a sudden shaking of the Earth’s surface that often causes a lot of damage → seismic: An earthquake measuring 6.1 on the Richter scale struck southern California on June 28. The city is in an earthquake zone.COLLOCATIONSadjectivesbig/large· This is the biggest earthquake ever recorded in this area.small· The town experiences dozens of small earthquakes every year.powerful (=with a lot of force)· Flights were cancelled after a powerful earthquake shook the northwest of the country.a major earthquake (=very big)· If a major earthquake hits a large city, millions could die.a minor earthquake (=a small one)· Minor earthquakes are relatively common.a great/massive earthquake (=extremely big)· 1906 is remembered for the great earthquake that destroyed San Francisco.a severe/devastating earthquake (=causing a lot of damage)· The whole town was flattened by a devastating earthquake.verbsan earthquake happens (also an earthquake occurs formal)· Scientists cannot predict when an earthquake will occur.an earthquake hits/strikes a place (=happens in a particular place)· The region was struck by a major earthquake last year.an earthquake destroys/damages something· The earthquake completely destroyed all the buildings on the island.an earthquake measures 5/6.4 etc on the Richter Scale· The earthquake, which measured 7.6 on the Richter scale, left more than 20,000 homeless.phrasesthe magnitude of an earthquake (=how powerful it is)· Measuring stations identify the location and magnitude of an earthquake within a few minutes of the event.THESAURUSearthquake a sudden shaking of the Earth’s surface: · The earthquake destroyed homes, telephone lines and roads.quake informal an earthquake – used especially in journalism: · More than 2000 people died when a quake hit the island of Flores.tremor a small movement in the Earth’s surface in which the ground shakes slightly: · He was awoken by a series of tremors during the night.aftershock further movements in the Earth’s surface that happen after a larger earthquake: · In the days after the earthquake, the area suffered a series of aftershocks.tsunami an ocean wave caused by an earthquake under the water: · There was no warning of the approaching tsunami.
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