earthquake

noun

ˈərth-ˌkwāk How to pronounce earthquake (audio)
Definition of earthquakenext
1
as in quake
a shaking of the earth the San Andreas Fault is notorious for its earthquakes

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance
2
as in upheaval
a violent disturbance (as of the political or social order) the election of the socialist candidate caused a political earthquake that nearly led to a military coup

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of earthquake The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs stated that about 10 percent of Chocó’s population — 69,000 people — were affected or displaced by the earthquake, per AP. — Charisma Madarang, Rolling Stone, 27 Aug. 2026 Aid workers say Nepalese authorities are well-practiced in disaster response, having learned from Nepal's devastating 2015 earthquake, which killed more than 1,000 people. — Diaa Hadid, NPR, 27 Aug. 2026 Many residents had spent years rebuilding their lives after Nepal’s catastrophic 2015 earthquake, which killed more than 8,000 people. — Jessie Yeung, CNN Money, 27 Aug. 2026 The broader Langtang region was also hit by devastating avalanches during Nepal's 2015 earthquake. — CBS News, 27 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for earthquake
Recent Examples of Synonyms for earthquake
  1. quake
  2. upheaval
  3. tremor
  4. unrest
  5. revolution
  6. storm
Noun
  • The quake caused extensive damage to homes, infrastructure and roads, while also disrupting food supplies across multiple areas.
    — Isabela Raygoza, Billboard, 26 Aug. 2026
  • That quake was also located about 3 miles outside of Bedminster.
    — Katie Houlis, CBS News, 24 Aug. 2026
Definition of quake
Noun
  • On his mind are various ideas for addressing social upheaval.
    — Reuters, NBC news, 27 Aug. 2026
  • Kyiv, meanwhile, aims to sow economic discontent among Russians with strikes against oil refineries and e-commerce warehouses, but experts argued domestic upheaval is unlikely to change Moscow’s calculus.
    — Brendan Ruberry, semafor.com, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of upheaval
Noun
  • But in some cases, West Nile can reach the brain and cause extreme headaches, meningitis, tremors, convulsions and paralysis.
    — Mary Randolph, Scientific American, 21 Aug. 2026
  • It’s known for triggering tremors, which generally start in the extremities like the hands.
    — Cara Lynn Shultz, PEOPLE, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of tremor
Noun
  • That march, an inflection point in the Civil Rights Movement, also came at a fraught moment for the country, when economic headwinds, civil unrest, political division and the war in Vietnam bitterly divided Americans.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 28 Aug. 2026
  • That march, an inflection point in the Civil Rights Movement, came at a fraught moment for the country, when economic headwinds, civil unrest, political division and the Vietnam War bitterly divided Americans.
    — Matt Brown, Los Angeles Times, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of unrest
Noun
  • Their source was the collective enthusiasm of a population that had gone into revolution—a revolution forming committees of social self-reliance in every field.
    — Tessa Solomon, ARTnews.com, 26 Aug. 2026
  • In rural eastern Nebraska, a technology revolution could rise from fields of corn and soybean in the form of new data centers to power the artificial intelligence boom.
    — Will Weissert, Fortune, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of revolution
Noun
  • An inquest opened Wednesday into the sudden death earlier this month of Jason Arday, a Cambridge University professor who faced a storm of plagiarism accusations.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 26 Aug. 2026
  • Two small cedar trees were found snapped at the trunk, and that’s the extent of the storm damage, investigators said in a preliminary report.
    — Mark Price, Charlotte Observer, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of storm

Browse Nearby Words

earthly
earthquake
earthquakes
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Earthquake.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/earthquake. Accessed 3 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on earthquake

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about earthquake

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

A List of Most Commonly Confused Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
skateboard-dog-hat
Wordmaxxing Slang Quiz Give your vocabulary a glow up by getting sendy w...
See All