(of events) having extremely unfortunate or dire consequences; bringing ruin; "the stock market crashed on Black Friday"; "a calamitous defeat"; "the battle was a disastrous end to a disastrous campaign"; "such doctrines, if true, would be absolutely fatal to my theory"- Charles Darwin; "it is fatal to enter any war without the will to win it"- Douglas MacArthur; "a fateful error"
Used in a Sentence
calamitous
How to use calamitous in a sentence. Example sentences and definitions for calamitous.
Editorial note
> What would happen if the Chinese took the same attitude with nuclear power?I'd bet it would be pretty calamitous, as you imply.
Examples4
Definitions1
Parts of speech1
Quick take
(of events) having extremely unfortunate or dire consequences; bringing ruin; "the stock market crashed on Black Friday"; "a calamitous defeat"; "the battle was a disastrous end to a disastrous campaign"; "such doctrines, if true, would be absolutely fatal to my theory"- Charles Darwin; "it is fatal to enter any war without the will to win it"- Douglas MacArthur; "a fateful error"
Meaning at a glance
The clearest senses and uses of calamitous gathered in one view.
Definitions
Core meanings and parts of speech for calamitous.
adjective
(of events) having extremely unfortunate or dire consequences; bringing ruin; "the stock market crashed on Black Friday"; "a calamitous defeat"; "the battle was a disastrous end to a disastrous campaign"; "such doctrines, if true, would be absolutely fatal to my theory"- Charles Darwin; "it is fatal to enter any war without the will to win it"- Douglas MacArthur; "a fateful error"
See also: black, disastrous, fatal, fateful
Example sentences
> What would happen if the Chinese took the same attitude with nuclear power?I'd bet it would be pretty calamitous, as you imply.
You don't want a large portion of your assets tied up in the company you work for, where a calamitous event can both cause you to lose your job and your savings.
But I don't want to hamstring economic progress for some calamitous event with something I have low confidence will actually happen.
You read that when SaltStack managed to set e=1 in their SSH replacement protocol, and what you read was SaltStack and its defenders arguing that the mistake wasn't as calamitous as it actually was.
Frequently asked questions
Short answers drawn from the clearest meanings and examples for this word.
How do you use calamitous in a sentence?
> What would happen if the Chinese took the same attitude with nuclear power?I'd bet it would be pretty calamitous, as you imply.
What does calamitous mean?
(of events) having extremely unfortunate or dire consequences; bringing ruin; "the stock market crashed on Black Friday"; "a calamitous defeat"; "the battle was a disastrous end to a disastrous campaign"; "such doctrines, if true, would be absolutely fatal to my theory"- Charles Darwin; "it is fatal to enter any war without the will to win it"- Douglas MacArthur; "a fateful error"
What part of speech is calamitous?
calamitous is commonly used as adjective.