ca
tac
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sm
Plural
cataclysms
1
a sudden, violent natural disaster that drastically alters the earth's landscape
- The 2004 Indonesian earthquake and tsunami caused a massive cataclysm that claimed over 200,000 lives.
- Scientists point to an asteroid or comet impact as the leading theory for the cataclysm that wiped out the dinosaurs.
- Landslides and rock avalanches are examples of relatively common terrestrial cataclysms that can develop with little warning.
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2
a sudden or disastrous event that destroys or changes a whole region or system
- Fall of the Western Roman Empire marked a political and economic cataclysm from which Europe did not recover for centuries.
- World War I represented a cataclysm that demolished long-standing political systems and redrew the map of Europe.
- Emergence of the internet sparked a cataclysm in how people share information and do business.
- Company faced a public relations cataclysm over harmful business practices exposed in news report.
- The earthquake was a cataclysm that reshaped the landscape and devastated the city.
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