EARTHQUAKE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does earthquake mean? 

• EARTHQUAKE (noun)
  The noun EARTHQUAKE has 2 senses:

1. shaking and vibration at the surface of the earth resulting from underground movement along a fault plane or from volcanic activity

2. a disturbance that is extremely disruptive

  Familiarity information: EARTHQUAKE used as a noun is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• EARTHQUAKE (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Shaking and vibration at the surface of the earth resulting from underground movement along a fault plane or from volcanic activity

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural events

Synonyms:

earthquake; quake; seism; temblor

Hypernyms ("earthquake" is a kind of...):

geological phenomenon (a natural phenomenon involving the structure or composition of the earth)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "earthquake"):

seismic disturbance; shock (an instance of agitation of the earth's crust)

earth tremor; microseism; tremor (a small earthquake)

seaquake; submarine earthquake (an earthquake at the sea bed)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A disturbance that is extremely disruptive

Classified under:

Nouns denoting stable states of affairs

Context example:

selling the company caused an earthquake among the employees

Hypernyms ("earthquake" is a kind of...):

commotion; disruption; disturbance; flutter; hoo-ha; hoo-hah; hurly burly; kerfuffle; to-do (a disorderly outburst or tumult)

 Context examples 

Despite being less accurate than scientific-grade equipment, the GPS (Global Positioning System) receivers in a smartphone can detect the permanent ground movement (displacement) caused by fault motion in a large earthquake.

(Crowdsourced Smartphone Data Could Give Advance Notice for People in Quake Zones, JPL)

In addition, the researchers discovered that seamounts and earthquakes are often linked.

(New map uncovers thousands of unseen seamounts on ocean floor, NSF)

Researchers listened to more than a year's worth of Earth's rumblings, from ambient noise to actual earthquakes, using a network of 19 ocean-bottom seismographs deployed across the Mariana Trench, along with seven island-based seismographs.

(Seismic study reveals huge amount of water dragged into Earth’s interior, National Science Foundation)

This research has important implications for the conservation and management of natural resources, especially related to natural hazards such as earthquakes as well as the impacts of human visitation.

(Song of the red rock arches, National Science Foundation)

Yellowstone is among the world's largest supervolcanoes, with frequent earthquakes.

(Yellowstone magma discovery, NSF)

Within a month, the earthquakes had dropped to just 20 per day.

(Underwater volcano's fiery eruption captured in detail by seafloor observatory, NSF)

Soil liquefaction, which causes this kind of landslide, occurs when the shaking from a large earthquake rips through moist, loose soil, overpowering the friction that normally holds dirt particles together.

(NASA Map Reveals a New Landslide Risk Factor, NASA)

Despite a recent decline in earthquakes, Ubinas Volcano erupted an ash plume on April 28, 2014.

(Fresh lava arrives at Ubinas volcano, NASA)

Knowledge of offshore strain accumulation and release processes is critical to understanding shallow-water earthquakes and tsunamis.

(Geoscientists develop technology to improve forecasting of earthquakes, tsunamis, National Science Foundation)

An earthquake happens when two blocks of the earth suddenly slip past one another.

(Earthquakes, Federal Emergency Management Agency)