catastrophe
[ kuh-tas-truh-fee ]
/ kəˈtæs trə fi /
noun
a sudden and widespread disaster: the catastrophe of war.
any misfortune, mishap, or failure; fiasco: The play was so poor our whole evening was a catastrophe.
a final event or conclusion, usually an unfortunate one; a disastrous end: the great catastrophe of the Old South at Appomattox.
(in a drama) the point at which the circumstances overcome the central motive, introducing the close or conclusion; dénouement.
Compare catastasis, epitasis, protasis.
Geology.
a sudden, violent disturbance, especially of a part of the surface of the earth; cataclysm.
Also called catastrophe function. Mathematics.
any of the mathematical functions that describe the discontinuities that are treated in catastrophe theory.
Origin of catastrophe
synonym study for catastrophe
1, 3. See
disaster.
OTHER WORDS FROM catastrophe
cat·a·stroph·ic [kat-uh-strof-ik] /ˌkæt əˈstrɒf ɪk/, cat·a·stroph·i·cal, ca·tas·tro·phal, adjective su·per·ca·tas·tro·phe, nounWords nearby catastrophe
Example sentences from the Web for catastrophe
British Dictionary definitions for catastrophe
catastrophe
/ (kəˈtæstrəfɪ) /
noun
a sudden, extensive, or notable disaster or misfortune
the denouement of a play, esp a classical tragedy
a final decisive event, usually causing a disastrous end
Also called: cataclysm
any sudden and violent change in the earth's surface caused by flooding, earthquake, or some other rapid process
Derived forms of catastrophe
catastrophic (ˌkætəˈstrɒfɪk), adjective catastrophically, adverbWord Origin for catastrophe
C16: from Greek
katastrophē, from
katastrephein to overturn, from
strephein to turn