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Definition: earthquake from Collins English Dictionary

n

1 a sudden release of energy in the earth's crust or upper mantle, usually caused by movement along a fault plane or by volcanic activity and resulting in the generation of seismic waves which can be destructive. Related adjective: seismic

Earthquake

From Encyclopedia of Environment and Society
AN EARTHQUAKE IS usually caused by the rupture of a geologic fault, or the seam between two large blocks of land that suddenly move in different directions. The two predominant types of faults are thrust faults and strike-slip faults. A strike slip fault is the most common in the United States; it is where two geologic plates move in opposite directions relative to each other, such as the San Andreas in California. A thrust earthquake occurs when one plate moves under another. In 2004, a great earthquake off the Indonesian island of Sumatra was caused by a thrust fault; the rupture along the fault was greater than 93 miles (150 kilometers). The earthquake and the massive tsunami that was generated by the tsunami killed about 200,000 people in the Indian Ocean basin. In the United States and Canada, the Cascadia fault off shore of British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, and California, could potentially generate an earthquake of magnitude 9.0, and could generate a significant tsunami that…
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Full text Article 'Avengers: Endgame' is nowhere near the worldwide box office record – here's why (Aug. 2019)

From The Conversation: An Independent Source of Analysis from Academic Researchers
Friday’s earthquake off Mexico was the largest in that region in over a century, and will add pressure to a region already being battered by several other natural disasters. The earthquake occurred off the west coast of southern Mexico 69 km below the surface, with a magnitude of 8.1, making it the…
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Full text Article Earthquakes

From Guide to Global Hazards
An earthquake is a sudden shaking within the Earth caused by the release of accumulated strain in the rocks that make up the Earth's crust. Earthquakes generally take place along a fault, but they can also occur beneath and within volcanoes, or can be triggered by asteroid or comet impacts. There…
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Full text Article earthquake

From Philip's Encyclopedia
Tremor below or at the surface of the Earth which causes shaking in the crust. Shaking may last for only a few seconds, but widespread devastation can result. Earthquakes are caused by the Earth's crustal plates slipping against each other. Three different waves are created: primary/push (P), …
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Full text Article earthquake

From The Columbia Encyclopedia
trembling or shaking movement of the earth's surface. Most earthquakes are minor tremors. Larger earthquakes usually begin with slight tremors but rapidly take the form of one or more violent shocks, and end in vibrations of gradually diminishing force called aftershocks. The subterranean point of…
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Full text Article EARTHQUAKE

From Gaither's Dictionary of Scientific Quotations
English essayist, poet, and statesman I remember when (Britain) was shaken with an earthquake some years ago, there was an impudent mountebank who sold pills which (as he told the country people) were very good against an earthquake. The Works of the Right Honourable Joseph Addison, A New Edition, …
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Full text Article earthquake

From The Macquarie Dictionary
tremors or earth movements in the earth's crust when fracturing rocks send out a series of three distinct sets of shock waves (earthquake waves). Plural: earthquakes Earthquakes are most common at the boundaries of tectonic plates, where the constant movement of the plates puts rocks along the…
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Full text Article earthquake

From The Hutchinson Unabridged Encyclopedia with Atlas and Weather Guide
Abrupt motion of the Earth's crust, caused by the sudden release of stress accumulated in rocks over time along a geological fault or by volcanic activity. The energy released is in the form of elastic waves ( seismic waves ) which travel through the crust some distance from the point of origin of…
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Full text Article earthquakes

From Environmental History and Global Change: A Dictionary of Environmental History
At their most severe perhaps the most rapid and destructive form of environmental change, earthquakes are sudden movements of the ground to release stresses that have built up over long periods along faults which may be located on plate margins (c.90% of the total) or elsewhere. Earthquakes may be…
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Full text Article earthquakes

From Chambers Dictionary of the Unexplained
Shakings of the earth caused by movements in the earth’s crust. Throughout the ages, earthquakes have been seen as a terrifying and destructive force. The ancient Greeks believed they were caused by giants imprisoned under the earth by Zeus, while other cultures ascribed them to the movements of a…
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Full text Article earthquake

From The American Heritage Student Science Dictionary
earthquake
A sudden movement of the Earth’s crust. Earthquakes are caused by the release of built-up stress within rocks along geologic faults or by the movement of magma in volcanic areas. They are usually followed by aftershocks. See Note at fault . earthquake If all the dishes fall out of your cabinet, you…
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