How to Use the Richter scale in a Sentence

the Richter scale

noun
Definition of the Richter scalenext
  • The strength of the shaking is expressed from 0-10 on the Richter scale.
    — Sven Karabegovic, The Salt Lake Tribune, 5 Sep. 2023
  • The quake, whose epicenter was the Turkish city of Gaziantep, measured 7.8 on the Richter scale.
    — David Faris, The Week, 9 Feb. 2023
  • The fish, our captain said, probably weighed about 350 pounds, not that big on the Richter scale of marlin, but quite big enough for me.
    — David Halberstam, Town & Country, 15 June 2023
  • The magnitude is now calculated at 6.4, but the Richter scale had yet to be created.
    — Patt Morrisoncolumnist, Los Angeles Times, 7 Mar. 2023
  • So who's to say what musicians might or might not be able to achieve with revolutionary intent when the bouncing crowd makes the Richter scale shake?
    — Hattie Lindert, Pitchfork, 4 Nov. 2023
  • The crowd’s enthusiasm was at a level that quite literally could be measured on the Richter scale.
    — Amy Phillips, Pitchfork, 16 Oct. 2023
  • Friday’s earthquake was mild compared with some felt in California or the Caribbean, rating at 4.8 on the Richter scale.
    — Rachyl Jones, Fortune, 5 Apr. 2024
  • Geologists once used the Richter scale, but that measure is considered outdated and is no longer used.
    — Kerry Breen, CBS News, 5 Apr. 2024
  • And the 49ers’ remaining roster additions before next month’s draft figure to be similar moves that won’t register on the Richter scale.
    — Eric Branch, San Francisco Chronicle, 20 Mar. 2023
  • Both Beyoncé and Swift have had powerhouse tours this year – like, move the needle on local and national economies (not to mention the Richter scale) powerful.
    — Lisa Respers France, CNN, 7 Oct. 2023
  • Most people are at least colloquially familiar with the Richter scale.
    — Erik Klemetti, Discover Magazine, 31 Jan. 2024
  • In the last 24 hours, the area surrounding the lagoon experienced hundreds of earthquakes including one measuring in at 5 on the Richter scale, according to the Iceland Monitor.
    — Stacey Leasca, Travel + Leisure, 9 Nov. 2023

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'the Richter scale.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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