What does "debacle" mean?
An event or enterprise that ends suddenly and disastrously, often with humiliating consequences.
Debacle
/dɪˈbɑ.kəl/ noun
noun ·Moderate ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: An event or enterprise that ends suddenly and disastrously, often with humiliating consequences.
- Grammar: debacle is listed as noun.
- Nearest alternatives: fiasco, balagan, beating, bloodless revolution.
- Useful contrasts: achievement, success, triumph.
- Usage evidence: Had I but known what she intended, I might have forestalled this debacle.
How to use "debacle"
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- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "debacle" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "debacle" in a final draft.
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Before you rely on this definition
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Compare nearby meanings
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Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "debacle" is acting as noun in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
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3. Confirm with context
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Final meaning check
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When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 An event or enterprise that ends suddenly and disastrously, often with humiliating consequences. figuratively
"The event proved to be a great debacle for the partisans of this prognosticator."
- 2 a sudden and violent collapse wordnet
- 3 A breaking up of a natural dam, usually made of ice, by a river and the ensuing rush of water.
"[…] so that in extreme cases the latter may even be dammed up for a time, and a debacle be the consequence, when the main river overcomes the resistance opposed to it, […]"
- 4 a sound defeat wordnet
- 5 flooding caused by a tumultuous breakup of ice in a river during the spring or summer wordnet
Antonyms
Example
"Had I but known what she intended, I might have forestalled this debacle."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "debacle"?
Common synonyms include: fiasco, balagan, beating, bloodless revolution, bollix, bork.
How do you use "debacle" in a sentence?
Had I but known what she intended, I might have forestalled this debacle.
How do you pronounce "debacle"?
Pronounced /dɪˈbɑ.kəl/.
Etymology
From French débâcle, from débâcler (“to unbar; unleash”) from prefix dé- (“un-”) + bâcler (“to dash, bind, bar, block”) [perhaps from unattested Middle French and Old French *bâcler, *bacler (“to hold in place, prop a door or window open”)], from Vulgar Latin *bacculare, from Latin baculum (“rod, staff used for support”), from Proto-Indo-European *bak-. Also attested in Old French desbacler (“to clear a harbour by getting ships unloaded to make room for incoming ships with lading”) and in Occitan baclar (“to close”). The hypothesised derivation from Middle Dutch *bakkelen (“to freeze artificially, lock in place”), a frequentative of bakken (“to stick, stick hard, glue together”) no longer seems likely due to the lack of attestation of *bakkelen in Middle Dutch and by it having the limited meaning of "freeze superficially" in Dutch.