disaster
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dis·as·ter
(dĭ-zăs′tər, -săs′-)n.
1.
a. An occurrence causing widespread destruction and distress; a catastrophe.
b. A grave misfortune.
2. Informal A total failure: The dinner party was a disaster.
3. Obsolete An evil influence of a star or planet.
[French désastre, from Italian disastro : dis-, pejorative pref. (from Latin dis-; see dis-) + astro, star (from Latin astrum, from Greek astron; see ster- in Indo-European roots).]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
disaster
(dɪˈzɑːstə)n
1. an occurrence that causes great distress or destruction
2. a thing, project, etc, that fails or has been ruined
[C16 (originally in the sense: malevolent astral influence): from Italian disastro, from dis- (pejorative) + astro star, from Latin astrum, from Greek astron]
disˈastrous adj
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
dis•as•ter
(dɪˈzæs tər, -ˈzɑ stər)n.
1. a calamitous event, esp. one occurring suddenly and causing great loss of life, damage, or hardship, as a flood, airplane crash, or business failure.
2. Obs. an unfavorable aspect of a star or planet.
[1585–95; < Middle French desastre < Italian disastro=dis- dis-1 + astro star < Latin astrum < Greek ástron]
syn: disaster, calamity, catastrophe, cataclysm refer to adverse happenings usu. occurring suddenly and unexpectedly. disaster may be caused by negligence, bad judgment, or the like, or by natural forces, as a hurricane or flood: a railroad disaster that claimed many lives. 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 esp. 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, a sudden and violent change in the earth's surface, also refers to a personal or public upheaval: a cataclysm that turned our lives in a new direction.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Switch to new thesaurus
| Noun | 1. |  disaster - a state of extreme (usually irremediable) ruin and misfortune; "lack of funds has resulted in a catastrophe for our school system"; "his policies were a disaster"adversity, hard knocks, hardship - a state of misfortune or affliction; "debt-ridden farmers struggling with adversity"; "a life of hardship" |
| 2. |  disaster - an event resulting in great loss and misfortune; "the whole city was affected by the irremediable calamity"; "the earthquake was a disaster"misfortune, bad luck - unnecessary and unforeseen trouble resulting from an unfortunate event act of God, force majeure, inevitable accident, unavoidable casualty, vis major - a natural and unavoidable catastrophe that interrupts the expected course of events; "he discovered that his house was not insured against acts of God" apocalypse - a cosmic cataclysm in which God destroys the ruling powers of evil famine - a severe shortage of food (as through crop failure) resulting in violent hunger and starvation and death kiss of death - something that is ruinous; "if this were known it would be the kiss of death for my political career" meltdown - a disaster comparable to a nuclear meltdown; "there is little likelihood of a meltdown comparable to the American banking collapse in March 1933" plague - any large scale calamity (especially when thought to be sent by God) visitation - any disaster or catastrophe; "a visitation of the plague" tidal wave - an unusual (and often destructive) rise of water along the seashore caused by a storm or a combination of wind and high tide tsunami - a cataclysm resulting from a destructive sea wave caused by an earthquake or volcanic eruption; "a colossal tsunami destroyed the Minoan civilization in minutes" | |
| 3. | disaster - an act that has disastrous consequences destruction, devastation - the termination of something by causing so much damage to it that it cannot be repaired or no longer exists |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
disaster
noun
1. catastrophe, trouble, blow, accident, stroke, reverse, tragedy, ruin, misfortune, adversity, calamity, mishap, whammy (informal, chiefly U.S.), misadventure, cataclysm, act of God, bummer (slang), ruination, mischance the second air disaster in less than two months
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002
disaster
nounAn occurrence inflicting widespread destruction and distress:
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
كارِثَةكارِثَه، مُصيبَه
pohromakatastrofa
katastrofeulykke
katastrofionnettomuus
katastrofa
stórslys; náttúruhamfarir
災害
재난
nelaimė
nelaimeposts
nesrečarazdejanje
katastrof
ความหายนะ
thảm họa
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005
disaster
[dɪˈzæstər dɪˈzɑːstər] n (sudden, unexpected event) → catastrophe f; (longer term) → désastre ma rail disaster → une catastrophe ferroviaire
economic disaster → désastre économique
to be a disaster → être désastreux/euse
The government's education policy is a disaster → La politique du gouvernement en matière d'éducation est désastreuse.
disaster struck → le malheur a frappé
to be a recipe for disaster → mener droit à la catastrophedisaster area n
(fig) (= place) → zone f sinistrée (= person) → catastrophe f
he's a walking disaster area → c'est une catastrophe ambulantedisaster movie n → film m catastrophedisaster relief n (= aid) → aide f aux victimes de catastrophesdisaster victim n → sinistré(e) m/fdisaster zone n → zone f sinistrée
he's a walking disaster area → c'est une catastrophe ambulantedisaster movie n → film m catastrophedisaster relief n (= aid) → aide f aux victimes de catastrophesdisaster victim n → sinistré(e) m/fdisaster zone n → zone f sinistrée
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005
disaster
n → Katastrophe f; (Aviat, Min, Rail) → Unglück nt, → Katastrophe f; (= fiasco) → Fiasko nt, → Desaster nt; doomed to disaster → zum Untergang verdammt or verurteilt ? also recipe
disaster
:disaster area
disaster fund
n → Katastrophenfonds m
disaster movie
n → Katastrophenfilm m
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007
disaster
[dɪˈzɑːstəʳ] n (also) (fig) → disastrodisaster area → zona disastrata
disaster fund raccolta di fondi a favore delle vittime di un disastro
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995
disaster
(diˈzaːstə) noun a terrible event, especially one that causes great damage, loss etc. The earthquake was the greatest disaster the country had ever experienced.
diˈsastrous adjectivediˈsastrously adverb
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.
disaster
→ كارِثَة pohroma katastrofe Katastrophe καταστροφή desastre katastrofi désastre katastrofa disastro 災害 재난 ramp katastrofe katastrofa desastre бедствие katastrof ความหายนะ felaket thảm họa 灾难Multilingual Translator © HarperCollins Publishers 2009
disaster
n. desastre; desdicha, infortunio.
English-Spanish Medical Dictionary © Farlex 2012
disaster
n desastre mEnglish-Spanish/Spanish-English Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.