Definition of CALAMITY (original) (raw)
1
: a disastrous event marked by great loss and lasting distress and suffering
2
: a state of deep distress or misery caused by major misfortune or loss
Synonyms
Examples of calamity in a Sentence
Twenty two years passed. Twenty-two years of excellent health and the boundless self-assurance that flows from being fit—twenty-two years spared the adversary that is illness and the calamity that waits in the wings. —
Phillip Roth, Everyman, 2006 A resentment born of the suspicion that all along the media were up to their usual tricks, hyping a national calamity to the max in order to make us buy more copies and tune into TV specials … —Christopher Buckley, Time, 29 Nov. 1999 In the wake of this year's unending calamities, there has been renewed discussion of the need for an international rapid deployment force that can kick down doors to help victims of disasters. —Kathleen Hunt, New York Times Magazine, 28 July 1991
floods, earthquakes, and other calamities He predicted calamity for the economy.
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.
Before now, United’s calamities in the last decade or so have been incubated to a tier most other clubs can only dream of: finishing bottom of a Champions League group; coming eighth in the Premier League but winning the FA Cup; losing a Europa League final 11-10 on penalties. —Laurie Whitwell, The Athletic, 31 Dec. 2024 Heroic figures who turned an approaching catastrophe into mere _calamity_2024 December 29 Tribune Publishing Chicago Tribune New York Daily News Sun Sentinel of Fla. Daily Press of Va. Orlando Sentinel The Morning Call of Pa. —Chris Doyle, Hartford Courant, 29 Dec. 2024 After years of unrelenting calamity, Americans were ready for something new and different. —Russell L. Riley / Made By History, TIME, 29 Dec. 2024 In earthquake-prone regions, these insights are driving retrofitting projects to make structures safer before calamities strike. —Cornelia C. Walther, Forbes, 27 Dec. 2024 See all Example Sentences for calamity 
Word History
Etymology
Middle English calamytey, borrowed from Middle French & Latin; Middle French calamité, borrowed from Latin calamitāt-, calamitās "disaster, misfortune, military defeat," going back to an unattested adjective *calamo- or *calami-, presumably, "injured, affected by misfortune or defeat" + -tāt-, -tās -TY; *calamo-/*calami- perhaps going back to Indo-European *kl̥h2-em-o/i-, adjective derivative from a verbal base *kelh2- "hit, strike" — more at clastic
Note: Later Roman writers associated calamitās by folk etymology with calamus "reed, cane," taking it to literally mean "plague affecting crops." A negated form of the Latin adjective underlying calamitās can be seen in the word incolumis "unharmed, safe and sound, undamaged," going back to *enkalamis. (The second -a- was presumably weakened to -i- and then backed and rounded to -u- before a labial consonant, with the first -a-, now in the second syllable, reducing and rounding to -o- before velar l.) Initial -aCa- in calamitās, rather than -aCi- by vowel weakening, is most likely the result of the so-called alacer rule, by which a short vowel in an open medial syllable retains its quality if it is identical to the vowel of the initial syllable (the word alacer "brisk, lively" exemplifying the rule—compare allegro entry 2).
First Known Use
15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2
Time Traveler
The first known use of calamity was in the 15th century
Dictionary Entries Near calamity
Cite this Entry
“Calamity.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/calamity. Accessed 15 Jan. 2025.
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Last Updated: 4 Jan 2025 - Updated example sentences
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