epicentre

/ˈɛpɪˌsɛntɚ/

//ˈɛpɪˌsɛntɚ// noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"epicentre" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“epicentre” is uncommon English (frequency #56,731 among 2,246 “E” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#56,731
frequency rank, English
2,246
“E” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The point on the land or water surface directly above the focus, or hypocentre, of an earthquake.

Corpus desk

Index EN-epicentre · epicentre · English

epicentre · rank #56,731 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #56,731
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,246
  • PHOTO-FINISH equivalently

Nearest frequency peer: equivalently (+1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Long-tail ranks near “epicentre”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “epicentre” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for epicentre
PropertyValue
Headwordepicentre
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈɛpɪˌsɛntɚ/
Letters9
Frequency rank#56,731
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “epicentre” in English

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).epicentrefalls in this rarity band:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Rare peers in the same band: “equivalently” (#56,732), “enslaving” (#56,729), “Etheridge” (#56,735). Among 2,246 “E” headwords, “epicentre” is #56,731. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

epicentre is uncommon English at frequency #56,731 among 2,246 “E” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈɛpɪˌsɛntɚ/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 4 senses are on record.

epicentre doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

Etymologically, the entry records: From epi- (“over, on top”) + centre, from Ancient Greek ἐπί (epí, “on”) + κέντρον (kéntron, “centre”). Sense of “center of an activity (particularly a disaster)” (1908) by generalization from earthquakes, possibly influenced by epidemic. The correct English form is epicentre, spelled E-P-I-C-E-N-T-R-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    The point on the land or water surface directly above the focus, or hypocentre, of an earthquake.
  2. 2
    The point on the surface of the earth directly above an underground explosion.
  3. 3
    The focal point of any activity, especially if dangerous or destructive.
  4. 4
    The geographical area in which an ongoing disaster, illness, crisis, or other destructive event is currently most severe.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how epicentre appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. The epicentre isn't always the point of heaviest damage. Faults can be many kilometres long and seismic waves shake areas all along the fault.
  2. Eleven months after Moscow launched its full-scale invasion, Bakhmut and surrounding areas have become an epicenter of fighting, their importance growing as both sides have added forces to the battle.

Etymology

From epi- (“over, on top”) + centre, from Ancient Greek ἐπί (epí, “on”) + κέντρον (kéntron, “centre”). Sense of “center of an activity (particularly a disaster)” (1908) by generalization from earthquakes, possibly influenced by epidemic.

Antonyms

hypocentre

This word in other languages

epicentro(Español)épicentre(Français)Epizentrum(Deutsch)epicentro(Português)

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "epicentre"?
"epicentre" is spelled E-P-I-C-E-N-T-R-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɛpɪˌsɛntɚ/.
What does "epicentre" mean?
As a noun, "epicentre" means: The point on the land or water surface directly above the focus, or hypocentre, of an earthquake.
How do you pronounce "epicentre"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "epicentre" is /ˈɛpɪˌsɛntɚ/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "epicentre"?
From epi- (“over, on top”) + centre, from Ancient Greek ἐπί (epí, “on”) + κέντρον (kéntron, “centre”). Sense of “center of an activity (particularly a disaster)” (1908) by generalization from earthquakes, possibly influenced by epidemic. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "epicentre", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

enslaving#56,729Etheridge#56,735Ellesmere#56,726Edgeworth#56,723

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list