1
as in disaster
a sudden violent event that brings about great loss or destruction
the earthquake and the ensuing damage was the worst tragedy to ever befall the city
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in misfortune
bad luck or an example of this
it's the tragedy of many great artists not to be recognized for their genius until after they're dead
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Recent Examples of tragedy
Catalan-Dima's parents said that their daughter had plans to move out of the trailer on Monday before the tragedy occurred, according to police.
—
Anthony Robledo, USA Today, 29 Mar. 2025
The late summer tragedy that took the life of Johnny Gaudreau demanded that certain players step forward amid the grief, and Olivier, according to players in the room, was one of those guys.
—Aaron Portzline, New York Times, 28 Mar. 2025
Hereditary, set to leave Netflix on April 15, stars Toni Collette, Alex Wolff, Milly Shapiro, and Gabriel Byrne, and follows a grieving family who are haunted by the tragedy inflicted on their family.
—Ron Estes, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 Mar. 2025
Nicky is tested when tragedy forces a sudden and uneasy reunion with Chloe.
—Jessica Radloff, Glamour, 27 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tragedy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tragedy
Noun
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However, he’s also had his share of expensive disasters, such as Joao Felix, Santiago Arias and Nikola Kalinić.—
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All the while, he’s typically dressed in a form-fitting dress, a shoulder-length wig and heeled boots (because open-toed shoes around hatchets and augers could spell disaster).—
Noun
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Miami’s misfortune with close games and big leads hasn’t dissuaded Spoelstra’s goal to maximize each possession and win every game, even if his roster is significantly different from five months ago.—
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Healthy bodies are the only thing that can make a difference at Madison Square Garden, but where there is great demand, misfortune would have it there is also a great shortage.—
Noun
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The Bondsman never seems to know quite how seriously to take the state of Hub’s soul, or the looming possibility of apocalypse, or all the many, many deaths along the way.—
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But these posthumous men have already survived an apocalypse of a kind.—
Noun
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The historical upward trajectory of the stock market has reduced the greatest economic calamity in U.S. history into a blip.—
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The Southeast Asian region continues to grapple with the calamity's aftereffects.—
Cite this Entry
“Tragedy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tragedy. Accessed 11 Apr. 2025.
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