epicentre

/ ˈɛpɪˌsɛntə /

noun

1. the point on the earth's surface directly above the focus of an earthquake or underground nuclear explosion Compare focus

2. informal,  the absolute centre of something

   the epicentre of world sprinting

Other Word Forms

• epicentral adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of epicentre¹

C19: from New Latin epicentrum, from Greek epikentros over the centre, from _epi- + kentron needle; see _centre

Example Sentences

In Mati city, close to the offshore epicentre of both quakes, the latest one knocked out power.

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Reporters observed a frenzy outside a hospital in Davao City, near the quake's epicentre, as patients were being treated outdoors in a carpark and crowds thronged the corridors.

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In Bogo city, the quake's epicentre, local media reports show body bags lined on the street in front of makeshift hospitals where the injured are being treated.

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Most of the victims were from Bogo city, a small town on one of the largest islands in the Visayas Islands, the Philippines' central region - and the place closest to the earthquake's epicentre.

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It came after the US president hinted retaking Bagram airbase - the epicentre of Nato forces in Afghanistan for two decades - might be possible "because they need things from us".

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