstances, including disasters".
From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026
It is paying interest to this day: “It is astonishing to think of the wars, revolutions, religious revolt, pandemics and other disasters this bond has survived,” the author marvels.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026
Campbell founded the charity in 2005, aiming to harness the fashion industry to relieve poverty and advance health and education, by making grants to other organisations and giving resources towards global disasters.
From Barron's ● Oct. 1, 2026
That has left them vulnerable to strains from unplanned outages, natural disasters or conflicts.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 1, 2026
When there was important area news— disasters like floods or tornadoes—or sometimes if she came across little stories that seemed cute or original, Alice would call the station news manager in Carrington.
From "Frindle" by Andrew Clements
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
