Dictionary

cataclysm en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• (Southern-England) audio
• /ˈkætəˌklɪzm̩/

Etymology

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”).

Meanings

1. 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 entry:
   • 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:
2. A sudden and violent change in the earth's crust.
3. A great flood.

Forms

Deriveds

cataclysmic · lunar cataclysm · cataclysmist · cataclysmal

Relateds

catastrophe

Translations (44)

it cataclisma (sudden, violent event) · gl cataclismo (sudden, violent event) · fi suurtulva (great flood) · mk по́топ (great flood) · sh kataklizma (sudden, violent event) · fi kataklysmi (sudden and violent change in the earth's crust) · ca cataclisme (sudden and violent change in the earth's crust) · hy հեղեղում (great flood) · uk катаклі́зм (sudden, violent event) · ru катакли́зм (sudden and violent change in the earth's crust) · eo kataklismo (sudden, violent event) · el κατακλυσμός (sudden, violent event) · fr cataclysme (sudden, violent event) · sh катаклизма (sudden, violent event) · es cataclismo (sudden and violent change in the earth's crust) · de katastrophales Ereignis (sudden, violent event) · pl kataklizm (sudden, violent event) · ro potop (great flood) · sv kataklysm (sudden, violent event) · gv coleaystey mooar (sudden, violent event) · ro inundație (great flood) · cs kataklyzma (sudden, violent event) · de Kataklysmus (sudden, violent event) · fi mullistus (sudden, violent event) · ja 大洪水 (great flood) · ur قیامت (sudden, violent event) · fi luonnonmullistus (sudden and violent change in the earth's crust) · cmn 激變 /激变 (sudden, violent event) · mk катакли́зма (sudden and violent change in the earth's crust) · ka კატაკლიზმა (sudden, violent event) · ro cataclism (sudden, violent event) · ro cataclism (sudden and violent change in the earth's crust) · hy կատակլիզմ (sudden, violent event) · ja 激変 (sudden, violent event) · de Kataklysmus (sudden and violent change in the earth's crust) · hy կատակլիզմ (sudden and violent change in the earth's crust) · ja 激変 (sudden and violent change in the earth's crust) · ca cataclisme (sudden, violent event) · ru катакли́зм (sudden, violent event) · be катаклі́зм (sudden, violent event) · pt cataclisma (sudden, violent event) · mk катакли́зма (sudden, violent event) · ru пото́п (great flood) · gl cataclismo (sudden and violent change in the earth's crust)