epicenter

Etymology

It is borrowed from New Latin epicentrum,^[2][3][4][5] formed from epi- and Latin centrum (“center”).^[3][6] The OED, in its revision of 2016, traces epicentrum to German Epicentrum, used in 1873 by K. A. L. von Seebach in his study of the central German earthquake of 1872 and now spelled Epizentrum, from Epi- and Centrum.^[7] Dictionary.com, the Shorter Oxford, the Oxford Dictionary of English and Klein trace it to Ancient Greek ἐπίκεντρος (epíkentros, “situated on a centre”), from ἐπί (epí, “upon”) and κέντρον (kéntron, “centre; point”),^{[4][8][9][10]} which the OED notes was an astronomical term in Hellenistic Greek, for occupying a cardinal point.^[7] The 1989 edition of the OED treats the English word as an anglicized form of the Latin one.^[11]

Earliest recorded meaning

In seismology, the point on the earth's surface directly above the focus of an earthquake: the Latin form epicentrum is used in English from 1874, in the Examiner,^[7] and the English form from 1885 in Etymonline's dating,^[2] or 1887 in the OED and Merriam-Webster Unabridged.^[11][3]

Semantic evolution

The word was coined for earthquakes, and Collins extends it to the point above an underground nuclear explosion.^[5] The figurative use, the centre or heart of something, dates from at least the early 20th century in Word Origins,^[12] or the mid 20th century in the Shorter Oxford, which notes that it is used especially of something unpleasant.^[8] The American Heritage Dictionary likewise finds it used mainly of dangerous, destructive or negative events,^[13] while Collins records it also for the place most important to an activity.^[5]

Timeline

• 1874 – the Latin form epicentrum, the point above an earthquake's focus.^[7] Etymonline dates Modern Latin epicentrum in geological use to 1879.^[2]
• 1885 – the English form, in seismology.^[2][4] The OED and Merriam-Webster Unabridged date it to 1887.^[11][3]
• early 20th century – figurative, the centre or heart of something.^[12]

Meanings

Noun

1. The point on the earth's surface directly above the focus of an earthquake, or of an underground nuclear explosion.^[3][5][14]
2. The focal point or centre of an activity or situation, especially a dangerous or destructive one: The port became the epicenter of the strike.^{[5][8][14][3]}

Word family

• epicentral

Related words

• center
• hypocenter
• centrum

Usage notes

Epicentre is the chiefly British spelling and epicenter the American one.^[2][5][4] The figurative use is accepted as standard by Merriam-Webster's Collegiate and the American Heritage Dictionary;^[13] Grammarphobia reports that 82 percent of the American Heritage usage panel accepted it for dangerous situations, but only 61 percent in positive or neutral contexts.^[13] Some critics call the loose sense "centre" pretentious, since epi- means "over" and is no intensifier.^[1]

References

1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
3. ^ a b c d e f Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
4. ^ a b c d Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
5. ^ a b c d e f Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
6. ^ Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
7. ^ a b c d Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
8. ^ a b c Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
9. ^ Stevenson, Angus, ed. (2010), Oxford Dictionary of English, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
10. ^ Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
11. ^ a b c Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
12. ^ a b Cresswell, Julia (2021), Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
13. ^ a b c O'Conner, Patricia T.; Kellerman, Stewart, The Grammarphobia Blog, grammarphobia.com, p. "Epicenter piece", 13 April 2008
14. ^ a b The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin