Meaning of disaster In English

• 0 (an event that results in) great harm, damage, or death, or serious difficulty:

  • An inquiry was ordered into the recent rail disaster (= a serious train accident).

  • It would be a disaster for me if I lost my job.

  • This is one of the worst natural disasters ever to befall the area.

  • Heavy and prolonged rain can spell disaster for many plants.

  • Everything was going smoothly until suddenly disaster struck.

  • Inviting James and Ivan to dinner on the same evening was a recipe for disaster (= caused a very difficult situation) - they always argue with each other.

  • The evening was a complete disaster.

  • As an engineer, he was a disaster.

• 1 an event causing great harm, damage, or suffering:

  • [ C/U ] financial disaster

  • [ U ] disaster aid/relief

  • [ C ] Over 100 people died in the disaster.

  • [ C ] The hurricane may be the costliest natural disaster in US history.

  • [ C ] Our last dinner party was an absolute disaster.

• 2 a sudden event that causes a lot of damage, such as a very bad fire, storm, or accident:

  • Insurance companies often charge extra to cover floods, earthquakes, or other natural disasters.

• 3 an extremely bad situation that can destroy a company’s plans, success, or ability to operate:

  • mean/spell disaster for sb A crash in real estate prices would mean financial disaster for the housing lenders.

  • The $7.48 billion takeover quickly turned into a major disaster.