1
as in flood
a great flow of water or of something that overwhelms
an ancient cataclysm that may have been the basis for the Flood described in the Bible
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in catastrophe
a sudden violent event that brings about great loss or destruction
the earthquake that struck Lisbon in 1755, killing 30,000 people, was one of the greatest cataclysms ever recorded
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in upheaval
a violent disturbance (as of the political or social order)
a social cataclysm that gave rise to a new world order
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of cataclysm
Unlike during the pandemic, a cataclysm that played no favorites, the trade war is fast becoming a consumer marketing minefield.
—
Greg Petro, Forbes.com, 9 June 2025
Dyer’s father was traumatized by the austerity of growing up in England between two military cataclysms, and his daily satisfaction is bound in his ability to pinch pences.
—Daniel Felsenthal, Los Angeles Times, 9 June 2025
The Leftovers, which ran for four seasons on three seasons, followed the aftermath of a global cataclysm that results in the unexplained disappearance of 140 million people, finds Kevin (Theroux), a police officer and father, relocated to a small Texas town from Mapleton, New York.
—Esther Kang, People.com, 2 June 2025
The first five mass extinctions were triggered by cataclysms such as super volcano eruptions and the impact of a massive asteroid.
—Keridwen Cornelius, New York Times, 3 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for cataclysm
Greg Petro, Forbes.com, 9 June 2025
Dyer’s father was traumatized by the austerity of growing up in England between two military cataclysms, and his daily satisfaction is bound in his ability to pinch pences.
—Daniel Felsenthal, Los Angeles Times, 9 June 2025
The Leftovers, which ran for four seasons on three seasons, followed the aftermath of a global cataclysm that results in the unexplained disappearance of 140 million people, finds Kevin (Theroux), a police officer and father, relocated to a small Texas town from Mapleton, New York.
—Esther Kang, People.com, 2 June 2025
The first five mass extinctions were triggered by cataclysms such as super volcano eruptions and the impact of a massive asteroid.
—Keridwen Cornelius, New York Times, 3 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for cataclysm
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cataclysm
Noun
-
The text records royal decrees including tax relief during poor Nile floods; donations to temples; the creation of a new priestly office; a festival tied to the heliacal rising of Sirius; and a calendar reform introducing a leap day every four years.—
Maria Mocerino,
Interesting Engineering,
14 Sep. 2025
-
Take the necessary actions to protect flood-prone property.—
NC Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
14 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
At some point, everyone faces upheaval; a layoff, a health scare, a collapsing industry, or simply the gnawing sense that the old way isn’t working anymore.—
Mark Murphy,
Forbes.com,
16 Sep. 2025
-
This event triggered a massive upheaval in the global financial markets and signaled the intensification of the 2008 financial crisis.—
Arizona Republic,
AZCentral.com,
15 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
The generative AI boom has unleashed a torrent of new startups, each promising to disrupt industries with the power of artificial intelligence.—
Sajal Singh,
Forbes.com,
18 Sep. 2025
-
All new parents know that precious moments with your firstborn come in dribs and drabs and then in a torrent.—
Gil Kaufman,
Billboard,
18 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
This includes adding redundancy to vital systems, segmenting networks so that a compromise in one area does not spread unchecked, and developing explicit incident response processes that incorporate both cyber and physical disaster management.—
Chuck Brooks,
Forbes.com,
19 Sep. 2025
-
Last year alone, disasters costing $11 billion hit Florida, according to data from the National Centers for Environmental Information, with a total cost between $300 billion and $450 billion from 1980 to 2024.—
Giulia Carbonaro,
MSNBC Newsweek,
19 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
The former Columbia graduate student was born in Syria but fled during the country’s revolution in 2013.—
Ross O'Keefe,
The Washington Examiner,
18 Sep. 2025
-
His father, a former military officer, was imprisoned following the Iranian revolution until his mother was able to negotiate his release with prison guards, according to reporting by the New York Times.—
Lily Mae Lazarus,
Fortune,
18 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Does this make Musk’s dreams of human transformation and societal apocalypse more likely to become reality?—
Sonja Fritzsche,
The Conversation,
9 Sep. 2025
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The Dead Don't Die In Jim Jarmusch's absurdist apocalypse comedy, flesh-craving zombies raid the once-tranquil town of Centerville, picking off its residents one by one.—
James Mercadante,
PEOPLE,
4 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
It is estimated that there are 500,000 detectable earthquakes in the world each year.—
CA Earthquake Bot,
Sacbee.com,
18 Sep. 2025
-
Tsunamis are a series of giant waves caused by undersea earthquakes at tectonic plate boundaries, or volcanic eruptions.—
George Petras,
USA Today,
18 Sep. 2025
Noun
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The survivors were scattered around the world, and even over a century later, the tragedy still colors their view of their ancestral region.—
Brady Knox,
The Washington Examiner,
21 Sep. 2025
-
Republicans, who say school security and improving mental health services are the best way to avoid future tragedies, have firmly opposed any new gun control measures.—
Alex Derosier,
Twin Cities,
20 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Cataclysm.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cataclysm. Accessed 21 Sep. 2025.
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