noun · 6 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
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California:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
/dəˈzæs.tɚ/weak vowel merger
[dəˈzæs.thɚ] ~ [dəˈzæs.thɹ̩]weak vowel merger
rhymes with -ɑːstə(ɹ)
rhymes with -æstə(ɹ)
CMU ARPABET:D IH0 Z AE1 S T ER0
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
noun
Meaning 1
An unexpected natural or man-made catastrophe of substantial extent causing significant physical damage or destruction, loss of life or sometimes permanent change to the natural environment.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
Examples
People would suffer disasters when society's morality degenerates.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
noun
Meaning 2
An unforeseen event causing great loss, upset or unpleasantness of whatever kind.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
3
noun
Meaning 3
A skateboard trick involving a 180-degree ollie, landing on the center of the board with the front trucks facing towards the ramp and the back trucks over the lip. The skater then leans forwards to return in the ramp.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
4
noun
Meaning 4
an act that has disastrous consequences
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: destruction, devastation
5
noun
Meaning 5
an event resulting in great loss and misfortune
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
the whole city was affected by the irremediable calamity
Narrower terms: act of God, force majeure, vis major, inevitable accident, unavoidable casualty, apocalypse, famine, kiss of death, meltdown, plague, visitation, tidal wave, tsunami
6
noun
Meaning 6
a state of extreme (usually irremediable) ruin and misfortune
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
lack of funds has resulted in a catastrophe for our school system
his policies were a disaster
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: catastrophe
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: adversity, hardship, hard knocks
History
Etymology
From Middle French desastre, from Italian disastro, from dis- + astro (“star”), from Latin astrum (“star”), from Ancient Greek ἄστρον (ástron, “star”), from Proto-Indo-European *h2stḗr.
Across languages
Translations
236 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Albanian:
fatkeqësi
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Albanian:
katastrofë
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Arabic:
كَارِثَة
(kāriṯa)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Arabic:
مُصِيبَة
(muṣība)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Arabic:
آفَة
(ʔāfa)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Armenian:
աղետ
(aġet)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Armenian:
դժբախտություն
(džbaxtutʻyun)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Asturian:
farrasplada
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Asturian:
desastre
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Azerbaijani:
faciə
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Azerbaijani:
fəlakət
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Belarusian:
катастро́фа
(katastrófa)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Belarusian:
бе́дства
(bjédstva)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Belarusian:
няшча́сце
(njaščáscje)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Belarusian:
го́ра
(hóra)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Belarusian:
бяда́
(bjadá)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Bengali:
বিপর্যয়
(biporjoẏ)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Bengali:
দুর্যোগ
(durjōg)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Bengali:
আফত
(aphot)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Bulgarian:
злополу́ка
(zlopolúka)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Bulgarian:
катастро́фа
(katastrófa)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Bulgarian:
бе́дствие
(bédstvie)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Burmese:
ဘေးဆိုး
(bhe:hcui:)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Catalan:
desastre
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Cebuano:
katalagman
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Chinese Cantonese:
災難 /灾难
(zoi1 naan6)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Chinese Cantonese:
災害 /灾害
(zoi1 hoi6)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Chinese Cantonese:
災禍 /灾祸
(zoi1 wo6)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Chinese Mandarin:
災難 /灾难
(zāinàn)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Chinese Mandarin:
災害 /灾害
(zāihài)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Chinese Mandarin:
災禍 /灾祸
(zāihuò)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Ngazidja Comorian:
kafa
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Czech:
pohroma
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Czech:
katastrofa
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Czech:
neštěstí
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Danish:
katastrofe
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Danish:
ulykke
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Dutch:
ramp
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Dutch:
onheil
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Dutch:
catastrofe
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Esperanto:
malfeliĉego
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Estonian:
õnnetus
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Estonian:
katastroof
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Faroese:
vanlukka
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Finnish:
onnettomuus
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Finnish:
katastrofi
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
French:
désastre
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
French:
catastrophe
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Galician:
desastre
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Gallurese:
scullóppiu
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Georgian:
კატასტროფა
(ḳaṭasṭropa)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Georgian:
უბედურება
(ubedureba)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
German:
Desaster
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
German:
Unglück
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
German:
Katastrophe
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
German:
Unheil
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Greek:
καταστροφή
(katastrofí)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Ancient Greek:
καταστροφή
(katastrophḗ)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Haitian Creole:
dezas
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Haitian Creole:
katastwòf
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Hebrew:
אָסוֹן
(asón)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Hindi:
आपदा
(āpdā)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Hindi:
तबाही
(tabāhī)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Hindi:
आफ़त
(āfat)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Hindi:
मुसीबत
(musībat)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Hungarian:
katasztrófa
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Icelandic:
hörmung
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Icelandic:
hamfarir
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Icelandic:
katastrófa
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Indonesian:
bencana
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Indonesian:
musibah
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Indonesian:
malapetaka
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Irish:
tubaiste
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Irish:
anachain
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Italian:
disastro
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Japanese:
災害
(saigai)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Japanese:
天災
(tensai)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Japanese:
惨事
(sanji)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Japanese:
災い
(wazawai)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Kazakh:
апат
(apat)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Kazakh:
зілзала
(zılzala)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Khmer:
មហន្តរាយ
(mĕəʼhɑntaʼraay)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Khmer:
ភយូបទ្រព
(phĕəʼyuupaʼtrup)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Khmer:
ហាយនៈ
(haayĕəʼnĕəʼ)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Khmer:
ភយន្តរាយ
(phĕəʼyŏəntaʼraay)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Korean:
재난
(jaenan)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Korean:
재앙
(jaeang)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Korean:
재해
(jaehae)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Korean:
참사
(chamsa)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Northern Kurdish:
mûsîbet
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Northern Kurdish:
felaket
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Northern Kurdish:
karesat
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Kyrgyz:
апаат
(apaat)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Kyrgyz:
кырсык
(kırsık)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Latgalian:
vuorgi
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Latin:
calamitās
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Latin:
clādēs
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Latvian:
posts
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Latvian:
nelaime
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Latvian:
katastrofa
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Lithuanian:
nelaimė
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Lithuanian:
katastrofa
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Luxembourgish:
Katastroph
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Macedonian:
несреќа
(nesreḱa)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Macedonian:
катастро́фа
(katastrófa)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Malay:
bencana
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Malayalam:
ദുരന്തം
(durantaṁ)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Māori:
inati
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Māori:
aituā
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Mirandese:
zastre
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Mongolian:
гамшиг
(gamšig)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Mongolian:
аюул
(ajuul)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Mongolian:
сүйрэл
(süjrel)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Nepali:
प्रकोप
(prakop)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Norwegian Bokmål:
katastrofe
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Norwegian Bokmål:
miljøkatastrofe
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Norwegian Nynorsk:
katastrofe
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Norwegian Nynorsk:
miljøkatastrofe
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Occitan:
desastre
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Pashto:
فاجعه
(fāje'a)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Pashto:
آفت
(āfat)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Pashto:
مصيبت
(mosibat)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Persian:
فاجِعِه
(fâje'e)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Persian:
مُصیبَت
(mosibat)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Persian:
فَلاکَت
(falâkat)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Persian:
آفَت
(âfat)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Plautdietsch:
Onjlekj
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Polish:
katastrofa
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Polish:
nieszczęście
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Polish:
bieda
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Portuguese:
desastre
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Romanian:
nenorocire
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Romanian:
dezastru
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Romanian:
catastrofă
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Romanian:
flagel
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Romanian:
calamitate
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Russian:
бе́дствие
(bédstvije)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Russian:
катастро́фа
(katastrófa)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Russian:
несча́стье
(nesčástʹje)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Russian:
го́ре
(góre)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Russian:
беда́
(bedá)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Campidanese Sardinian:
disastru
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Sardinian:
istruéndu
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Sardinian:
rughína
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Sassarese:
disasthru
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Scottish Gaelic:
creach
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Serbo-Croatian:
катастро́фа
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Serbo-Croatian:
нѐсрећа
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Serbo-Croatian:
katastrófa
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Serbo-Croatian:
nèsreća
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Sinhalese:
ව්යසන
(wyasana)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Slovak:
pohroma
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Slovak:
katastrofa
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Slovak:
nešťastie
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Slovene:
katastrofa
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Lower Sorbian:
dezaster
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Spanish:
desastre
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Swahili:
janga
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Swahili:
afa
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Swedish:
katastrof
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Swedish:
olycka
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Tajik:
офат
(ofat)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Tajik:
фалокат
(falokat)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Tajik:
мусибат
(musibat)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Tajik:
фоҷеа
(fojea)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Tajik:
фоҷиа
(fojia)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Tajik:
бадбахтӣ
(badbaxti)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Tatar:
афәт
(afät)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Thai:
ภัยพิบัติ
(pai-pí-bàt)
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Turkish:
afet
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Turkish:
felaket
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
Turkish:
facia
— unexpected catastrophe causing physical damage, etc.
