Hello, you have come here looking for the meaning of the word
apocalypse . In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
apocalypse , but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
apocalypse in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
apocalypse you have here. The definition of the word
apocalypse will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition of
apocalypse , as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
English
Etymology
From Middle English apocalips , from Latin apocalypsis , from Ancient Greek ἀποκάλυψις ( apokálupsis , “ revelation ” , literally “ uncovering ” ) , from ἀπό ( apó , “ back, away from ” ) and καλύπτω ( kalúptō , “ I cover ” ) . The sense evolution to "catastrophe, end of the world" stems from the depiction of such events in the biblical Book of Revelation , also called the Apocalypse of (i.e. Revelation to) John.
Pronunciation
( UK ) IPA (key ) : /əˈpɒkəlɪps/
( US ) IPA (key ) : /əˈpɑkəlɪps/
Hyphenation: a‧poc‧a‧lypse
Noun
apocalypse (plural apocalypses )
A revealing , especially a prophecy of, or the unfolding of, supernatural events.
Synonym: revelation
The early development of Perl 6 was punctuated by a series of apocalypses by Larry Wall .
A huge disaster ; a cataclysmic event; destruction or ruin of large scope and scale.
Hyponyms: eco-apocalypse , snowpocalypse , retail apocalypse , replyallpocalypse ; zombie apocalypse , zombocalypse ; nuclear winter , volcanic winter
Near-synonyms: cataclysm , catastrophe , holocaust ; armageddon , doomsday , end times , eschaton , judgement day , judgment day
A nuclear apocalypse would have been possible if tensions went out of control during the Cuban Missile Crisis .
1981 , William Irwin Thompson , The Time Falling Bodies Take to Light: Mythology, Sexuality and the Origins of Culture , London: Rider/Hutchinson & Co., page 180 :Man has forgotten the soul and thus doomed his civilization to apocalypse .
2009 , Diarmaid MacCulloch , A History of Christianity , Penguin, published 2010 , page 699 :The Spanish mission in America soon became not so much crusade as apocalypse .
2025 January 10, Peter Thiel , quoting Barack Obama , “A time for truth and reconciliation”, in Financial Times :In 2016, President Barack Obama told his staff that Donald Trump’s election victory was “not the apocalypse ”. By any definition, he was correct. But understood in the original sense of the Greek word apokálypsis , meaning “unveiling”, Obama could not give the same reassurance in 2025.
( Christianity ) The unveiling of events prophesied in the Revelation ; the second coming and the end of life on Earth ; global destruction.
Alternative form: Apocalypse
Synonyms: armageddon , doomsday , end times , eschaton
Meronyms: Final Judgment , Judgment Day , judgement day , judgment day
Near-synonym: Ragnarok
( Christianity ) The Book of Revelation .
Alternative form: Apocalypse
Synonym: Revelation
Derived terms
Translations
revealing or revelation
Aramaic:
Assyrian Neo-Aramaic: ܓܸܠܝܵܢܵܐ ( gilyana )
Belarusian: апака́ліпсіс m ( apakálipsis ) , адкрыццё n ( adkryccjó )
Bulgarian: апокали́псис (bg) m ( apokalípsis ) , открове́ние (bg) n ( otkrovénie )
Chinese:
Mandarin: 啟示 / 启示 (zh) ( qǐshì )
Czech: apokalypsa (cs) f , zjevení (cs) f
Danish: apokalypse c , åbenbaring c
Estonian: ilmutus
Finnish: ilmestys (fi)
French: apocalypse (fr) f
Galician: apocalipse f
German: Apokalypse (de) f
Greek: αποκάλυψη (el) f ( apokálypsi )
Ancient Greek: ἀποκάλυψις f ( apokálupsis )
Guaraní: tembiechaukakue
Hindi: कश्फ (hi) m ( kaśph ) , कश्फ़ m ( kaśf )
Hungarian: apokalipszis (hu)
Indonesian: wahyu (id)
Japanese: 黙示 (ja) ( もくし, mokushi, もくじ, mokuji )
Korean: 묵시(默示) (ko) ( muksi )
Latin: apocalypsis f
Macedonian: откровение n ( otkrovenie )
Norwegian:
Bokmål: apokalypse (no) m
Nynorsk: apokalypse m
Polish: apokalipsa (pl) , objawienie (pl) n
Portuguese: apocalipse (pt) m
Romanian: apocalipsă (ro) f
Russian: апока́липсис (ru) m ( apokálipsis ) , открове́ние (ru) n ( otkrovénije )
Serbo-Croatian:
Cyrillic: апокалѝпса f , открове́ње n , о̏бјава f
Roman: apokalìpsa (sh) f , otkrovénje (sh) n , ȍbjava (sh) f
Slovak: apokalypsa (sk) f , zjavenie n
Slovene: apokalipsa (sl) f , razodetje (sl) n , odkritje (sl) n
Tagalog: hulawat
Ukrainian: апока́ліпсис (uk) m ( apokálipsys ) , відкриття́ n ( vidkryttjá ) , одкрове́ння n ( odkrovénnja )
Urdu: کَشْف m ( kašf )
end of the world
Arabic: الْقِيَامَة f ( al-qiyāma ) , نِهَايَةُ الْعَالَم f ( nihāyatu l-ʕālam )
Aramaic:
Assyrian Neo-Aramaic: ܓܸܠܝܵܢܵܐ ( gilyana )
Belarusian: апака́ліпсіс m ( apakálipsis )
Bulgarian: апокали́псис (bg) m ( apokalípsis )
Burmese: ကမ္ဘာပျက်ခြင်း ( kambha-pyakhkrang: )
Catalan: apocalipsi (ca) m
Chinese:
Mandarin: 世界末日 (zh) ( shìjiè mòrì )
Czech: apokalypsa (cs) f
Danish: apokalypse c , dommedag c
Estonian: apokalüpsis
Finnish: maailmanloppu (fi) , apokalypsi (fi)
French: apocalypse (fr) f
Galician: Apocalipse m
German: Apokalypse (de) f
Hebrew: אחרית הימים f ( aḥarít hayamím ) , אַפּוֹקַלִיפְּסָה (he) f ( apokalípsa )
Hindi: संक्षय (hi) m ( saṅkṣay ) , क़यामत f ( qayāmat )
Hungarian: apokalipszis (hu)
Indonesian: kiamat (id)
Irish: apacailipsis m
Old Irish: abcolips
Italian: apocalisse (it)
Macedonian: апокали́пса f ( apokalípsa ) , синдилија f ( sindilija )
Navajo: nihwiníyá , łahgo náhodeesdzá
Norwegian:
Bokmål: apokalypse (no) m , dommedag m
Nynorsk: apokalypse m , dommedag m , domedag m
Persian: آخرالزمان (fa) ( âxar-oz-zamân ) , قیامت (fa) ( qiyâmat )
Polish: apokalipsa (pl) f
Portuguese: apocalipse (pt) f
Russian: апока́липсис (ru) m ( apokálipsis )
Serbo-Croatian:
Cyrillic: апокалѝпса f , открове́ње n , о̏бјава f
Roman: apokalìpsa (sh) f , otkrovénje (sh) n , ȍbjava (sh) f
Slovak: apokalypsa (sk) f
Spanish: apocalipsis m
Swedish: apokalyps (sv) c
Tagalog: hulawat
Turkish: kıyamet (tr)
Ukrainian: апока́ліпсис (uk) m ( apokálipsys )
Urdu: قیامت f ( qayāmat )
cataclysmic event
Aramaic:
Assyrian Neo-Aramaic: ܓܸܠܝܵܢܵܐ ( gilyana )
Belarusian: апака́ліпсіс m ( apakálipsis )
Bulgarian: апокали́псис (bg) m ( apokalípsis )
Catalan: apocalipsi (ca) m
Chinese:
Mandarin: 大災難 / 大灾难 ( dàzāinàn )
Danish: apokalypse c , dommedag c
Estonian: apokalüpsis
Finnish: maailmanloppu (fi) , tuomiopäivä (fi) , apokalypsi (fi)
French: apocalypse (fr) f
Galician: apocalipse m
German: Apokalypse (de) f
Hindi: संक्षय (hi) m ( saṅkṣay )
Hungarian: apokalipszis (hu)
Irish: apacailipsis m
Italian: apocalisse (it)
Macedonian: апокали́пса f ( apokalípsa )
Norwegian:
Bokmål: apokalypse (no) , dommedag m
Nynorsk: apokalypse m , dommedag m , domedag m
Polish: apokalipsa (pl) f
Portuguese: apocalipse (pt) m
Russian: апока́липсис (ru) m ( apokálipsis )
Serbo-Croatian:
Cyrillic: апокалѝпса f , открове́ње n , о̏бјава f
Roman: apokalìpsa (sh) f , otkrovénje (sh) n , ȍbjava (sh) f
Swedish: domedag (sv) m
Tagalog: hulawat
Ukrainian: апока́ліпсис (uk) m ( apokálipsys )
Translations to be checked
References
French
Etymology
From Latin apocalypsis , from Ancient Greek ἀποκάλυψις ( apokálupsis ) .
Pronunciation
Noun
apocalypse f (plural apocalypses )
apocalypse (disaster)
Further reading
Latin
Noun
apocalypse
ablative singular of apocalypsis