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dis·as·ter 
Audio Help [di-zas-ter, -zah-ster] Pronunciation Key
Audio Help [di-zas-ter, -zah-ster] Pronunciation Key –noun
| 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. | Obsolete. an unfavorable aspect of a star or planet. |
[Origin: 1585–95; < MF desastre < It disastro, equiv. to dis- dis-1 + astro star < L astrum < Gk ástron]
] —Synonyms 1. mischance, misfortune, misadventure, mishap, accident, blow, reverse, adversity, affliction. 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 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, 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.
| Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006. |
Disaster
To learn more about Disaster visit Britannica.com
| © 2008 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. |
| dis·as·ter
Audio Help (dĭ-zās'tər, -sās'-) Pronunciation Key
n.
[French désastre, from Italian disastro : dis-, pejorative pref. (from Latin dis-; see dis-) + astro, star (from Latin astrum, from Greek astron; see ster-3 in Indo-European roots).] |
| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
disaster
1580, from M.Fr. desastre (1564), from It. disastro "ill-starred," from dis- "away, without" + astro "star, planet," from L. astrum, from Gk. astron. The sense is astrological, of a calamity blamed on an unfavorable position of a planet.
| Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper |
| disaster | |
noun | |
| 1. | 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" [syn: catastrophe] |
| 2. | an event resulting in great loss and misfortune; "the whole city was affected by the irremediable calamity"; "the earthquake was a disaster" [syn: calamity] |
| 3. | an act that has disastrous consequences |
| WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University. |
disaster [diˈzaːstə] noun
a terrible event, especially one that causes great damage, loss etc
Example: The earthquake was the greatest disaster the country had ever experienced.
Example: The earthquake was the greatest disaster the country had ever experienced.
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| Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary, © 2000-2006 K Dictionaries Ltd. |
Disaster
Ca*lam"i*ty\n.; pl. Calamities. [L. calamitas, akin to in-columis unharmed: cf. F. calamit['e]]1. Any great misfortune or cause of misery; -- generally applied to events or disasters which produce extensive evil, either to communities or individuals. Note: The word calamity was first derived from calamus when the corn could not get out of the stalk. --Bacon. Strokes of calamity that scathe and scorch the soul. --W. Irving. 2. A state or time of distress or misfortune; misery. The deliberations of calamity are rarely wise. --Burke. Where'er I came I brought calamity. --Tennyson. Syn: Disaster; distress; affliction; adversity; misfortune; unhappiness; infelicity; mishap; mischance; misery; evil; extremity; exigency; downfall. Usage: Calamity, Disaster, Misfortune, Mishap, Mischance. Of these words, calamity is the strongest. It supposes a somewhat continuous state, produced not usually by the direct agency of man, but by natural causes, such as fire, flood, tempest, disease, etc, Disaster denotes literally ill-starred, and is some unforeseen and distressing event which comes suddenly upon us, as if from hostile planet. Misfortune is often due to no specific cause; it is simply the bad fortune of an individual; a link in the chain of events; an evil independent of his own conduct, and not to be charged as a fault. Mischance and mishap are misfortunes of a trivial nature, occurring usually to individuals. "A calamity is either public or private, but more frequently the former; a disaster is rather particular than private; it affects things rather than persons; journey, expedition, and military movements are often attended with disasters; misfortunes are usually personal; they immediately affect the interests of the individual." --Crabb.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
Disaster
Dis*as"ter\, n. [F. d['e]sastre; pref. d['e]s- (L. dis-) + astre star, fr. L. astrum; a word of astrological origin. See Aster, Astral, Star.]1. An unpropitious or baleful aspect of a planet or star; malevolent influence of a heavenly body; hence, an ill portent. [Obs.] Disasters in the sun. --Shak. 2. An adverse or unfortunate event, esp. a sudden and extraordinary misfortune; a calamity; a serious mishap. But noble souls, through dust and heat, Rise from disaster and defeat The stronger. --Longfellow. Syn: Calamity; misfortune; mishap; mischance; visitation; misadventure; ill luck. See Calamity.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
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