earthquake
/ˈɝθkweɪk/noun, verb
earthquake is spelled E-A-R-T-H-Q-U-A-K-E: 10 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 14 times per million words in written English, the 5,595th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, earthquake means “A shaking of the ground, caused by volcanic activity or movement around geologic faults” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of earthquake is earthquakes.
How many letters and syllables are in earthquake?
| Letters | 10: E-A-R-T-H-Q-U-A-K-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 14 times per million words; the 5,595th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is earthquake?
Earthquake appears 14 times per million words in written English, the 5,595th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce earthquake?
- UK /ˈɜːθkweɪk/
- US /ˈɝθkweɪk/
Earthquake has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-earthquake.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of earthquake
- earthquakes plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- earthquaking participle, present
- earthquaked participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does earthquake mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A shaking of the ground, caused by volcanic activity or movement around geologic faults.
- 2
Such a quake specifically occurring on the planet Earth, as opposed to other celestial bodies.
- 3
A sudden and intense upheaval; a severely disruptive event.
verb
- 1
To undergo an earthquake.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Earthquake in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense shaking of the surface of a planet:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | tremblement de terre, séisme |
| German | Erdbeben |
| Portuguese | sismo, terramoto, terremoto, tremor de terra, tremor |
| Spanish | terremoto |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does earthquake come from?
From Middle English erthequake, corresponding to earth + quake. Displaced Middle English eorð byfung (“earthquake”) from Old English eorþbeofung (literally “earth shaking”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).