elastic rebound

British

noun

geology a theory of earthquakes that envisages gradual deformation of the fault zone without fault slippage until friction is overcome, when the fault suddenly slips to produce the earthquake

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Example Sentences

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The release of seismic energy is explained by the elastic rebound theory.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2017

Earthquakes, or seismic activity, are caused by sudden brittle deformation accompanied by elastic rebound.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2017

Seismic waves are the physical expression of energy released by the elastic rebound of rock within displaced fault blocks and are felt as an earthquake.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2017

The deformed unbroken rocks snap back toward their original shape in a process called elastic rebound.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2017

If the mind had shared the weakness of the body, the insidious enemy might perhaps have been routed in time to secure the elastic rebound of both.

From Great Men and Famous Women, Vol. 8 A series of pen and pencil sketches of the lives of more than 200 of the most prominent personages in History by Horne, Charles F. (Charles Francis)

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