Nota: La traducción de esta entrada está actualmente en revisión de calidad, por lo que parte del contenido se muestra temporalmente solo en inglés.
Esta entrada aún no se ha traducido a tu idioma, así que se muestra el original a continuación.
debacle
This term carries a heavy sense of public embarrassment and chaotic collapse. It describes a failure that is not merely a mistake, but a spectacular and humiliating breakdown of plans or expectations. While a disaster might be a natural tragedy, a debacle often implies a level of mismanagement or an absurd sequence of events that makes the failure feel avoidable or ironic.
In its rarer geological sense, the word refers to the physical breaking of ice. This original meaning mirrors the figurative sense: both describe a sudden, violent transition from a state of frozen stability to one of uncontrolled movement and wreckage.
Meanings
Examples
The product launch turned into a complete debacle when the software crashed during the live demo.
I cannot believe the party ended in such a debacle.
The military campaign was a total debacle from start to finish.
What a debacle. I should have checked the guest list twice.
The company is still trying to recover from the financial debacle of last year.
The sudden debacle of the river ice caused severe flooding in the valley.
It was an absolute debacle that left everyone feeling embarrassed.
The political debate descended into a shouting match and a general debacle.