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    earthquake

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    earthquake
    earth‧quake /ˈɜːθkweɪk $ ˈɜːrθ-/ noun [countable]
    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.
         
    COLLOCATIONS
    ■ adjectives
       ▪ big/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.
    ■ verbs
       ▪ an 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.
    ■ phrases
       ▪ the 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.
         
    THESAURUS
       ▪ earthquake 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.