EARTHQUAKE INTENSITY SCALE
European Macroseismic Scale (EMS-98)
(Grünthal, 1998)

Here the short form (section 8 of the published scale) is reproduced. It gives the character of each degree in a very simplified and generalised form for educational purposes.
This is not suitable for, and not intended for, use in assigning intensities.
 

EMS

Intensity

Definition Description of typical observed effects 
(abstracted)
I Not felt Not felt.
II Scarcely felt Felt only by very few individual people at rest in houses.
III Weak Felt indoors by a few people. People at rest feel a swaying or light trembling.
IV Largely observed Felt indoors by many people, outdoors by very few. A few people are awakened. Windows, doors and dishes rattle.
V Strong Felt indoors by most, outdoors by few. Many sleeping people awake. A few are frightened. Buildings tremble throughout. Hanging objects swing considerably. Small objects are shifted. Doors and windows swing open or shut.
VI Slightly damaging Many people are frightened and run outdoors. Some objects fall. Some houses suffer slight non-structural damage like hair-line cracks and fall of small pieces of plaster.
VII Damaging Most people are frightened and run outdoors. Furniture is shifted and objects fall from shelves in large numbers. Many well built ordinary buildings suffer moderate damage: small cracks in walls, fall of plaster, parts of chimneys fall down; older buildings may show large cracks in walls and failure of fill-in walls.
VIII Heavily damaging  Many people find it difficult to stand. Many houses have large cracks in walls. A few well built ordinary buildings show serious failure of walls, while weak older structures may collapse.
IX Destructive General panic. Many weak constructions collapse. Even well built ordinary buildings show very heavy damage: serious failure of walls and partial structural failure.
X Very destructive Many ordinary well built buildings collapse.
XI Devastating Most ordinary well built buildings collapse, even some with good earthquake resistant design are destroyed.
XII Completely devastating Almost all buildings are destroyed.

Source: http://www.gfz-potsdam.de/pb5/pb53/projekt/ems/index.html