Geography key terms

Coal, oil and natural gas: carbon-rich fuels formed from ancient organic material over millions of years.

A coordinate identifying a map-grid square using two easting digits followed by two northing digits.

Hydraulic fracturing: injecting a mixture of water, sand and chemicals into rock at high pressure to fracture it and release trapped gas.

An environment that is easily damaged and may recover slowly from disturbance.

Trade between countries without barriers such as tariffs, which are taxes on imports, or quotas, which limit the quantity imported.

The breaking apart of rock through repeated freezing, expansion and thawing of water in cracks.

How often a natural event occurs.

Water with a low concentration of dissolved salts, found in stores such as rivers, lakes, groundwater and glaciers. It is not necessarily safe to drink without treatment.

Wood collected and burnt to provide energy, for example for cooking or heating.

Wood used as a fuel.

A wire cage filled with stones and placed along the coast to absorb wave energy.

A residential development with controlled entry, usually enclosed by walls or fences.

The value of goods and services produced within a country over a year, divided by its population. It indicates average economic output per person, not each person's actual income.

Equal rights and opportunities for people of different genders, including access to education and employment.

A crop whose genetic material has been deliberately altered to give it particular characteristics, such as improved nutritional content.

The upgrading of an area, often involving housing renovation and an influx of wealthier residents, which can increase property prices and rents.

An investigation that uses geographical knowledge and evidence to answer a question about places, patterns or processes.

A computer-based system for storing, displaying and analysing information linked to geographical locations.

A connection in which physical features, urban development and people influence one another.

An issue involving places, people or the physical environment, often with competing interests over how it should be managed.

The geographical extent at which something is studied, such as a neighbourhood, an island, a region or the world.

A computer system that stores, displays and combines layers of geographically located information.

A broad downfolded or subsiding area of the Earth's crust in which sediments accumulate.

A side-on representation of the rocks beneath a line across the landscape.

A map showing the distribution of rocks, identified using a key.

The arrangement of rocks, including their layers, cracks and joints.

The rocks of an area, including their types, structure and history of formation.