A list of 7 words by jpin.
- debacle appears on 117 other lists
- fiasco appears on 87 other lists
- tumult appears on 60 other lists
- cataclysm appears on 77 other lists
- paroxysm appears on 184 other lists
- ebullition appears on 23 other lists
- irrupt appears on 13 other lists
jpin Middle English paroxism, from Medieval Latin paroxysmus, from Greek paroxysmos, from paroxynein to stimulate, from para- + oxynein to provoke, from oxys sharp
para-, beside, disordered Sep 12, 2010
jpin "Debacle" comes from the French noun "débâcle," which comes from the verb "débâcler," meaning "to clear," "to unbolt," or "to unbar." That verb is from Middle French "desbacler," which joined the prefix "des-" (equivalent to our "de-," meaning "to do the opposite of") with the verb "bacler" ("to block"). In its original uses, "debacle" meant a breaking up of ice, or the rush of ice or water that follows such an occurrence. Eventually, "debacle" was used also to mean "a violent, destructive flood." Naturally, such uses led to meanings such as "a breaking up," "collapse," and finally "disaster" or "fiasco." Sep 12, 2010