Coastal processes and coastal defences – a dominoes revision game
Abrasion/corrasion
The distance over water travelled by a wave.
Arch
The erosion of a cliff when rocks are flung by breaking waves
against the cliff face.
Attrition
A column of rock left standing out at sea after wave erosion
has separated it from the mainland.
Backwash
The process by which breaking waves compress pockets of
air in cracks in a cliff. The pressure may cause the crack to
widen, breaking off rock.
Lagoon
A type of erosion caused when rocks and boulders
transported by waves bump into each other and break up
into smaller pieces.
Hydraulic wave action
A former bay cut off from the sea by a bar.
Beach replenishment
The return of water back to the sea after waves break on a
beach.
Constructive waves
The addition of new material to a beach naturally, through
the action of longshore drift, or man-made addition, through
the dumping of large amounts of material.
Longshore drift
These waves are found on low-angled beaches. They are
gently breaking with a much stronger swash than backwash.
Destructive waves
Waves approaching the coast at an angle result in the gradual
zigzag movement of beach materials along the coast.
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Coastal processes and coastal defences – a dominoes revision game
Managed retreat
A built structure, often with an inner curve. Its aim is to
prevent erosion of the coast by providing a barrier which
reflects wave energy back out to sea.
Revetments
These waves are found on steep beaches, are steeply
breaking and are mainly responsible for coastal erosion.
Their backwash is much stronger than their swash.
Groyne
Allowing cliff erosion to occur naturally without trying to
stop it, and thus allowing the coast to retreat inland.
Sea wall
Coastal defences made from wood, steel, or concrete fencelike structures which absorb wave energy as they pass
through.
Swash
The area between low and high tide where wave erosion is
most effective.
Stack
A long, narrow stretch of sand and shingle, formed by
longshore drift, which juts out into the water.
Spit
A wave-eroded passage through a small headland, which
cuts out to the other side. Daylight can be seen through it.
Wave attack zone
A wooden barrier built out into the sea to stop the
longshore drift of sand and shingle, and so cause the beach
to grow.
Fetch
Steel wire mesh filled with boulders, used in coastal
defences to absorb wave energy.
Gabion
The forward movement of a wave up a beach.
© www.teachitgeography.co.uk 2012
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Coastal processes and coastal defences – a dominoes revision game
Answers
Abrasion/corrasion
The erosion of a cliff when rocks are flung by breaking waves
against the cliff face.
Arch
A wave-eroded passage through a small headland, which cuts
out to the other side. Daylight can be seen through it.
Attrition
A type of erosion caused when rocks and boulders
transported by waves bump into each other and break up
into smaller pieces.
Backwash
The return of water back to the sea after waves break on a
beach.
Beach replenishment
The addition of new material to a beach naturally, through
the action of longshore drift, or man-made addition, through
the dumping of large amounts of material.
Constructive waves
These waves are found on low-angled beaches. They are
gently breaking with a much stronger swash than backwash.
Destructive waves
These waves are found on steep beaches, are steeply
breaking and are mainly responsible for coastal erosion.
Their backwash is much stronger than their swash.
Fetch
The distance over water travelled by a wave.
Gabion
Steel wire mesh filled with boulders, used in coastal defences
to absorb wave energy.
Groyne
A wooden barrier built out into the sea to stop the long
shore drift of sand and shingle, and so cause the beach to
grow.
Hydraulic wave action
The process by which breaking waves compress pockets of
air in cracks in a cliff. The pressure may cause the crack to
widen, breaking off rock.
Lagoon
A former bay cut off from the sea by a bar.
© www.teachitgeography.co.uk 2012
18254
Page 3 of 4
Coastal processes and coastal defences – a dominoes revision game
Longshore drift
Waves approaching the coast at an angle result in the gradual
zigzag movement of beach materials along the coast.
Managed retreat
Allowing cliff erosion to occur naturally without trying to
stop it, and thus allowing the coast to retreat inland.
Revetments
Coastal defences made from wood, steel, or concrete fencelike structures which absorb wave energy as they pass
through.
Sea wall
A built structure, often with an inner curve. Its aim is to
prevent erosion of the coast by providing a barrier which
reflects wave energy back out to sea.
Spit
A long, narrow stretch of sand and shingle, formed by
longshore drift, which juts out into the water.
Stack
A column of rock left standing out at sea after wave erosion
has separated it from the mainland.
Swash
The forward movement of a wave up a beach.
Wave attack zone
The area between low and high tide where wave erosion is
most effective.
© www.teachitgeography.co.uk 2012
18254
Page 4 of 4