Meanings
nounforeshock (plural foreshocks)
plural foreshocks
- geographyA small earth tremor which precedes the mainshock in an earthquake sequence.
- figurativelyAny shock or disturbance that precedes an event
The FY 1981 increases in defense — something of a "foreshock" to the rapid rise in defense spending over the next several years — were prompted by the fall of the Shah in Iran and the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.
1991, D. Roderick Kiewiet, Mathew D. McCubbins, The Logic of Delegation - Page 88
Origin
Translations
Chinese Mandarin 前震
- 前震 (qiánzhèn)tremor preceding the mainshock in earthquake
Finnish esijäristys
- esijäristystremor preceding the mainshock in earthquake
Greek προσεισμός
- προσεισμός (proseismós)tremor preceding the mainshock in earthquake
Hungarian előrengés
- előrengéstremor preceding the mainshock in earthquake
Irish réamhchrith
- réamhchrithtremor preceding the mainshock in earthquake
Japanese 前震
- 前震 (zenshin)tremor preceding the mainshock in earthquake
Polish wstępne trzęsienie ziemi o słabej magnitudzie
- wstępne trzęsienie ziemi o słabej magnitudzietremor preceding the mainshock in earthquake
Spanish sismo inicial, sismo premonitor
- sismo inicialtremor preceding the mainshock in earthquake
- sismo premonitortremor preceding the mainshock in earthquake
Cite this entry
APA
foreshock. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/foreshock
MLA
“foreshock.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/foreshock. Accessed November 2, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “foreshock,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/foreshock.
Source: foreshock on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.