geomorphology

[ jee-uh-mawr-fol-uh-jee ]

noun

1. the study of the characteristics, origin, and development of landforms.

geomorphology

/ ˌdʒiːəʊmɔːˈfɒdʒənɪ; ˌdʒiːəʊmɔːˈfɒlədʒɪ; ˌdʒiːəʊˌmɔːfəˈlɒdʒɪkəl /

noun

1. the branch of geology that is concerned with the structure, origin, and development of the topographical features of the earth's surface

geomorphology

/ jē′ō-môr-fŏl′ə-jē /

1. The scientific study of the formation, alteration, and configuration of landforms and their relationship with underlying structures.

Derived Forms

• ˌgeoˌmorphoˈlogically, adverb
• geomorphological, adjective

Other Words From

• ge·o·mor·pho·log·i·cal [jee-, uh, -mawr-ph, uh, -, loj, -i-k, uh, l], geo·morpho·logic adjective
• geo·mor·pholo·gist noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of geomorphology¹

First recorded in 1890–95; geo- + morphology

Example Sentences

Metamorfosi residents will take the proposal to the government, together with a study by the municipality's civil engineering department citing "repeated flooding" and its geomorphology as reasons for the move.

From Reuters

Luckily, my college degree is in geology with a focus on both geomorphology and hydrogeology.

From Seattle Times

Now there are unsteady book-pile pinnacles that occasionally collapse, and glacial tongues of paperbacks that wind toward the center of the carpet: bibliography as geomorphology.

From New York Times

According to Dr Tristram Hales, senior lecturer in geomorphology at Cardiff University, while some factors are out of our control, human activity has had, and will continue to have, an impact in this area.

From BBC

Modellers will need to predict changing feedbacks between ecological communities and geomorphology as permafrost landscapes transform.

From Nature