disaster
/dɪˈzɑːstər/·디재스터·noun
a sudden great misfortune
LatinCEFR B1
Root
dis- (away from) + Latin/Greek 'astrum/astron' (star)
Italian disastro (ill-starred event) → Middle French désastre → English disaster
In a word
dis- (away from) + aster (star) = 'star out of alignment'. Old peoples blamed great misfortune on the stars falling out of place. That fallen-star shadow became the word disaster. The superstition is gone, the word kept its shape — when we say "disaster", we are still, etymologically, pointing at a star.
Examples
The flood was a national disaster.
The dinner was a complete disaster.
Volunteers helped after the disaster.
Related
astronautastronomyasteriskastrology