Definition of "subduction" []

• A geologic process in which one edge of one crustal plate is forced below the edge of another. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "This blue line here, that's what we call the subduction zone, so that's kind of where the plates, one lays on top of the other."
• "The fault involved in the Fukushima Dai-ichi tsunami is part of what is known as a subduction zone."
• "Most earthquakes that generate tsunamis - including Friday's jolt off Japan's eastern coast - occur in areas called subduction zones, where pieces of the Earth's crust press against each other."