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Earth's landforms
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| landform | The shape of part of Earth's surface. Examples are plains, mountains, and hills. |
| plate tectonics | The theory that Earth's surface is divided into several major, slow- moving plates or pieces. |
| continental drift | The movement of continental plates. |
| fault | A crack in Earth's crust where a huge mass of rock, such as a plate, is in motion. |
| magma | Melted rock within Earth. |
| lava | Magma that has broken through Earth's crust and is on the surface. |
| weathering | The process of breaking rocks into smaller pieces through heat, water, or other means. |
| erosion | The natural process of moving sediment; shapes Earth's surface. |
| deposition | The process of dropping, or depositing, sediment in a new location. |
| floodplain | A landform of level ground made up of sediment deposited by a river or stream. |
| delta | A triangle-shaped piece of land built from soil deposited at the mouth of a river. |