DISASTERS Synonyms: 73 Similar and Opposite Words

disasters

noun

plural of disaster

as in catastrophes

a sudden violent event that brings about great loss or destruction hurricanes are natural disasters

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in failures

something that has failed an utter disaster, the play opened and closed on the same miserable night

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of disasters Since 2024, the state and federal governments have spent over half a billion dollars on disasters in Ruidoso — nine times the village’s annual budget. — Abe Streep, ProPublica, 21 Oct. 2026 These same companies continue to kill the clean energy that is not only cheaper, but try to side-step their glaring responsibility for the increasing cascade of climate disasters. — Tom Tapp, Deadline, 21 Oct. 2026 Roughly 5 million of these homes are in areas prone to the worst effects of climate disasters, according to a study Rumbach co-authored. — Daniel Wolfe, Miami Herald, 21 Oct. 2026 Conflict and climate disasters are keeping children from classrooms. — Edith M. Lederer, Los Angeles Times, 20 Oct. 2026 Disasters punctuate this fall’s best mysteries… The return of pneumonic plague, the blob-like ooze of data centers, the revival of the rattail ’do—disasters seem to be looming around every corner right now. — Lisa Henricksson, Air Mail, 17 Oct. 2026 Its chief instructor, Wang Kuanghan, has said plans are underway to open five more centers in China within three years, expanding the simulations to other disasters, including fires and earthquakes. — Lauryn Higgins, Time, 15 Oct. 2026 The administration initially talked about abolishing the agency, arguing that states and communities could deal with disasters on their own. — Dana R. Fisher, The Conversation, 14 Oct. 2026 Early research suggests that smoke from these disasters can blow onto trees across the country and coat leaves, blocking sunlight and interfering with photosynthesis. — Mary Randolph, Scientific American, 14 Oct. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for disasters

Noun

With that in mind, here’s a look at three new books shaped by catastrophes large and small.

— Lisa Henricksson, Air Mail, 17 Oct. 2026
This palette also has a latch tab that locks the lid in place, avoiding any potential catastrophes.

— ElleAnna Revell, Condé Nast Traveler, 14 Oct. 2026

Definition of catastrophes

Noun

The feat concludes a pursuit that began in 2009, when Zhang first experimented with riding a motorcycle on water and overcame early failures to achieve his latest goal.

— Jijo Malayil, Interesting Engineering, 26 Oct. 2026
Neeley said the floodwaters were receding but left mud and silt, much of which has been contaminated with sewage because of failures at waste plants.

— ABC News, ABC News, 25 Oct. 2026

Definition of failures

Noun

By century’s end, however, the specter of famine had largely receded (aside from tragedies of war and misgovernment, no small caveat).

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 23 Oct. 2026
Investigators are still working to determine how Boahene was dragged by the train and ways to prevent similar tragedies.

— Colin Mixson, New York Daily News, 22 Oct. 2026

Definition of tragedies

Noun

The Barbie show, however, was not without its disappointments for some Péro fans, since the collaboration felt somewhat removed from the label’s familiar world.

— Mayu Saini, Footwear News, 21 Oct. 2026
The Chargers are one of the biggest disappointments in football and are now 0-5 to begin the year.

— David Troy OutKick, FOXNews.com, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of disappointments

Noun

There’s a lot of apocalypses happening now in this world, major ones.

— Angelica Jade Bastién, Vulture, 8 Oct. 2026
And a lot of the pseudepigrapha, like the fake gospels and fake apocalypses, fill in gaps in the record that can serve latter-day, post-biblical purposes.

— JSTOR Daily, JSTOR Daily, 16 Oct. 2025

Definition of apocalypses

Noun

The Russian attack on Kyiv included three ballistic missiles carrying cluster munitions -- bombs that open in the air and release scores of smaller bomblets, Zelenskyy said.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 23 Oct. 2026
But more crucial was the American nuclear umbrella, which spared countries such as Germany, Japan and South Korea the need to develop their own bombs.

— Fareed Zakaria, Washington Post, 23 Oct. 2026

Definition of bombs

Noun

The protagonist becomes a wise-guy version of Benjamin’s Angel of History, watching calamities accumulate before his eyes.

— Alex Ross, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026
To avert future calamities, the forest outside Bordeaux must be thinned and its fire breaks widened, said Arthur Guérin-Turcq, a Sorbonne University geographer whose family cultivates pines near Le Porge.

— Michael Finnegan, Los Angeles Times, 30 Aug. 2026

Definition of calamities

Noun

Those flights are popular with bargain hunters but can be money losers for airlines amid a spike in fuel prices.

— Chris Isidore, CNN Money, 23 Oct. 2026
The losers will be SpaceX’s current shareholders that give up almost half their company for puny profits and big promises.

— Shawn Tully, Fortune, 22 Oct. 2026

Definition of losers

Browse Nearby Words

disaster

disasters

disastrous

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Disasters.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/disasters. Accessed 27 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of disasters

noun

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

milieu

Popular in Grammar & Usage

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Popular in Wordplay

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE

Popular

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Games & Quizzes