Edexcel GCSE Geography B key terms

Travelling regularly between home and a place of work.

A measure that combines several indicators into one score.

A steep-sided volcano built from alternating layers of lava and ash, also called a stratovolcano.

A coastline where bands of rock run parallel to the coastline.

A cone-bearing tree, usually with needle-like leaves, such as pine, spruce or fir.

Trees that bear cones, such as pine and fir; those typical of boreal forests are evergreen.

How well a place is linked to other places through transport and communication networks.

A plate boundary where plates slide past one another without creating or destroying crust; also called a transform boundary.

A wave with stronger swash than backwash, which tends to deposit sediment and build up a beach.

Transporting goods in standard-sized containers that can be transferred between ships, lorries and trains. Larger container ships could not use older docks, such as London's, which contributed to their closure.

A line on a map joining points of equal height above sea level.

The difference in height between neighbouring contour lines.

A line on a map joining places at the same height above sea level.

A large, continuous built-up area formed when neighbouring towns or cities expand and merge.

The transfer of heat through the movement of a liquid or gas: warmer, less dense material rises and cooler, denser material sinks.

Circulating movement in which hotter, less dense material rises and cooler, denser material sinks, transferring heat.

Oil and gas sources from which the fuel can flow relatively freely through the rock towards a well, making extraction comparatively straightforward.

The movement of air flows towards one another, which can force air to rise.

A plate boundary where plates move towards one another, causing subduction or continental collision.

The powerful, developed economies that dominate trade and production in Frank’s dependency theory.

An economically dominant region where investment, employment and services are concentrated.

The deflection of moving air caused by Earth's rotation: towards the right in the northern hemisphere and towards the left in the southern hemisphere.

An index of perceived public-sector corruption, scored from 0 to 100; higher scores indicate less perceived corruption.

A method of comparing management options by weighing their estimated costs against their estimated benefits over a specified period.

A comparison of an option’s costs with its expected benefits to help decide whether it is worthwhile and how it compares with alternatives.

The movement of people from towns and cities into surrounding rural areas.

The shape of a river channel in a vertical section taken across it, showing its width and depth.