calamitous

adjective

ca·​lam·​i·​tous kə-ˈla-mə-təs How to pronounce calamitous (audio)
: being, causing, or accompanied by calamity
calamitous events
a calamitous earthquake
calamitously adverb

Examples of calamitous in a Sentence

the calamitous state of the nation's economy a calamitous decision to sell their products online exclusively ruined the business
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.
Last week’s calamitous meeting between Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky made clear the disdain Trump has for Zelensky, and Trump’s determination to end the war in Ukraine on terms favorable to Vladimir Putin. Isaac Chotiner, The New Yorker, 5 Mar. 2025 All our key characters are inching toward catastrophe, whether that’s ending up dead in the water or causing their own calamitous downfall. Proma Khosla, IndieWire, 2 Mar. 2025 Brazil’s record goalscorer has recently returned to his boyhood club, Santos, after a fairly calamitous spell in Saudi Arabia. Nick Miller, The Athletic, 26 Feb. 2025 The titular terrain is racked with its own calamitous past, one that haunts its residents. Marie-Helene Bertino, New York Times, 18 Feb. 2025 See All Example Sentences for calamitous

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Middle French & Latin; Middle French calamiteux "suffering misfortune, miserable," borrowed from Latin calamitōsus "liable to damage or disaster, afflicted by disaster, ill-starred, involving damage or disaster, ruinous," by haplology from *calamitātōsus, from calamitāt-, calamitās "disaster, misfortune, calamity" + -ōsus -ous

First Known Use

1545, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of calamitous was in 1545

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Calamitous.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/calamitous. Accessed 17 Mar. 2025.

Kids Definition

calamitous

adjective
ca·​lam·​i·​tous kə-ˈlam-ət-əs How to pronounce calamitous (audio)
: causing or accompanied by calamity
calamitous events
calamitously adverb
calamitousness noun

More from Merriam-Webster on calamitous

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