debaclede‧ba‧cle, débâcle /deɪˈbɑːkəl, dɪ-/ noun [countable] 
Word Origin
the debacle of the 1994 elections
Word OriginWORD ORIGINdebacle
ExamplesOrigin:
1800-1900 French débâcle, from débâcler ‘to remove a bar’EXAMPLES FROM THE CORPUS
Thesaurus- A political debacle laid the groundwork for progress.
- But remember what happened in the 1994 bond debacle.
- The debacle began shortly after we arrived for dinner one night.
- The glum symptoms range from junk-bond distress to the destruction of wealth caused by falling property values and the thrifts debacle.
THESAURUS► disaster
an event or situation that is a complete failure: a sudden event such as an accident, or a natural event such as a flood or storm, which causes great damage or suffering: · 200 people died in the train disaster.· The earthquake was the worst natural disaster to hit India for over 50 years.
► catastrophe a terrible event in which there is a lot of destruction, damage, suffering, or death over a wide area of the world: · A large comet hitting the Earth would be a catastrophe.· We don’t want another nuclear catastrophe like Chernobyl.· Scientists say that the oil spill is an ecological catastrophe.
► tragedy a very sad event, that shocks people because it involves death: · It was a tragedy that he died so young.· the AIDS tragedy in Africa
► debacle an event or situation that is a complete failure and is very embarrassing: · The opening ceremony turned into a debacle.· The team is hoping to do better this game, after last week’s debacle against the Chicago Bears.
► failure noun [countable] someone or something that is not successful: · The book was a complete failure.· I felt a complete failure.
► flop noun [countable] informal something that is not successful because people do not like it – used especially about a film, play, product, or performance: · Despite the hype, the movie was a flop at the box office.· Their next computer was a flop.
► disaster noun [countable] used when saying that something is extremely unsuccessful: · Our first date was a disaster.· Their marriage was a total disaster.
► fiasco noun [countable usually singular] something that is completely unsuccessful and goes very badly wrong – used especially about things that have been officially planned, which go very wrong: · The baggage system broke down on the first day the airport was open. It was a complete fiasco.· The fiasco came close to ending de Gaulle's political career.
► debacle noun [countable usually singular] formal an event or situation that is a complete failure, because it does not happen in the way that it was officially planned: · the banking debacle that has put our economy at risk
► shambles noun [singular] especially British English if a situation or event is a shambles, it is completely unsuccessful because it has been very badly planned or organized, and no one seems to know what to do: · The first few shows were a shambles, but things soon got better.
► washout noun [singular] informal a failure – used when something is so bad that it would be better if it had not happened: · The play wasn’t a complete washout; the acting was okay.· His most recent and ambitious project, a big-budget Hollywood film, was a washout with both critics and audiences alike.
► turkey noun [countable] informal something that is so bad and unsuccessful that you think the people involved should be embarrassed about it – a very informal use: · At the time most people thought the car was a complete turkey.· Since then he has appeared in a string of turkeys.
the debacle of the 1994 elections