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apocalyptic

apocalyptic

61 8.6
Relating to great damage and chaos like the end of the world
  • adjective
  • /əˌpɒkəˈlɪptɪk/
translation icon : apocalíptico
  • In the story, humanity faced an apocalyptic scenario, struggling to survive after the collapse of civilization.
  • post-apocalyptic
  • an apocalyptic vision
  • an apocalyptic fantasy

So Shiism tends to apocalyptic thinking, to prophecy.

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Examples

  • Her first experimental novel, Out, tells the story of a post-apocalyptic world where an epidemic has destroyed the Western nations.

    Academic text (2017)
  • On the wall is a picture of Nix, floating over a scene of apocalyptic destruction.

    Fiction book (1995)
  • So, you know, a week before massive risk, apocalyptic language, the thing goes down.

  • You do understand that this is an apocalyptic event.

  • Okay, so there are these two teenagers, living in an apocalyptic world.

  • Let's imagine that there has been some kind of apocalyptic event and civilization has collapsed.

  • At Downing Street in London, the British Prime Minister Harold Wilson, was faced with what he called himself, an apocalyptic crisis.

  • Guthrie's many songs about the Dust Bowl revealed Guthrie's apocalyptic visions and those of the others around him.

    Academic text (2015)
  • Nations struggle with epidemics, and artists craft bleak tributes to these seemingly apocalyptic times.

  • The opening to Cormac McCarthy's post-apocalyptic novel The Road freezes my soul every time I read it.

    Academic text (2011)

Synonyms

catastrophic
vsapocalyptic
144 7.0

Causing very great damage or harm

refers specifically to ultimate end-of-world destruction rather than severe harm
cataclysmic
vsapocalyptic
22 9.1

Causing sudden very great damage to people, buildings or land

is about final world-ending destruction rather than sudden violent disaster
eschatological
vsapocalyptic
  • Formal
3 9.9

Describes ideas about the end of the world and people's final destiny, often in religion

is similar but used more generally beyond theology or philosophy
apocalyptical
vsapocalyptic
9.4

Describing a future with great destruction and the end of the world

is the same meaning but differs only in word form

Antonyms

189 1.8

Feeling positive and expecting a good result

Compounds

An extremely violent storm that causes widespread damage and destruction

How Catastrophic

apocalyptic
61 8.6
catastrophic
144 7.0
serious
2.0
minor
600 2.4

Surface Forms

apocalyptic positive

Morphology

apocalyptic = apocalypse (transparent) = apocalypse + ic

Formed by adding the productive adjective-forming suffix '-ic' to 'apocalypse'; the meaning 'relating to an apocalypse' is directly inferred from the base.

Etymology

Apocalyptic comes from the Greek apokalypsis, made of apo- 'away' and kalypt- 'to cover', so it first meant 'to uncover' or 'reveal'. Because the Bible book called Revelation talks about the end of the world, apocalyptic now describes events like great destruction or the world ending.