topography
Americannoun
plural
topographies-
the detailed mapping or charting of the features of a relatively small area, district, or locality.
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the detailed description, especially by means of surveying, of particular localities, as cities, towns, or estates.
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the relief features or surface configuration of an area.
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the features, relations, or configuration of a structural entity.
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a schema of a structural entity, as of the mind, a field of study, or society, reflecting a division into distinct areas having a specific relation or a specific position relative to one another.
noun
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the study or detailed description of the surface features of a region
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the detailed mapping of the configuration of a region
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the land forms or surface configuration of a region
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the surveying of a region's surface features
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the study or description of the configuration of any object
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The three-dimensional arrangement of physical attributes (such as shape, height, and depth) of a land surface in a place or region. Physical features that make up the topography of an area include mountains, valleys, plains, and bodies of water. Human-made features such as roads, railroads, and landfills are also often considered part of a region's topography.
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The detailed description or drawing of the physical features of a place or region, especially in the form of contour maps.
Other Word Forms
- topographer noun
- topographic adjective
- topographical adjective
- topographically adverb
Etymology
Origin of topography
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English topographye, from Late Latin topographia, from Greek topographía; topo-, -graphy
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The topography, weather, cultures and other factors were drastically distinct from Old World norms, so managing cattle required something beyond the skill sets of Andalusian herders.
From Los Angeles Times
Requirements to clear vegetation around homes, including the state’s upcoming Zone Zero regulations, are not enough to meaningfully reduce wildfire risk in the Palisades, with its steep topography and dense vegetation, the resiliency report found.
From Los Angeles Times
In Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland groundwater flooding is often less extensive than in England due to the bedrock geology and topography.
From BBC
Factors that vary widely throughout the region—such as seafloor topography, temperature, salinity and the presence of fresh water from melting ice—can play havoc with sonar signals.
The difficult topography, a local aversion to so-called “gunboat” diplomacy, and corrupt political regimes have been among foreign firms’ many obstacles.
From Barron's
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
