disastrous

adjective

di·​sas·​trous di-ˈza-strəs How to pronounce disastrous (audio)
 also  -ˈsa-
Synonyms of disastrousnext
1
: attended by or causing suffering or disaster : calamitous
a disastrous flood
2
: terrible, horrendous
a disastrous score
disastrously adverb

Synonyms

See All Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus

Examples of disastrous in a Sentence

Half the city was destroyed by a disastrous fire. The bad weather could have a disastrous effect on the area's tourism industry. His failure to back up the computer files had disastrous consequences. The strike was economically disastrous.
Recent Examples on the Web
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.
No punishment for shooting a disastrous 24 percent from 3, the team’s worst perimeter performance since its 6-for-23 effort from deep against St. John’s on Feb. 23. — Brendan Marks, The Athletic, 22 Mar. 2025 Or how about their disastrous appearance on I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here? — Ew Staff, EW.com, 20 Mar. 2025 Last year, the Mets were forced to cut ties with right-hander Adrian Houser and Julio Teheran made one disastrous start before being cut. — Abbey Mastracco, New York Daily News, 17 Mar. 2025 But the case is complicated – there are 157 suspects, 132 rooms and one disastrous State Dinner featuring the Australians. — Peter White, Deadline, 17 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for disastrous

Word History

First Known Use

1594, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of disastrous was in 1594

Browse Nearby Words

disaster strikes
disastrous
disastrousness
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Disastrous.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/disastrous. Accessed 1 Apr. 2025.

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