English > disaster: 3 senses > noun 2, event| Meaning | An event resulting in great loss and misfortune. |
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| Example | "the earthquake was a disaster" |
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| Synonyms | calamity, catastrophe, tragedy, cataclysm |
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| Narrower | act of God, force majeure, vis major, inevitable accident, unavoidable casualty | A natural and unavoidable catastrophe that interrupts the expected course of events |
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| apocalypse | A cosmic cataclysm in which God destroys the ruling powers of evil |
| famine | A severe shortage / shortage of food (as through crop failure) resulting in violent hunger and starvation and death |
| kiss of death | Something that is ruinous |
| meltdown | A disaster comparable / comparable to a nuclear meltdown |
| plague | Any large scale calamity (especially when thought to be sent by God) |
| 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 |
| visitation | Any disaster or catastrophe |
| Broader | misfortune, bad luck | unnecessary and unforeseen trouble resulting from an unfortunate / unfortunate event |
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| Spanish | calamidad, cataclismo, catástrofe, desastre, hecatombe, siniestro, tragedia |
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| Catalan | calamitat, cataclisme, catàstrofe, daltabaix, desastre, tragèdia |
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| Adjectives | disastrous | (of events) having extremely unfortunate or dire consequences |
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