noun
earth-shaking; world-shaking
A yojijukugo used for events or changes so momentous they seem to shake heaven and earth; often appears in formal or literary descriptions of historic upheavals.
その発明は震天動地の大ニュースとして世界中に伝えられた。
The invention was reported around the world as earth-shaking news.
震天動地の出来事が国を揺るがした。
An earth-shaking event shook the nation.
A yojijukugo composed of 震 (shake), 天 (heaven), 動 (move), and 地 (earth), literally 'shake heaven, move earth'. The exact historical origin is uncertain, but it follows a common four-character pattern for describing cataclysmic events.