catastrophe
American Heritage Dictionary:
Top
ca·tas·tro·phe
(kə-tăs'trə-fē) 
n.
n.
- A great, often sudden calamity.
- A complete failure; a fiasco: The food was cold, the guests quarreled-the whole dinner was a catastrophe.
- The concluding action of a drama, especially a classical tragedy, following the climax and containing a resolution of the plot.
- A sudden violent change in the earth's surface; a cataclysm.
[Greek katastrophē, an overturning, ruin, conclusion, from katastrephein, to ruin, undo : kata-, cata- + strephein, to turn.]
Roget's Thesaurus:
Top
catastrophe
noun
- An occurrence inflicting widespread destruction and distress: calamity, cataclysm, disaster, tragedy. See help/harm/harmless.
Antonyms by Answers.com:
Top
catastrophe
n
Definition: calamity; unhappy conclusion
Antonyms: benefit, blessing, favor, good fortune, good luck, happiness, miracle, success, wonder
Oxford Dictionary of Literary Terms:
Top
catastrophe
catastrophe, the final resolution or dénouement of the plot in a tragedy, usually involving the death of the protagonist.
Word Tutor:
Top
catastrophe
IN BRIEF: Any great and sudden misfortune or calamity.
Most of us would rather risk catastrophe than read the directions.
— Mignon McLaughlin.
LearnThatWord.com is a free vocabulary and spelling program where you only pay for results!
Random House Word Menu:
Top
categories related to 'catastrophe'
Bradford's Crossword Solver's Dictionary:
Top
catastrophe
See crossword solutions for the clue Catastrophe.
Wikipedia on Answers.com:
Top
Catastrophe
 |
Look up catastrophe in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. |
A catastrophe is an extremely large-scale disaster, a horrible event.
The term may also refer to:
- Catastrophe (book), a non-fiction book by Dick Morris and Eileen McGann
- Catastrophe (drama), the climax and resolution of a plot in ancient Greek drama and poetry
- Catastrophe, the main antagonist in The Secret Files of the Spy Dogs
- Catastrophe (play), a 1982 short play by Samuel Beckett
- Catastrophe (TV series), a five-part science series on Channel 4
- The (Asia Minor) Catastrophe, a Greek name for the Population exchange between Greece and Turkey
- Catastrophic failure, complete failure of a system from which recovery is impossible (e.g. a bridge collapses)
- Catastrophic (band), rock band featuring Trevor Peres
See also
 |
This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. |
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
Translations:
Top
Catastrophe
Dansk (Danish)
n. - katastrofe
Français (French)
n. - catastrophe
Deutsch (German)
n. - Katastrophe
Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - καταστροφή, όλεθρος
Português (Portuguese)
n. - catástrofe (m)
Español (Spanish)
n. - catástrofe, desastre
Svenska (Swedish)
n. - katastrof, upplösning (dram.)
中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
大灾难, 大祸
中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 大災難, 大禍
한국어 (Korean)
n. - 희곡의 대단원, 대이변, 파멸
日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 大災害, 大詰め, 悲劇的結末, 破局
العربيه (Arabic)
(الاسم) كارثه, فاجعه, نكبه
עברית (Hebrew)
n. - אסון, שואה, קטסטרופה, התרת התסבוכת של דרמה, היפוך סדר הדברים, חורבן
If you are unable to view some languages clearly, click here.
Post a question - any question - to the WikiAnswers community:
Copyrights:
American Heritage Dictionary
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Read more
Roget's Thesaurus
Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary Copyright © 1995 byHoughton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Read more
Oxford Dictionary of Literary Terms
The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Literary Terms. Copyright © Chris Baldick 2001, 2004. All rights reserved.
Read more
Word Tutor
Copyright © 2004-present by eSpindle Learning, a 501(c) nonprofit organization. All rights reserved.
eSpindle provides personalized spelling and vocabulary tutoring online; sign up free. Read more
eSpindle provides personalized spelling and vocabulary tutoring online; sign up free. Read more
Random House Word Menu
© 2010 Write Brothers Inc. Word Menu is a registered trademark of the Estate of Stephen Glazier.
Write Brothers Inc.
All rights reserved.
Read more
Bradford's Crossword Solver's Dictionary
Collins Bradford's Crossword Solver's Dictionary © Anne Bradford, 1986, 1993, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2008
HarperCollins Publishers
All rights reserved.
Read more
Wikipedia on Answers.com
This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article Catastrophe.
Read more
