Land and Water Forms
Bay
A bay is water surrounded on three sides by land.
Cape
A cape is land surrounded on three sides by water.
Gulf
A gulf is a body of water that juts into a land mass, is larger than a bay, and is surrounded on three sides by land.
Peninsula
A peninsula is a body of land jutting into a lake or ocean, surrounded on three sides by water.
Island
An island is a body of land completely surrounded by water.
Isthmus
An isthmus is a relatively narrow strip of land (with water on both sides) connecting two larger land areas.
crater
a bowl-shaped area that forms around a volcano's central opening
mountain range
a group of connected mountains
cave
a hollow area in the earth with an opening to the outside
Lake
a lake is a body of (usually fresh) water surrounded by land.
caldera
a large crater caused by the violent explosion of a volcano that collapses into a depression
archepelago
a large group of islands
iceberg
a large mass of ice floating at sea
river
a large natural stream of water (larger than a creek)
fjord
a long narrow inlet of the sea between steep cliffs
delta
a low triangular area where a river divides before entering a larger body of water
mountain pass
a narrow gap through a mountain range
Strait
a narrow passage of water connecting two large bodies of water.
glacier
a slowly moving mass of ice
waterfall
a stream of water that falls from a high place
tributary
a stream or river that flows into a larger river
volcano
a weak spot in the earth's crust where magma has come to the surface, spilled out and hardened
peninsula
body of land jutting into a lake or ocean, surrounded on three sides by water
mountain
land with steep sides that rises sharply (1,000 feet or more) from surrounding land; generally larger and more rugged than a hill
gulf
part of a large body of water that extends into a shoreline, generally larger and more deeply indented than a bay.
river basin
the entire geographical area drained by a river and its tributaries
estuary
the wide part of a river where it nears the sea
