Check out these special words used in recent issues of
National Geographic Explorer.
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
X
Y
Z
A
accelerate (ak SELL uh rate ):
change speed, direction, or both (Note: This is the scientific meaning. In daily life, "accelerate" generally means "speed up.")
adapt (uh DAPT):
to change over time in order to survive in an environment
adaptation (ad ap TAY shun):
special trait that helps a plant or an animal survive in its environment
aerodynamics (air oh die NAM ix):
science of how air moves
afterlife (AF tur life):
life after death
air pressure (air PREH shur):
force with which air presses against things
antechamber (AN tih chame bur):
room used as an entrance to another room
ape (
rhymes with
grape):
bonobo, chimpanzee, gibbon, gorilla, orangutan, or siamang
archaeologist (ar key AH la jist):
scientist who learns about ancient people by studying what they left behind
artery (ARE tuh ree):
vessel that carries blood away from the heart
artifact (ARE tih fact):
something made by humans
atmosphere (AT mus fear):
blanket of gases surrounding Earth or another planet
axel (AK sul):
figure skating move that involves spinning and jumping at the same time
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B
bamboo (bam BOO):
tree-like grass with hard stems
band (
rhymes with
sand):
small group of horses
biathlon (bye ATH lahn):
competition that includes cross-country skiing and rifle shooting
biology (buy AH luh gee):
study of plants and animals
blond, blonde (
rhymes with
wand):
person with yellowish hair
blubber (BLUH bur):
thick layer of fat under the skin
brood pouch (
rhymes with
rude couch):
flap of skin between a penguin's legs
brunet, brunette (broo NET):
person with dark-brown or black hair
burial chamber (BER ee ul chame bur):
room in a tomb where the body is kept
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C
cacao (kuh KOW):
tree that grows in Mexico and Central America
calf (
rhymes with
half):
young of various large animals, such as cows, whales, and elephants (plural:
calves
)
camouflage (KAM uh flahj):
to hide or disguise by blending into the surroundings
canal (kuh NAL):
artificial waterway
canvas (KAN vus):
strong, woven fabric, often made of cotton
canyon (CAN yun):
deep, narrow valley with steep sides
carbon dioxide (KAR bun die AHK side):
gas made up of carbon and oxygen
ceremony (SER uh moh nee):
formal action, such as a wedding
chameleon (kuh MEEL yun):
small- to medium-size lizard that has fancy crests, horns, or spines
channel (CHAN ul):
waterway between two landmasses that lie close to each other
chicle (CHEE clay):
type of latex produced by sapodilla trees
chocolate (CHOK uh lut):
food made from ground cacao beans
chromatophores (krow MAT uh forz):
skin cells that have pigment in them
clap skate (
rhymes with
nap date):
skate whose blade is hinged at the toe but not attached at the heel
cliff (
rhymes with
stiff):
steep wall of rock, earth, or ice
cob (rhymes with rob):
woody center of an ear of corn
community (kuh MEW nuh tee):
all living things in an area
conservationist (con sur VAY shun ist):
person who protects natural resources
coral reef (KOR el reef):
rock-like formations built by tiny sea animals called corals. Reefs provide food and shelter to a variety of fish and sea creatures.
cortex (KOR tex):
a hair's inside part that gives it strength and determines color
cosmonaut (KOZ muh not):
the Russian name for an astronaut
crèche (KRESH):
nursery for young penguins
cross-pollination (cross pah luh NAY shun):
when pollen is moved from one plant to another
cuticle (KYU tuh kuhl):
a hair's outer layer, made up of flattened, overlapping cells
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D
data (DAY tuh ):
facts, information (singular:
datum
)
dominate (DAH muh nate):
hold the most influence over, rule
drag (
rhymes with
bag):
force that slows things down as they move through air
drought (
rhymes with
out):
long period of time without rain or snow
dynasty (DIE nus tee):
line of emperors or kings
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E
ear (rhymes with here):
spike-like fruit of a corn plant
ecology (ih KAH luh jee):
how plants and animals live in relation to each other
ecosystem (EE koh sis tem):
community of plants and animals that depend on the same environment
emperor (EM puh rer):
ruler
endangered (in DANE jird):
at risk of dying out
erosion (uh ROW zhun):
the slow wearing away of rock fragments, soil, and other material—usually by wind or water
ethanol (ETH uh nawl):
colorless liquid made from corn
expedition (ek speh DIH shun):
trip with a special purpose, such as exploring
extinction (ek STINK shun):
disappearance of an entire species
extraterrestrial (ek struh tuh RES tree ul):
organism that doesn't live on Earth
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F
feral (FIR ul):
wild animals whose ancestors were once tame
foal (
rhymes with
pole):
young horse
follicle (FAH luh kuhl):
hole-like pocket that contains a hair root
force (
rhymes with
horse ):
a push or a pull
forest (FOR est):
area that supports many trees and wildlife
fossil (FAH sul):
remains or imprint from an ancient plant or animal
friction (FRIK shun):
the rubbing of one thing against another
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G
gene (
rhymes with
mean):
part of a cell that controls a trait in a living thing
genetic engineering (juh NEH tik en juh NEAR ing):
adding genes to a cell to give an organism new traits
genetically modified foods (juh NEH tih klee MAH dih fide foods):
foods created by genetic engineering
gills (
rhymes with
chills):
organs that help fish get oxygen from water
glamorous (GLAM uh rus):
attractive, beautiful (noun:
glamour
)
gland (
rhymes with
band):
part of the body that produces a special substance, such as saliva or sebum (hair oil)
gravity (GRA vuh tea):
force that pulls things toward a star, planet, moon, or other object in space
groom (
rhymes with
broom):
to clean another chimp's hair and skin with the fingers
gully (GUH lee):
narrow valley
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H
habitat (HAB eh tat):
place where something lives
hair root (hair root):
lowest section of a hair; new hair cells develop here
hair shaft (hair shaft):
dead part of a hair that pokes out through the skin
halfpipe (HAF pipe):
pipe-shaped snowboarding course
hat trick (
rhymes with
that thick):
three goals scored by one hockey player during a single game
herd (
rhymes with
word):
group of one type of animal that stays together
hibernation (hi bur NAY shun):
sleep or rest period during winter
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I
incubate (ING kyuh bait):
keep an egg warm so it will hatch
infrasound (in fruh SOUND):
sound so low that humans cannot hear it
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J
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K
kernel (KER nuhl):
seed
kiva (KEE vuh):
round, underground room often used for religious ceremonies or social gatherings
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L
latex (LAY tex):
milky substance some trees produce that hardens when exposed to air
laws of motion (lawz of MOE shun ):
ideas that Sir Isaac Newton developed to explain how things move
lens (
rhymes with
hens):
part of a camera (or an eye) that focuses light
lift (
rhymes with
gift):
upward force that works against gravity
limestone (LIME stone):
rock formed from animal remains, such as bones or shells
luge (loozh):
winter sport in which athletes sled feetfirst down an icy track
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M
maize (rhymes with maze):
corn
mare (
rhymes with
bear):
adult female horse
marine life (mah REEN life):
plants and animals that live in salt water
mask (
rhymes with
ask):
covering for the face or head
mass (
rhymes with
pass ):
amount of matter something has
mastiche (mas TEE ka):
yellow sap taken from the bark of mastic trees
matriarch (MAY tree ark):
female who leads an elephant herd
megaphone (MEH guh phone):
cone-shaped tube that makes someone’s voice louder
melanin (MEH la nun):
chemical that causes skin to darken
mesa (MAY suh):
landform with a flat top and steep sides
microbe (MY krobe):
one of many tiny creatures that live in, on, and all around us
microgravity (my crow GRA vuh tea):
condition in which the effects of gravity are greatly reduced
module (MAH jule):
section of a spacecraft
mogul (MOE gul):
small hill of snow built to be part of a freestyle skiing course
molt (rhymes with bolt):
to shed fur, skin, feathers, or other covering periodically
momentum (moe MEN tum ):
strength of motion
mosque (mahsk):
Muslim place of worship
mule (
rhymes with
tool):
animal that results from breeding a horse with a donkey
mummify (MUH me fie):
preserve a dead body
mummy (
rhymes with
tummy):
dead body, dried and preserved
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N
natural resource (NACH uh rul REE sors):
material on Earth that is necessary or useful to people
nomad (NO mad):
someone who moves from place to place, without a regular home
nonrenewable resource (non reh NEW uh bul REE sors):
natural resource that cannot be reused or replaced
nutrient (NEW tree unt):
substance a living thing needs for energy and growth
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O
ocean (oh SHUN):
vast body of salt water that covers 70 percent of Earth
oceanographer (oh shu NOG ruh fur):
scientist who studies the ocean
orbit (OR but):
circle around a star or planet
organism (OR guh niz um):
living thing
oxygen (OK sih jen):
gas needed by all living things
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P
pesticide (PES tih side):
substance used to kill insects and other pests
pharaoh (FAIR oh):
king in ancient Egypt
photo-essay (FOE to eh SAY):
a group of photographs that tells a story or describes a topic
photosynthesis (foe toe SIN thuh sus):
process through which plants make food
pigment (PIG ment):
color found in a cell
pitch (
rhymes with
witch):
how high or low a sound is
plateau (pla TOE):
large, flat area that stands above surrounding land
poacher (POE chur):
someone who kills or takes wild animals illegally
poaching (POE ching):
killing an animal illegally, usually to eat or sell
pollen (PAH lun):
powdery grains needed by a plant to make seeds
pony (
rhymes with
Tony):
small horse that is less than 58 inches tall when full grown (plural:
ponies
)
predator (PRED uh tor):
animal that eats other animals
prey (
rhymes with
pray):
animal that becomes food for another animal
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Q
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R
rain forest (rane FOR rest):
wooded area that gets about 100 inches of rain each year
rebellion (ree BELL yun):
when people fight against their government
recycle (re SIE kul):
use something again
refugees (ref you GEEZ ):
people forced to flee their homes, usually to another country
regurgitate (ree GUR juh tate):
bring food back up
renewable resource (reh NEW uh bul REE sors):
a natural resource that can be reused or replaced, like trees or forests
reserve (rih ZERV):
land set aside for animals
resin (REH zin):
sap-like substance that trees make to protect themselves when cut
ritual (RICH uh wul):
special way of celebrating an event, such as blowing out candles on a birthday cake
rookery (RUH kuh ree):
breeding place for birds or small mammals
rover (ROW ver):
moving vehicle that explores the surface of a planet or moon
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S
sandstone (SAND stone):
rock formed from grains of sand
sarcophagus (sar KAH fuh gus):
large stone coffin that often holds smaller coffins
scute (
rhymes with
boot):
plate of bone
sea (see):
ocean or a smaller part of it
sebum (SEE buhm):
oil that coats the outer layer of hair
shale (
rhymes with
tail):
flaky rock usually formed from clay or mud
shrine (
rhymes with
pine):
sacred place or container that holds holy objects
skeleton (SKEH luh tun):
winter sport in which athletes sled headfirst down an icy track
slalom (SLAH lum):
skiing race in which athletes must make sharp turns to avoid obstacles
sneakers (SNEE kurz):
rubber-soled athletic shoes, usually with canvas or nylon tops
species (SPEE shees):
type of plant or animal
spectrograph (SPEK truh graf):
machine that translates sound waves into images
stallion (STAL yun):
adult male horse
steppe (step):
dry grassland
stratum (STRAT um):
layer of rock (plural:
strata
)
submersible (sub MUR suh bull):
small craft that operates underwater
synthetic (sin THEH tik):
human-made, not natural
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T
teosinte (tay oh SIN tay):
wild grass that may be corn's ancestor
tomb (
rhymes with
room):
place where a dead body is buried, often dug into rock or dirt
traction (TRAK shun):
the "grip" of your shoes on the floor or ground
tundra (TUN druh):
vast, treeless plains in Arctic regions and a few other places
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U
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V
vaccine (vak SEEN):
medicine swallowed or injected into the body
vulcanized rubber (VUHL kuh nized RUH ber):
rubber combined with sulfur over heat
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W
water cycle (WAH tur SIGH kul):
the journey of water molecules from cloud to land and sea, then back to cloud
wind tunnel (wind TUH nuhl):
structure used to study aerodynamics
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X
xocoatl (shuh KO ot):
bitter chocolate beverage that is served cold
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Y
yucca (YUH kuh):
plant with long, stringy leaves that grows in the Southwest
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Z
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© 2002 National Geographic Society. All rights reserved.
