Geo Basics Vocab

Question 1

absolute location

Answer 1

exact location of a place on the earth described by global coordinates

Question 2

basin

Answer 2

area of land drained by a given river and its branches; area of land surrounded by lands of higher elevations

Question 3

bay

Answer 3

part of a large body of water that extends into a shoreline, generally smaller than a gulf

Question 4

canyon

Answer 4

deep and narrow valley with steep walls

Question 5

cape

Answer 5

point of land that extends into a river, lake, or ocean

Question 6

channel

Answer 6

wide strait or waterway between two landmasses that lie close to each other; deep part of a river or other waterway

Question 7

cliff

Answer 7

steep, high wall of rock, earth, or ice

Question 8

continent

Answer 8

one of the seven large landmasses on the earth

Question 9

delta

Answer 9

flat, low-lying land built up from soil carried downstream by a river and deposited at its mouth

Question 10

divide

Answer 10

stretch of high land that separates river systems

Question 11

downstream

Answer 11

direction in which a river or stream flows from its source to its mouth

Question 12

elevation

Answer 12

height of land above sea level

Question 13

Equator

Answer 13

imaginary line that runs around the earth halfway between the North and South poles; used as the starting point to measure degrees of north and south latitude

Question 14

glacier

Answer 14

large, thick body of slowly moving ice

Question 15

gulf

Answer 15

part of a large body of water that extends into a shoreline, generally larger and more deeply indented than a bay

Question 16

harbor

Answer 16

a sheltered place along a shoreline where ships can anchor safely

Question 17

highland

Answer 17

elevated land area such as a hill, mountain, or plateau

Question 18

hill

Answer 18

elevated land with sloping sides and rounded summit; generally smaller than a mountain

Question 19

island

Answer 19

land area, smaller than a continent, completely surrounded by water

Question 20

isthmus

Answer 20

narrow stretch of land connecting two larger land areas

Question 21

lake

Answer 21

a sizable inland body of water

Question 22

latitude

Answer 22

distance north or south of the Equator, measured in degrees

Question 23

longitude

Answer 23

distance east or west of the Prime Meridian, measured in degrees

Question 24

lowland

Answer 24

land, usually level, at a low elevation

Question 25

map

Answer 25

drawing of the earth shown on a flat surface

Question 26

meridian

Answer 26

one of many lines on the global grid running from the North Pole to the South Pole; used to measure degrees of longitude

Question 27

mesa

Answer 27

broad, flat-topped landform with steep sides; smaller than a plateau

Question 28

mountain

Answer 28

land with steep sides that rises sharply (1,000 ft/more) from surrounding land; generally larger and more rugged than a hill

Question 29

mountain peak

Answer 29

pointed top of a mountain

Question 30

mountain range

Answer 30

a series of connected mountains

Question 31

mouth

Answer 31

(of a river) place where a stream or river flows into a larger body of water

Question 32

ocean

Answer 32

one of the four major bodies of salt water that surround the continents

Question 33

ocean current

Answer 33

stream of either cold or warm water that moves in a definite direction through an ocean

Question 34

parallel

Answer 34

one of many lines on the global grid that circles the earth north or south of the Equator; used to measure degrees of latitude

Question 35

peninsula

Answer 35

body of land jutting into a lake or ocean, surrounded on three sides by water

Question 36

physical feature

Answer 36

characteristic of a place occurring naturally, such as a landform, body of water, climate pattern, or resource

Question 37

plain

Answer 37

area of level land, usually at low elevation and often covered with grasses

Question 38

plateau

Answer 38

area of flat or rolling land at a high elevation, about 300 to 3,000 ft (90 to 900m) high

Question 39

Prime Meridian

Answer 39

line of the global grid running from the North Pole to the South Pole at Greenwich, England; starting point for measuring degrees of east and west longitude

Question 40

relief

Answer 40

changes in elevation over a given area of land

Question 41

river

Answer 41

large natural stream of water that runs through the land

Question 42

sea

Answer 42

large body of water completely or partly surrounded by land

Question 43

source

Answer 43

(of a river) place where a river or stream begins, often in highlands

Question 44

strait

Answer 44

narrow stretch of water joining two larger bodies of water

Question 45

tributary

Answer 45

small river or stream that flows into a large river or stream; a branch of the river

Question 46

upstream

Answer 46

direction opposite the flow of a river; toward the source of a river or stream

Question 47

valley

Answer 47

area of low land usually between hills or mountains

Question 48

volcano

Answer 48

mountain or hill created as liquid rock and ash erupt from inside the earth

Question 49

planar/azimuthal projection

Answer 49

most accurate at center

often used for maps of the Poles

Question 50

cylindrical projection

Answer 50

most accurate near Equator

shapes and distances distorted near Poles

Question 51

conic projection

Answer 51

best suited for showing limited east-west areas that are not too far from the Equator

Question 52

seacoast

Answer 52

land lying next to a sea or an ocean

Question 53

sound

Answer 53

broad inland body of water, often between a coastline and one or more islands off the coast