The Hydrosphere Vocab

Question 1

Beach

Answer 1

The shore of an ocean, lake, river, or other body of water; covered by rock or sand

Question 2

Breakwater

Answer 2

Artificial offshore construction protects the shore from wave damage and also protects vessels in a harbor; sometimes called jetty

Question 3

Canal

Answer 3

Narrow body of water built for shipping, irrigation, or drainage

Question 4

Channel

Answer 4

Body of water located between two land areas or the deepest part of a river

Question 5

Cove

Answer 5

Small sheltered bay; sometimes called a lagoon or inlet

Question 6

Dam

Answer 6

Barrier built to hold water or stop and control its flow

Question 7

Distributary

Answer 7

A smaller stream or river that empties into a larger stream or river

Question 8

Downstream

Answer 8

The direction that water in a river or stream flows downward to its mouth; this flow occurs always from higher to lower elevations

Question 9

Bay

Answer 9

Body of water that extends inland from a larger body of water and is smaller than a gulf

Question 10

Fjord

Answer 10

Narrow and deep inlet of the sea between steep cliffs; created by glaciations

Question 11

Gulf

Answer 11

Large body of water that extends inland from the ocean

Question 12

Harbor

Answer 12

Natural or artificial inlet deep enough to be navigable

Question 13

Iceberg

Answer 13

Mass of floating ice that has broken off froma glacier in a process known as calving

Question 14

Lake

Answer 14

Body of water completely surrounded by land

Question 15

Mouth

Answer 15

Place where a stream or river enters a larger river or body of water; end of river

Question 16

Oasis

Answer 16

Furtile area surrounded by desert terrain where water is available; oasis(plural)

Question 17

Ocean

Answer 17

Large body of salt water that covers nearly three fourths of the earths surface; the global ocean is divided into five main components- the atlantic, arctic, indian, pacific and southern

Question 18

Port

Answer 18

City where ships are loaded and unloaded

Question 19

Rapids

Answer 19

Shallow, often rocky parts of a river where the current moves swiftly due to drop in elevation; rated on a scale of class 1(gentle) to class 6(waterfall)

Question 20

Reef

Answer 20

Landform composed of rock or sand at or near the waters surface and is covered by coral in tropical waters

Question 21

Reservoir

Answer 21

An artificial body of water created by a dam or river ; often used for water storage and hydroelectricity

Question 22

River

Answer 22

Large stream with a substantial flow of water

Question 23

Sea

Answer 23

Large body of water that is entirely or almost entirely surrounded by land

Question 24

Seaboard

Answer 24

Land area bordering a sea or ocean

Question 25

Sound

Answer 25

Broad inlet of ocean usually parallel to the coast; or a waterway separating islands from the mainland

Question 26

Source

Answer 26

Place located in the highlands where a river or stream begins; aka headwaters

Question 27

Strait

Answer 27

Narrow, natural body of water that connects two larger bodies of water

Question 28

Stream

Answer 28

Body of water similar but smaller than a river; aka creek

Question 29

Tributary

Answer 29

A smaller stream or river that empties into a larger stream or river

Question 30

Upstream

Answer 30

The opposite direction water in a river flows; or the directionto a rivers source and away from its mouth

Question 31

Waterfall

Answer 31

a steep drop in a steam or river which water flows; sometimes refered to as cataract

Question 32

Watershed

Answer 32

A land area drained by a river and its many tributaries; sometimes called drainage basin