1. runoff tributary watershed sediment meander flood plain delta water gap canyon valley dune landslide Chapter 7, Lesson 2Landforms

2. runoff – water that runs off Earth’s solid surface

3. tributary – “feeder” streams; small streams and rivers that “feed” into other streams and rivers forming larger streams and rivers

4. watershed – the entire area from which water is drained

5. sediment – pieces of material; sediment can range in size from boulders to gravel, sand, silt and dissolved materials

6. meander – bends, or “S” shapes in a river cause by river currents slowing down in flat land and dropping sediment Click here to learn more about rivers and coasts!

7. flood plain – flat landscape near rivers; the rivers flood the land from time to time and create very fertile soil.

8. mouth (of river) – where a river empties into the ocean; river currents slow when they hit the ocean and drop sediment

9. delta – a fan-shaped piece of land that forms from sediment dropped at the mouth of a river

10. water gap – a rare, narrow, steep-walled canyon created as water cut through hard rock

11. valley – formed when small channels are deepened and widened by erosion

12. canyon – a deep, V-shaped valley that is usually created as a result of both water cutting into earth and geological forces pushing earth upward

13. dune – sand hill created by wind erosion; found in deserts or at the beach

14. landslide – when water saturates the land and makes soil loosen and fall; gravity can create landslides, too