Rock Vocabulary

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Rock Vocabulary
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Word
definition
Rock Types
Word in sentence
illustration
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Extrusive Rock

• Igneous rock formed from lava that erupted onto
  Earths surface.
• Basalt is the most common extrusive rock. Basalt
  forms much of the earths crust and oceanic crust.

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Intrusive Rock

• Igneous rock that formed when magma hardened
  beneath Earths surface.
• Granite is the most abundant intrusive rock in
  continental crust.

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Sediment

• Small solid pieces of material that come from
  rocks or living things.
• Water, wind and ice can carry sediment and
  deposit it in layers.

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Erosion

• Destructive forces are constantly breaking up and
  wearing away all the rocks on Earths surface.
  These forces include heat and cold, rain, waves
  and grinding ice. Erosion occurs when running
  water or wind loosen and carry away the fragments
  of rock.

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Deposition

• Process by which sediment settles out of the
  water or wind carrying it. After sediment has
  been deposited, the processes of compaction and
  cementation change the sediments into sedimentary
  rock.

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Compaction

• The process that presses sediments together. Year
  after year more sediment falls on top, creating
  new layers. The weight of the layers further
  compact the sediments, squeezing them tightly
  together. Layers form sedimentary rock.

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Cementation

• Process in which dissolved minerals crystallize
  and glue particles of sediment together. While
  compaction is taking place, the minerals in the
  rock slowly dissolve in the water. The dissolved
  minerals seep into the spaces between particles
  of sediment.

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Classic Rock

• A sedimentary rock that forms when rock fragments
  are squeezed together. Shale, sandstone,
  conglomerate and Breccia are examples.

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Organic Rock

• Forms where the remains of plants and animals are
  deposited in think layers. Coal and Limestone are
  examples of organic rock.