seismic
Americanadjective
adjective
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Also (less commonly): seismical. relating to or caused by earthquakes or artificially produced earth tremors
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of enormous proportions or having highly significant consequences
seismic social change
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of seismic
Explanation
For the ancient Greeks, "seismos" meant an earthquake. Later on, when the study of earthquakes became a science, anything seismic meant anything related to the study of the pressures in the Earth's crust. The English language has a long and proud tradition of stealing scientific words and applying them in all sorts of ways that scientists probably wish they didn't: Darwinian, tempestuous, evolutionary — to name but three. It's the same with seismic, which is now far more likely to be applied to political or psychological turmoil than anything to do with the earth opening up and molten hot lava spewing out.
Vocabulary lists containing seismic
Brace Yourself: Earthquake Words
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Super Seismic: Words for Volcanoes and Earthquakes
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This Week in Words: November 26 - December 1, 2017
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The University of Utah Seismograph Stations has preserved decades of seismic records, creating a valuable archive for modern analysis.
From Science Daily • Jun. 3, 2026
Like this week’s Garrett deal, all those big swings were seismic and shockwave-inducing moves — throughout the NFL.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 3, 2026
It was the end of the road for that team as we knew it – it was clear there was going to be a seismic shift.
From BBC • Jun. 2, 2026
"If you want to run digital biology, no problem. If you want to do seismic processing, no problem. You want astrophysics, no problem," Huang added, calling it "an incredible computer".
From Barron's • Jun. 1, 2026
Noson was a seismic analyst, an expert in examining the lines and lurches of the recorder’s pen.
From "Mountain of Fire" by Rebecca E. F. Barone
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
