See Also: disaster(medicine)
disaster(dictionary)
disaster(dictionary)
Disaster Supplies Kit(medicine)
disaster planning(medicine)
Disaster supplies kit(health)
Hindenburg disaster(encyclopedia)
disaster area(dictionary)
Heysel Stadium Disaster, the(dictionary)

disaster (iou)



disaster noun & verb. L16.
[French desastre or its source Italian disastro, from dis- DIS- 2 + astro star (from Latin astrum). Cf. ill-starred.]
A. noun.
(A) sudden or great misfortune; an event of ruinous or distressing nature, a calamity; complete failure. L16.
D. Fraser Disaster always brought out the best in Churchill. Daily Telegraph The Houghton Main colliery disaster in which five miners died.
An unfavourable aspect of a star or planet. E-M17.
Comb.: disaster area: in which a major disaster has recently occurred; disaster movie colloq. a film whose plot centres on a major disaster such as a flood, fire, aircrash, etc.
b. verb trans. Bring disaster on; ruin; cause serious injury to. Usu. in pass. Now rare. L16.