Richter scale
10
5.3
- noun
- /ˈrɪktər skeɪl/
- Archaic
:
escala de Richter
- The largest of the 1811 quakes is estimated to have reached 8 on the Richter scale—even stronger than the famous San Francisco quake of 1906.
Examples
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In 2015, India's disaster relief efforts touched new heights when an earthquake of 7.9 on the Richter scale struck Kathmandu, Nepal.
Academic text (2018) -
The earthquake that hit the Greater Los Angeles area just four days ago measured an incredible 8.6 on the Richter scale.
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- That last one was a 10 on the Richter scale.
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--just above a 4.0 on the Richter scale.
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We had one three days ago, in fact; one point six on the Richter scale.
Fiction book (1998) -
The strange event registered just shy of 4.0 on the Richter scale.
Blog text (1) -
The earthquake registered 3.5 on the Richter scale.
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According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the earthquake measured 4.0 on the Richter scale.
Blog text (16) -
In China, an earthquake measuring 8.0 on the Richter scale struck the Sichuan province in 2008.
Academic text (2018) -
The earthquake that hit the Greater Los Angeles area just four days ago measured an incredible 8.6 on the Richter scale.
Synonyms
A scale that shows how much energy an earthquake releases
Surface Forms
Morphology
Richter + scale
The noun 'scale' signals a measurement or magnitude, so a learner who knows the constituents could guess this is some kind of measuring scale, but 'Richter' is a proper name with no semantic content about earthquakes or logarithmic measurement. The specific domain (earthquake magnitude) and technical/logarithmic nature are not derivable from the parts, so the expression is only partially transparent to a B1 learner.
Etymology
Richter scale is named after scientist Richter, who used a machine that records earthquake waves and gave each quake a number based on the wave size. Because bigger waves get higher numbers, the scale helps 'measure earthquake strength'.