tra ‧ ge ‧ dy /ˈtrædʒədi, ˈtrædʒɪdi/ BrE AmE noun ( plural tragedies )
[ Date: 1300-1400 ; Language: Old French ; Origin: tragedie , from Latin , from Greek tragoidia , probably from tragos 'goat' + aeidein 'to sing' ]
1 . [uncountable and countable] a very sad event, that shocks people because it involves death:
The tragedy happened as they were returning home from a night out.
Tragedy struck the family when their two-year-old son was killed in an accident.
2 . [countable] informal something that seems very sad and unnecessary because something will be wasted, lost, or harmed:
It’s a tragedy to see so much talent going to waste.
3 .
a) [countable] a serious play or book that ends sadly, especially with the death of the main character ⇨ comedy :
‘Hamlet’ is one of Shakespeare’s best known tragedies.
b) [uncountable] this type of play or book:
an actor specializing in tragedy
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COLLOCATIONS
■ adjectives
▪ a terrible/great tragedy
His death is a terrible tragedy for his family.
▪ an awful/appalling tragedy (=very unpleasant and shocking)
This is an appalling tragedy which will haunt us for the rest of our lives.
▪ a personal tragedy
He suffered a great personal tragedy two years ago when his son died suddenly.
▪ a human tragedy
The UN wants to see an end to the conflict and the human tragedy involved.
■ verbs
▪ a tragedy happens/occurs
The tragedy happened shortly before 5pm on Saturday.
▪ a tragedy unfolds
When you visit the country, you begin to appreciate the size of the tragedy that is unfolding.
▪ tragedy strikes (=happens suddenly)
Just when it looked as though everything would turn out right, tragedy struck and Jenny developed a fatal illness.
▪ end in tragedy
The all-night fishing trip ended in tragedy for the four men after their boat ran aground.
▪ avert/avoid a tragedy (=prevent it from happening)
The owners could have done something to avert the tragedy.
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THESAURUS
▪ disaster a sudden event such as an accident, or a natural event such as a flood or storm, which causes great damage or suffering:
200 people died in the train disaster.
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The earthquake was the worst natural disaster to hit India for over 50 years.
▪ catastrophe a terrible event in which there is a lot of destruction, damage, suffering, or death over a wide area of the world:
A large comet hitting the earth would be a catastrophe.
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We don’t want another nuclear catastrophe like Chernobyl.
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Scientists say that the oil spill is an ecological catastrophe.
▪ tragedy a very sad event, that shocks people because it involves death:
It was a tragedy that he died so young.
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the AIDS tragedy in Africa
▪ debacle an event or situation that is a complete failure and is very embarrassing:
The opening ceremony turned into a debacle.
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The team is hoping to do better this game, after last week’s debacle against the Chicago Bears.