AQA GCSE Geography key terms

The process in which one tectonic plate sinks beneath another into the mantle.

A narrower question that helps answer part of the main enquiry question.

The sinking or settling of the ground, which can damage buildings and transport routes.

Farming mainly to provide food for the farmer and their family rather than for sale.

Fishing mainly to provide food and other necessities for the people catching the fish, rather than primarily to sell the catch.

Water flowing across the ground surface towards a river, rather than entering the soil.

Transportation in which fine sediment is carried within the flowing water.

Meeting people's needs today without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

Development that meets present needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

Meeting present energy needs while protecting the environment and allowing future generations to meet their needs, with supplies that communities can afford and maintain.

A food supply that meets present needs while protecting the resources and livelihoods needed to supply food to future generations.

Managing an environment to meet present needs while maintaining its ability to support people and ecosystems in the future.

Managing tourism so that it supports local people and the economy while protecting the environment for the future.

Managing water so that present needs are met without damaging the ability of future generations to meet their needs.

The movement of water up a beach after a wave breaks.

Drawing together knowledge, understanding and skills from different geographical themes to explain an issue.

Selecting samples at regular intervals, such as measuring river depth every 50 cm across a channel.

The people a piece of communication is intended to reach.

An earthquake or volcanic eruption that could harm people, property or infrastructure.

A large, rigid section of Earth’s lithosphere, made up of crust and the uppermost mantle.

The difference between a recorded temperature and a specified reference average.

A ridge of glacial debris deposited at the furthest position reached by a glacier's snout.

Economic activities that provide services rather than manufacture goods, such as education, retail and banking.

A map showing the geographical distribution of a particular subject, such as population density or rainfall.

An increase in the volume of a substance as it warms. The thermal expansion of seawater contributes to sea-level rise.

An unsorted mixture of sediment deposited directly by glacial ice, ranging from clay to large boulders.

A ridge of deposited sediment connecting an island to the mainland.