Exist without earthquakes and stay alive (7)
I believe the answer is:
breathe
'exist' is the definition.
(breathing is a kind of existing)
I can't explain the rest of the clue.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for breathe that I've seen before include "Tell" , "Absorb air" , "eg Inhale" , "Respire - inspire - expire" , "Express" .)