epicenter

American  

[ep-uh-sen-ter] / ˈɛp əˌsɛn tər /

especially British, epicentre

noun

• epicenters
  plural

1. Geology. Also a point, directly above the true center of disturbance, from which the shock waves of an earthquake apparently radiate.

2. a focal point, as of activity.

   Manhattan's Chinatown is the epicenter of the city's Chinese community.

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epicenter Scientific  

/ ĕp′ĭ-sĕn′tər /

1. The point on the Earth's surface that is directly above the focus (the point of origin) of an earthquake. The epicenter is usually the location where the greatest damage associated with an earthquake occurs.

2. See Note at earthquake

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• epicentral
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• epicenters
  plural

Etymology

Origin of epicenter

1885–90; < New Latin epicentrum < Greek epíkentros on the center. See epi-, center

Compare meaning

How does epicenter compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• hypocenter vs. epicenter

Explanation

Earthquakes start deep underground, and the epicenter is the central location of the earthquake, the point of land right above where an earthquake begins. When violent movement happens beneath the Earth’s surface, earthquakes send out destructive waves of vibration, sort of like ripples after you throw a rock into a lake. The epicenter is the place on the surface where those ripples start. The Greek epikentros means “situated on a center,” and that’s where you’ll find the epicenter, dead center in an earthquake’s destruction. Of course, you don’t really want to find it, because it’s kind of dangerous there.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

epicenter epicenters

The earthquake’s epicenter was close to the Hayward fault, one of the Bay Area’s most dangerous.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026

Choco was at the epicenter of the quake, and the death toll from the area was not immediately known.

From Barron's ● Aug. 10, 2026

To date, 15 states have reported high numbers of cyclosporiasis cases; the epicenter continues to be in Michigan, whose state public health department has reported more than 12,400 sickened residents, 279 hospitalizations and two deaths.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026

Blue Owl is a relative newcomer that is trying to diversify but remains dependent on fees from private-credit funds sold to wealthy individuals, the epicenter of recent market volatility.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026

The excitement of being at the epicenter of that kind of intense experience captured Riddick and never released him.

From "The Best of Enemies" by Osha Gray Davidson

The temblors — with epicenters about 100 miles west of Caracas — were the deadliest to hit Venezuela in almost a century.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 26, 2026

Industrial-scale scam compounds have sprouted across Southeast Asia, and Cambodia has become one of the epicenters.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 14, 2025

The virus then forced my wife Elvira and I to live apart from each other for the next 18 months — I in New York City, she in Italy, the two worldwide epicenters.

From Salon ● Mar. 11, 2025

Regions near these historic earthquakes' epicenters are still seismically active today, so it's possible that some modern earthquakes could be long-lived aftershocks of past quakes.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 13, 2023

“We refer to these as epicenters of survivorship,” Crisafulli said, who finished his degree and came back to Mount St. Helens to work for the Forest Service.

From "Mountain of Fire" by Rebecca E. F. Barone

Related Words

• command post
• focal point
• headquarters
• hotbed