Classroom vocabulary lists with kid-friendly definitions

Science, geography and maths vocabulary lists with short definitions written for pupils.

Grades 2–8ELA0 verified0 sourced62 in our own words

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Vocabulary lists
Word	List	Meaning
area	Measurement words	The amount of surface a flat shape covers, measured in square units. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
asteroid	Space words	A rocky object, much smaller than a planet, that orbits the Sun. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
astronaut	Space words	A person trained to travel and work in space. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
axis	Space words	An imaginary line through the middle of a planet that it spins around. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
breeze	Weather words	A gentle wind. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
capacity	Measurement words	How much a container can hold. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
chlorophyll	Plant words	The green substance in plants that captures energy from sunlight. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
climate	Weather words	The usual weather of a place over many years. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
comet	Space words	A ball of ice and dust that orbits the Sun and can grow a glowing tail when it comes near it. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
compass rose	Landform and map words	A symbol on a map that shows the directions north, south, east and west. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
condensation	States of matter words	The change from a gas to a liquid as it cools, like drops forming on a cold glass. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
continent	Landform and map words	One of Earth's seven very large areas of land, such as Africa or Asia. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
crater	Space words	A bowl-shaped hollow made when an object crashes into a surface, or the opening at the top of a volcano. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
delta	Landform and map words	Flat land built up where a river drops mud and sand as it flows into a sea or lake. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
drought	Weather words	A long period with much less rain than usual. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
equator	Landform and map words	An imaginary line around the middle of Earth, halfway between the North and South Poles. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
estimate	Measurement words	A careful guess that is close to the real amount. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
evaporation	States of matter words	The change from a liquid to a gas, like a puddle drying up in the sun. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
fog	Weather words	A cloud that forms close to the ground and makes it hard to see far. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
forecast	Weather words	A prediction of what the weather will be like in the coming hours or days. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
freezing	States of matter words	The change from a liquid to a solid when something is cooled. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
galaxy	Space words	An enormous group of stars, gas and dust held together by gravity, like the Milky Way. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
gas	States of matter words	Matter that spreads out to fill all the space it is in. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
germinate	Plant words	To begin to grow: what a seed does when it starts to sprout. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
gravity	Space words	The pull that objects have on each other because of their mass; it keeps us on the ground. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
humidity	Weather words	The amount of water vapor in the air. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
island	Landform and map words	A piece of land with water all around it. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
leaf	Plant words	The flat, usually green part of a plant where most of its food is made. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
length	Measurement words	How long something is from one end to the other. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
liquid	States of matter words	Matter that flows and takes the shape of its container but keeps the same volume. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
map key	Landform and map words	The part of a map that explains what its symbols and colors mean (also called a legend). Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
mass	States of matter words	The amount of matter in an object. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
matter	States of matter words	Anything that has mass and takes up space. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
melting	States of matter words	The change from a solid to a liquid when something is heated. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
moon	Space words	A natural object that travels around a planet. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
nutrient	Plant words	A substance that living things need to grow and stay healthy. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
ocean	Landform and map words	One of the very large bodies of salt water that together cover most of Earth. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
orbit	Space words	The curved path an object follows as it travels around a planet, moon or star. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
peninsula	Landform and map words	Land with water on three sides that is joined to a larger piece of land. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
perimeter	Measurement words	The total distance around the outside of a shape. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
photosynthesis	Plant words	The way plants make their own food from sunlight, water and carbon dioxide. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
planet	Space words	A large, round body that orbits a star, the way Earth orbits the Sun. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
plateau	Landform and map words	A large, flat area of land that is higher than the land around it. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
pollen	Plant words	A fine powder made by flowers that is needed to make seeds. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
precipitation	Weather words	Water that falls from clouds, such as rain, snow, sleet or hail. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
root	Plant words	The part of a plant, usually underground, that holds it in place and takes in water. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
ruler	Measurement words	A straight strip marked with units, used to measure length and draw straight lines. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
scale	Measurement words	A tool for measuring how heavy something is. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
season	Weather words	One of the four parts of the year (spring, summer, autumn and winter), each with its own usual weather. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
seed	Plant words	The part of a plant that can grow into a new plant. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
seedling	Plant words	A very young plant that has just grown from a seed. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
solid	States of matter words	Matter that keeps its own shape and size. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
star	Space words	A huge ball of very hot gas that gives off its own light and heat, like the Sun. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
stem	Plant words	The part of a plant that holds it up and carries water and food between the roots and leaves. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
telescope	Space words	A tool that makes faraway objects look closer and clearer. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
temperature	Weather words	How hot or cold something is, measured in degrees. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
thermometer	Weather words	A tool used to measure temperature. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
unit	Measurement words	A standard amount used for measuring, such as a meter, a pound or a liter. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
valley	Landform and map words	Low land between hills or mountains, often with a river running through it. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
volume	States of matter words	The amount of space something takes up. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
weight	Measurement words	How heavy something is: the pull of gravity on an object. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.
width	Measurement words	How wide something is from one side to the other. Our wording Source: Written by Educated DesignerOur wording: Written by our team, not taken from a source.

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Sources and licences

Written by Educated Designer — Our own work

Data compiled 2026-10-26.