transform fault

American  

[trans-fawrm fawlt] / ˈtræns fɔrm ˌfɔlt /

noun

Geology, Oceanography.

1. a strike-slip fault that offsets a mid-ocean ridge in opposing directions on either side of the axis of seafloor spreading.

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transform fault Scientific  

/ trăns′fôrm′ /

1. A type of strike-slip fault that accommodates the relative horizontal slip between other tectonic elements, such as tectonic plates, and is common along the edges of plates in mid-ocean ridge regions. The lateral displacement along transform faults often ends or changes form abruptly.

2. See Note at fault

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Etymology

Origin of transform fault

First recorded in 1970–75

Example Sentences

Together, they focused on the Gofar transform fault, located along the East Pacific Rise off Ecuador's western coast, in an effort to solve a decades-long mystery surrounding these repeating underwater earthquakes.

From Science Daily • May 16, 2026

He described the nature of the motion along them, and showed why there are earthquakes only on the section of a transform fault between two adjacent ridge segments.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2015