Definition of DEBACLE (original) (raw)
1
b
: a complete failure : fiasco
3
: a violent disruption (as of an army) : rout
Did you know?
If you need an icebreaker in some social setting, why not recount the history of debacle? After all, when it was first used in English, debacle referred to the literal breaking up of ice (such as the kind that occurs in a river after a long, cold winter), as well as to the rush of ice or water that follows such an event. Eventually, it was also used to mean “a violent, destructive flood.” If that’s not enough to make some fast friends, you could let loose the fact that debacle comes from the French noun débâcle, which in turn comes from the verb débâcler, meaning “to clear, unbolt, or unbar.” You might then add, to your listeners’ grateful appreciation, that these uses led naturally to such meanings as “a breaking up,” “collapse,” and finally the familiar “disaster” and “fiasco.” We can feel the silence thawing already.
Synonyms
Examples of debacle in a Sentence
What a debacle. Next thing he knew, one of the patients would turn up dead. —
T. Coraghessan Boyle, The Road to Wellville, 1993 So what had been intended as an orderly hearing ended in a general debacle, for as soon as Fray Domingo saw his protector dragged toward the exit door, he leaped at the guards and began pummeling them. —James A. Michener, Texas, 1985 Savings themselves evaporate in the course of such a debacle and thus the very wherewithal for reversing and retrieving the situation is lost … —Jane Jacobs, Cities and the Wealth of Nations, 1984
After the debacle of his first novel, he had trouble getting a publisher for his next book. the financial debacle that was the stock market crash of 1929
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.
Xi’s $18 trillion economy is being weighed down by a giant property crisis that some compare to Japan’s 1990s bad-loan debacle. —William Pesek, Forbes, 17 Jan. 2025 State and national Republicans would do well to make sure the American people are aware of Maryland’s budget debacle and how the state got itself into this mess. —Chris Roemer, Baltimore Sun, 16 Jan. 2025 In other words, for an accurate assessment of the performance of their top leaders in this debacle, county supervisors will need an independent, outside investigator. —Mercury News & East Bay Times Editorial, The Mercury News, 15 Jan. 2025 What happens in the stands is another story, but everyone knows the City Section is watching and expectations are last season’s debacle will not be repeated. —Eric Sondheimer, Los Angeles Times, 13 Jan. 2025 See all Example Sentences for debacle 
Word History
Etymology
French débâcle, from débâcler to clear, from Middle French desbacler, from des- de- + bacler to block, perhaps from Vulgar Latin *bacculare, from Latin baculum staff
First Known Use
1802, in the meaning defined at sense 2
Time Traveler
The first known use of debacle was in 1802
Dictionary Entries Near debacle
Cite this Entry
“Debacle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/debacle. Accessed 12 Feb. 2025.
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Last Updated: 1 Feb 2025 - Updated example sentences
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