English Reference

Idiom

seismic shift

Meaning

A fundamental reorientation of a state of affairs.

Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Examples

“The new law caused a seismic shift in how we work.”

“The invention of the internet created a seismic shift in how people communicate and share information globally.”

“The sudden collapse of the national economy triggered a seismic shift in the political landscape, forcing leaders to rethink their long-term strategies.”

Examples

simple

“The new law caused a seismic shift in how we work.”

contextual

“The invention of the internet created a seismic shift in how people communicate and share information globally.”

complex

“The sudden collapse of the national economy triggered a seismic shift in the political landscape, forcing leaders to rethink their long-term strategies.”

Origin

Derived from the geological observation of massive earthquakes, the phrase functions as an allusion to the drastic and permanent alterations to a landscape caused by tectonic movement.

Key words

Related idioms

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English Reference