catastrophe
French, noun
catastrophe is spelled C-A-T-A-S-T-R-O-P-H-E (11 letters) and appears 17 times per million words in written French, the 4,416th most frequent French word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). Catastrophe is a French feminine noun meaning “catastrophe” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). It is also a first/third-person singular present indicative/subjunctive of catastropher. With an accent, catastrophé is a different word: “past participle of catastropher”. The French Wiktionary (Wiktionnaire) defines it as “Événement soudain, qui, bouleversant le cours des choses, amène la destruction, la ruine, la mort”.
What does catastrophe mean in English?
noun
- 1
femininecatastrophe
verb
- 1
first/third-person singular present indicative/subjunctive
- 2
second-person singular imperative
verb
- 1
past participle of catastropher
Source: English Wiktionary, French section, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0).
How French dictionaries define it
noun: 1. Événement soudain, qui, bouleversant le cours des choses, amène la destruction, la ruine, la mort. 2. Désastre ; calamité. 3. Dénouement funeste d’une tragédie.
adjective: 1. Complètement abattu par la survenue d’une catastrophe (ou de ce qu’on considère comme une catastrophe).
The definition in the French Wiktionary (Wiktionnaire), in French.
Source: French Wiktionary (Wiktionnaire), dump of September 1, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org.
Forms of catastrophe
- catastrophes plural
- catastrophée feminine
- catastrophés masculine plural
- catastrophées feminine plural
Source: English Wiktionary and French Wiktionary (Wiktionnaire) (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026).
English words that translate to catastrophe
Source: the translation tables of the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026.
How common is catastrophe in French?
catastrophe appears 17 times per million words in written French.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).