It's a tragedy...
...when a child is murdered. Or when people die due to famine/earthquake/tsunami etc. Or when someone's life is turned upside down by an incurable illness.

It is NOT a tragedy when one sports team loses to another, however much affection you may have for the losing team. Why can't commentators learn that?

On a related note, why do newspapers insist on describing some robberies as "daring"? There may be some dictionary justification for this one, but to most it suggests that a bunch of thieves depriving someone of their livelihood are somehow heroic.

There! I feel better now.
(eesnahk, Sun 11 Apr 2010, 18:26, 5 replies)

Technically it's only a tragedy when the child is of royal descent...
According to the original tragedies of classical literature that is ;)
( JebediahSpringfield, Sun 11 Apr 2010, 19:18, closed)

Other untragic occurrences:
* When the feelings gone and you can't go on
* When the morning cries and you don't know why
* When you lose control and you got no soul

Silly Gibbs. Now line up with Alanis in the 'I've written a crappy song which demonstrates my complete inability to read a dictionary' queue.
( Happy Phantom has been to Hastings, Brighton, and Eastbourne too, Sun 11 Apr 2010, 20:03, closed)

also
when your bra goes twang and your tits go bang :(
( Smash Monkey lowering the tone of the whole internet, Sun 11 Apr 2010, 20:32, closed)

But,..
.. if your bra goes Bang and your tits go twang, that's something else entirely!
( Ugi , it's a game of give and cake, Mon 12 Apr 2010, 15:20, closed)

Originally a tragedy was
"A drama or literary work in which the main character is brought to ruin or suffers extreme sorrow, especially as a consequence of a tragic flaw, moral weakness, or inability to cope with unfavorable circumstances."

It's only latterly that it's been confused with a generic term for a really bad thing.
(unclestinky, Mon 12 Apr 2010, 23:05, closed)