different between disaster vs extremity

English

Alternative forms

• disastre (archaic)

Etymology

From Middle French desastre, from Italian disastro, from dis- + astro (“star”), from Latin astrum (“star”), from Ancient Greek ?????? (ástron, “star”), from Proto-Indo-European *h?st?r.

Pronunciation

• (US) IPA^(key): /d??zæs.t?/
• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /d??z??s.t?(?)/
• (Northern England) IPA^(key): /d??zæs.t?/
• Rhymes: -??st?(?), -æst?(?)

Noun

disaster (countable and uncountable, plural disasters)

1. An unexpected natural or man-made catastrophe of substantial extent causing significant physical damage or destruction, loss of life or sometimes permanent change to the natural environment.
2. An unforeseen event causing great loss, upset or unpleasantness of whatever kind.
   • 2003, The Devil Wears Prada

     A nod means good, two nods; very good. And then there's the pursing of the lips: disaster.

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:disaster

Derived terms

• natural disaster

Translations

Anagrams

• TARDISes, Tardises, diasters, disastre, disrates, restiads, tardises

English

Etymology

From Middle English extremite, from Old French extremité, from Latin extr?mit?s (“extremity; border, perimeter; ending”), from extrem?s (“furthest, extreme”) + -it?s (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *-teh?ts (“suffix forming nouns indicating a state of being”); see extreme. Extrem?s is derived from exter (“external, outward”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h?e??s (“out”)) + -issimus (“suffix indicating a superlative”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *-is- (“suffix indicating a comparative”) + *-(t)m?mo- (“suffix indicating the absolutive case”)).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) enPR: ?kstr?'m?t?, IPA^(key): /?k?st??m?ti/, /?k-/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /?k?st??m?ti/, /-?i/
• Hyphenation: ex?tre?mi?ty

Noun

extremity (countable and uncountable, plural extremities or extremitys) (obsolete)

1. The most extreme or furthest point of something. [from c. 1400]
2. An extreme measure.
3. A hand or foot. [from early 15th c.]
4. A limb (“major appendage of a human or animal such as an arm, leg, or wing”). [from early 15th c.]

Synonyms

• (furthest point): tip
• (major appendage of human or animal): appendage, limb

Derived terms

• extremital

Related terms

• extreme
• extremely
• extremeness
• extremism
• extremist

Translations

Further reading

• extremities on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• extremity in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
• extremity in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.