1
as in disaster
a sudden violent event that brings about great loss or destruction
the earthquake and the ensuing damage was the worst tragedy to ever befall the city
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in misfortune
bad luck or an example of this
it's the tragedy of many great artists not to be recognized for their genius until after they're dead
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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Recent Examples of tragedy
The Ahmedabad tragedy and Europe’s defense ambitions serve as stark reminders of the uncertainties facing U.S. aerospace.
—
Dan Irvine, Forbes.com, 12 June 2025
In the wake of the tragedy, the painting, dated to the 1630s, was finally properly attributed to the great Artemisia Gentileschi, the 17th-century Italian Baroque painter who has become one of the few female artists of her era to be recognized today.
—Jacqui Palumbo, CNN Money, 12 June 2025
The Ahmedabad crash will now join these rare and harrowing cases, as investigators work to determine how one life was spared amid overwhelming tragedy.
—Kate Nalepinski, MSNBC Newsweek, 12 June 2025
Conspiracy theories muddled the truth following the tragedy In the aftermath of the tragedy, conspiracy theories quickly spread online and in the news media.
—Randall Colburn, EW.com, 10 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for tragedy
Dan Irvine, Forbes.com, 12 June 2025
In the wake of the tragedy, the painting, dated to the 1630s, was finally properly attributed to the great Artemisia Gentileschi, the 17th-century Italian Baroque painter who has become one of the few female artists of her era to be recognized today.
—Jacqui Palumbo, CNN Money, 12 June 2025
The Ahmedabad crash will now join these rare and harrowing cases, as investigators work to determine how one life was spared amid overwhelming tragedy.
—Kate Nalepinski, MSNBC Newsweek, 12 June 2025
Conspiracy theories muddled the truth following the tragedy In the aftermath of the tragedy, conspiracy theories quickly spread online and in the news media.
—Randall Colburn, EW.com, 10 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for tragedy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tragedy
Noun
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Similarly, the market-resilience work performed by a lab at the University of California, Davis, offers solutions to farmers and agricultural communities that are vulnerable to intensifying weather disasters.—
Peter Slevin,
New Yorker,
9 June 2025
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Federal database that tracked costly weather disasters no longer being updated How to prepare for an earthquake disaster Huge earthquakes have long been an existential crisis for millions along the West Coast, as described in a 2022 USA TODAY article.—
Terry Collins,
USA Today,
8 June 2025
Noun
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Escobar had the misfortune of stepping into the shadow of the past season with skeletons in her closet.—
Larisha Paul,
Rolling Stone,
5 June 2025
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Plenty of other contenders faced similar misfortune.—
Steve Megargee,
Chicago Tribune,
31 May 2025
Noun
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Now almost all of them are missing their crowns, a beech apocalypse.—
Robert Sullivan,
Curbed,
9 June 2025
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Shopping and Consumer Behavior The retail apocalypse?—
Charell G. Coleman,
Forbes.com,
30 May 2025
Noun
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Meantime Marty and his ex-wife Felicia (Karen Gillan), on good terms, commiserate by phone about the latest roster of calamities.—
Michael Phillips,
Chicago Tribune,
6 June 2025
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All these calamities are happening simultaneously — so many disasters coming at such speed that the bad news slams into Marty like a psychological avalanche.—
Amy Nicholson,
Los Angeles Times,
5 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Tragedy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tragedy. Accessed 19 Jun. 2025.
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