Meanings
plural cataclysms
- A sudden, violent event.
Judging by the sedimentary composition of the crust, it appears that Altaaya once possessed an atmosphere thick enough to support some form of liquid. What cataclysm stripped the atmosphere and left the planet to freeze is not currently known.
2008, BioWare, Mass Effect (Science Fiction), Redwood City: Electronic Arts, →ISBN, →OCLC, PC, scene: Altaaya Codex entry1 more example
While the disaster capitalism complex does not deliberately scheme to create cataclysms on which it feeds (though Iraq may be a notable exception), there is plenty of evidence that its component industries work very hard indeed to make that current disastrous trends continue unchallenged.
2007, Naomi Klein, The Shock Doctrine, Metropolitan Books/Henry Holt, →ISBN, page 427 - geographyA sudden and violent change in the earth's crust.
- A great flood.
Synonyms & antonyms
nounan event resulting in great loss and misfortune
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Ancient Greekκατακλυσμός“deluge, flood”
- Latincataclysmus
- Frenchcataclysme
- Englishcataclysm
From French cataclysme, from Latin cataclysmus, from Ancient Greek κατακλυσμός (kataklusmós, “deluge, flood”), from κατακλύζω (kataklúzō, “to dash over, flood, deluge, inundate”), from κατά (katá, “downwards, towards”) + κλύζω (klúzō, “to wash off, to wash away, to dash over”).
More words from French, Latin, Ancient Greek
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Catalan cataclisme, cataclisme
- cataclismesudden, violent event
- cataclismesudden and violent change in the earth's crust
Chinese Mandarin 激變 /激变
- 激變 /激变 (jībiàn)sudden, violent event
Czech kataklyzma
- kataklyzmasudden, violent event
Esperanto kataklismo
- kataklismosudden, violent event
Finnish mullistus, kataklysmi
- mullistussudden, violent event
- kataklysmisudden and violent change in the earth's crust
- luonnonmullistussudden and violent change in the earth's crust
- suurtulvagreat flood
French cataclysme
- cataclysmesudden, violent event
German katastrophales Ereignis, Kataklysmus
- katastrophales Ereignissudden, violent event
- Kataklysmussudden, violent event
- Kataklysmussudden and violent change in the earth's crust
Greek κατακλυσμός
- κατακλυσμός (kataklysmós)sudden, violent event
Italian cataclisma
- cataclismasudden, violent event
Japanese 激変, 激変
- 激変 (gekihen)sudden, violent event
- 激変 (gekihen)sudden and violent change in the earth's crust
- 大洪水 (daikōzui)great flood
Polish kataklizm
- kataklizmsudden, violent event
Portuguese cataclisma
- cataclismasudden, violent event
Romanian cataclism, cataclism
- cataclismsudden, violent event
- cataclismsudden and violent change in the earth's crust
- inundațiegreat flood
- potopgreat flood
Russian катакли́зм, катакли́зм
- катакли́зм (kataklízm)sudden, violent event
- катакли́зм (kataklízm)sudden and violent change in the earth's crust
- пото́п (potóp)great flood
Spanish cataclismo
- cataclismosudden and violent change in the earth's crust
Swedish kataklysm
- kataklysmsudden, violent event
Ukrainian катаклі́зм
- катаклі́зм (kataklízm)sudden, violent event
Urdu قیامت
- قیامت (qayamat)sudden, violent event
Cite this entry
cataclysm. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cataclysm
“cataclysm.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cataclysm. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “cataclysm,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cataclysm.
Source: cataclysm on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.