Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

catastrophic

/ˌkætəˈstɹɑfɪk/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: 3.58 in modern English

Syllables: cat-a-stroph-ic
IPA: /ˌkætəˈstɹɑfɪk/

21

Scrabble Score

12

Letters

4

Syllables

9

Unique Chars

Meaning

adj

Of or pertaining to a catastrophe.

adj

Disastrous; ruinous.

adj

From which recovery is impossible.

Example Sentences

"The reason why Jon & Kate Plus 8 is such a hot topic is because it might all be a sham. It’s been claimed that Jon has a string of mistresses, that Kate had an affair with her bodyguard and that Baby Number Six is actually a shaved Ewok with a catastrophic heroin addiction. Or something."
"Some experts, such as geographer Jared Diamond in his 2005 book, “Collapse,” used Easter Island as a cautionary tale of how the exploitation of limited resources can result in catastrophic population decline, ecological devastation and the destruction of a society through infighting."
"catastrophic failure"

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Ancient Greek καταστροφικός (katastrophikós). By surface analysis, catastrophe + -ic.

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /ˌkætəˈstɹɑfɪk/
British English: /kætəˈstɹɒfɪk/

Inflected Forms

more catastrophic (comparative) most catastrophic (superlative)

Derived Forms

catastrophically megacatastrophic noncatastrophic postcatastrophic subcatastrophic supercatastrophic uncatastrophic

Phrases

catastrophic antiphospholipid syndrome catastrophic backtracking catastrophic failure catastrophic forgetting catastrophic interference catastrophic kill catastrophic mortality catastrophic moult

Synonyms

catastrophal ruinous

Antonyms

anastrophic

Rhymes With

philosophic radiographic heterotrophic geostrophic trophic strophic apostrophic mycotrophic neutrosophic pansophic ectotrophic

Questions

How do you pronounce catastrophic?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˌkætəˈstɹɑfɪk/.
What does catastrophic mean?: Of or pertaining to a catastrophe.
Where does catastrophic come from?: Learned borrowing from Ancient Greek καταστροφικός (katastrophikós). By surface analysis, catastrophe + -ic.

How to pronounce catastrophic

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “catastrophic”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˌkætəˈstɹɑfɪk/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “catastrophic”.
Repeat and practice — Say “catastrophic” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.