tra‧ge‧dy /ˈtrædʒədi, ˈtrædʒɪdi/
noun (
plural tragedies)
[
Date: 1300-1400;
Language: Old French;
Origin: tragedie, from Latin, from Greek tragoidia, probably from tragos 'goat' + aeidein 'to sing']
1. [uncountable and countable] a very sad event, that shocks people because it involves death:
The tragedy happened as they were returning home from a night out. Tragedy struck the family when their two-year-old son was killed in an accident.2. [countable] informal something that seems very sad and unnecessary because something will be wasted, lost, or harmed:
It’s a tragedy to see so much talent going to waste.3. a) [countable] a serious play or book that ends sadly, especially with the death of the main character ⇒
comedy:
‘Hamlet’ is one of Shakespeare’s best known tragedies. b) [uncountable] this type of play or book:
an actor specializing in tragedy [TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲
disaster a sudden event such as an accident, or a natural event such as a flood or storm, which causes great damage or suffering:
200 people died in the train disaster. The earthquake was the worst natural disaster to hit India for over 50 years.catastrophe a terrible event in which there is a lot of destruction, damage, suffering, or death over a wide area of the world:
A large comet hitting the earth would be a catastrophe. We don’t want another nuclear catastrophe like Chernobyl. Scientists say that the oil spill is an ecological catastrophe.tragedy a very sad event, that shocks people because it involves death:
It was a tragedy that he died so young. the AIDS tragedy in Africadebacle an event or situation that is a complete failure and is very embarrassing:
The opening ceremony turned into a debacle. The team is hoping to do better this game, after last week’s debacle against the Chicago Bears.earthquake a sudden shaking of the earth’s surface that often causes a lot of damage:
A powerful earthquake struck the Indonesian island of Sulawesi. It was the biggest earthquake to hit the Pacific Northwest for 52 years.flood a very large amount of water that covers an area that is usually dry:
Bangladesh has been hit by a series of devastating floods (=very bad floods). The crisis began with floods that covered one third of the countryside.drought a long period of dry weather when there is not enough water for plants and animals to live:
The country experienced its worst drought this century. In East Africa, three years of drought have left 10 million people in urgent need of food and water.famine a situation in which a large number of people have little or no food for a long time and many people die:
Poor harvests led to famine. 4,000,000 people are threatened by famine in northern Ethiopia.hurricane a storm that has very strong fast winds and that moves over water – used about storms in the North Atlantic Ocean:
extreme weather such as hurricanes Hurricane Andrew left southern Florida in ruins.typhoon a violent tropical storm – used about storms in the Western Pacific Ocean:
A typhoon has hit the Philippines, lifting roofs off houses and uprooting trees.tsunami a very large wave, caused by extreme conditions such as an earthquake, which can cause a lot of damage when it reaches land:
Thousands of people were killed in the tsunami. Many Pacific earthquakes have generated tsunamis. [TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲