Glossary Of Landforms

Short description: none

Landforms are categorized by characteristic physical attributes such as their creating process, shape, elevation, slope, orientation, rock exposure, and soil type.

Landforms by process

Landforms organized by the processes that create them.

Aeolian landforms

Earth:Aeolian landform – Landforms produced by action of the winds include:

Blowout – Depressions in a sand dune ecosystem caused by the removal of sediments by wind
Earth:Desert pavement – Type of desert earth surface
Earth:Desert varnish – Orange-to-black rock coating in arid environments
Earth:Dry lake – Basin or depression that formerly contained a standing surface water body
Earth:Dune
Erg – Broad area of desert covered with wind-swept sand
Earth:Inland dune – Sand dunes found outside of coastal areas
Médanos - continental dunes
Earth:Mushroom rock – Naturally occurring rock whose shape resembles a mushroom
Paha – Type of loess hill
Earth:Ripple marks – Wave structures created in sediments by bottom current
Biology:Sandhill
Earth:Sastrugi – Sharp irregular grooves or ridges formed on a snow surface
Earth:Snowdrift – Snow deposit sculpted by wind into a mound during a snowstorm
Earth:Tukulan
Earth:Ventifact
Earth:Yardang

Coastal and oceanic landforms

Coastal and oceanic landforms include:

Earth:Abyssal fan – Underwater geological structures associated with large-scale sediment deposition
Earth:Abyssal plain – Flat area on the deep ocean floor
Earth:Archipelago
Earth:Atoll
Arch – Arch-shaped natural rock formation
Earth:Barrier island – Coastal dune landform that forms by wave and tidal action parallel to the mainland coast
Earth:Bay
Earth:Baymouth bar – Sandbank that partially or completely closes access to a bay
Earth:Beach
Earth:Raised beach – Emergent coastal landform
Earth:Beach cusps – Shoreline formations made up of various grades of sediment in an arc pattern
Earth:Beach ridge – Wave-swept or wave-deposited ridge running parallel to a shoreline
Bight – Shallowly concave bend or curve in a coastline, river, or other geographical feature
Blowhole – Hole at the top of a sea-cave which allows waves to force water or spray out of the hole
Channel – Type of landform in which part of a body of water is confined to a relatively narrow but long region
Cape – Large headland extending into a body of water, usually the sea
Earth:Calanque – Narrow, steep-walled inlet on the Mediterranean coast
Earth:Cliff
Earth:Coast
Earth:Continental shelf – Coastal and oceanic landform
Earth:Coral reef – Outcrop of rock in the sea formed by the growth and deposit of stony coral skeletons
Earth:Cove
Earth:Cuspate foreland – Geographical features found on coastlines and lakeshores
Dune system
Earth:Estuary
Earth:Firth
Earth:Fjard
Earth:Fjord
Geo – Inlet, a gully or a narrow and deep cleft in the face of a cliff
Earth:Gulf – Large inlet from the ocean into the landmass
- Earth:List of gulfs
Earth:Headland
Earth:Inlet – Indentation of a shoreline
Earth:Island
Earth:Islet
Earth:Lagoon
Earth:Machair
Earth:Mid-ocean ridge – Basaltic underwater mountain system formed by plate tectonic spreading
Earth:Ocean bank – Part of the sea which is shallow compared to its surrounding area
Earth:Oceanic plateau – Relatively flat submarine region that rises well above the level of the ambient seabed
Earth:Oceanic trench – Long and narrow depressions of the sea floor
Earth:Peninsula
Earth:Promontory – Prominent mass of land that overlooks lower-lying land or a body of water
Earth:Ria – Coastal inlet formed by the partial submergence of an unglaciated river valley
Chemistry:River delta – Silt deposition landform at the mouth of a river
Earth:Salt marsh – Coastal ecosystem between land and open saltwater that is regularly flooded
Earth:Sea cave – Cave formed by the wave action of the sea and located along present or former coastlines
Earth:Seamount
Earth:Shoal – Natural submerged sandbank that rises from a body of water to near the surface
Earth:Shore – The fringe of land at the edge of a large body of water
Earth:Skerry
Sound – A long, relatively wide body of water, connecting two larger bodies of water
Spit – Coastal bar or beach landform deposited by longshore drift
Earth:Strait
Earth:Strandflat
Stack – Geological landform consisting of a steep and often vertical column or columns of rock, and stump
Earth:Submarine canyon – A steep-sided valley cut into the seabed of the continental slope
Earth:Surge channel – Type of coastal landform
Earth:Tessellated pavement – Relatively flat rock surface that is subdivided into more or less regular shapes by fractures
Earth:Tidal island – Island accessible by foot at low tide
Earth:Tidal marsh – Marsh subject to tidal change in water
Earth:Tide pool – Rocky pool on a seashore, separated from the sea at low tide, filled with seawater
Earth:Tied island – Island that is connected to land only by a tombolo
Earth:Tombolo – Deposition landform in which an island is connected to the mainland by a sandy isthmus
Earth:Volcanic arc – Chain of volcanoes formed above a subducting plate
Earth:Wave-cut platform – Narrow flat area created by erosion

Cryogenic landforms

Landforms produced by or in low-temperatures include:

Earth:Blockfield
Cryoplanation terrace – Formation of plains, terraces and pediments in periglacial environments
Kurum – Mantle of loose rocks moving by creeping on gentle slopes.
Earth:Lithalsa – Frost-induced raised land form in permafrost areas
Nivation hollow
Earth:Palsa
Earth:Pingo
Earth:Rock glacier – Glacial landform
Earth:Solifluction lobes and sheets
Earth:Thermokarst

Erosion landforms

Landforms produced by erosion and weathering usually occur in rocky or fluvial environments, and many also appear under those headings.

Earth:Arête – Narrow ridge of rock which separates two valleys
Earth:Badlands
Earth:Butte – Isolated hill with steep, often vertical sides and a small, relatively flat top
Earth:Canyon
Company:Cave
Earth:Cirque – Amphitheatre-like valley formed by glacial erosion
Earth:Cliff
Chink, regional term in Central Asia for steep chalk and limestone escarpments and cliffs of height up to 350m, often around flat-top elevations
Cryoplanation terrace – Formation of plains, terraces and pediments in periglacial environments
Earth:Cuesta – Hill or ridge with a gentle slope on one side and a steep slope on the other
Danxia
Earth:Dissected plateau – Plateaus area that has been severely eroded so that the relief is sharp
Erg – Broad area of desert covered with wind-swept sand
Earth:Exhumed river channel – Ridge of sandstone that remains when the softer flood plain mudstone is eroded away
Earth:Fjord
Earth:Flared slope – Rock-wall with a smooth transition into a concavity at the foot zone
Flatiron – Steeply sloping triangular landform
Earth:Gulch – Deep V-shaped valley formed by erosion
Earth:Gully – Landform created by running water and/or mass movement eroding sharply into soil
Hogback – Long, narrow ridge
Hoodoo – Tall, thin spire of relatively soft rock usually topped by harder rock
Earth:Homoclinal ridge – Ridge with a moderate sloping backslope and steeper frontslope
Earth:Inselberg, also known as Monadnock
Astronomy:Inverted relief – Landscape features that have reversed their elevation relative to other features
Earth:Lavaka
Earth:Limestone pavement – Natural karst landform consisting of a flat, incised surface of exposed limestone
Earth:Mesa
Earth:Mushroom rock – Naturally occurring rock whose shape resembles a mushroom
Earth:Natural arch – Arch-shaped natural rock formation
Earth:Outcrop
Paleoplain - A buried erosion plain; a particularly large and flat erosion surface
Pediment – Very gently sloping inclined bedrock surface
Earth:Pediplain
Earth:Peneplain – Low-relief plain formed by protracted erosion
Earth:Planation surface – Large-scale surface that is almost flat
Potrero – Long mesa that at one end slopes upward to higher terrain
Earth:Ridge – Long, narrow, elevated landform
Earth:Rôche moutonnée
Earth:List of rock formations
Strike ridge – Ridge with a moderate sloping backslope and steeper frontslope
Structural bench – Long, relatively narrow land bounded by distinctly steeper slopes above and below
Structural terrace – A step-like landform
Earth:Tepui
Earth:Tessellated pavement – Relatively flat rock surface that is subdivided into more or less regular shapes by fractures
Earth:Truncated spur – Ridge that descends towards a valley floor or coastline that is cut short
Tor – Large, free-standing rock outcrop on a gentle hill summit
Earth:Valley
Earth:Wave-cut platform – Narrow flat area created by erosion
Earth:Wind gap – Topographic gap made by a former waterway

Fluvial landforms

 landforms include:

Earth:Ait
Earth:Alluvial fan – Fan-shaped deposit of sediment
Earth:Anabranch – A section of a river or stream that diverts from the main channel and rejoins it downstream.
Arroyo
Earth:Asymmetric valley – Valley that has steeper slopes on one side
Earth:Backswamp – Environment on a floodplain where deposits settle after a flood
Bajada
Bar – Natural submerged sandbank that rises from a body of water to near the surface
Earth:Bayou
Bench – Long, relatively narrow land bounded by distinctly steeper slopes above and below
Braided channel – Network of river channels
Earth:Canyon
Company:Cave
Earth:Cliff
Earth:Cut bank – Outside bank of a water channel, which is continually undergoing erosion
Earth:Crevasse splay – Sediment deposited on a floodplain by a stream which breaks its levees
Earth:Confluence
Earth:Drainage basin – Land area where water converges to a common outlet
Earth:Drainage divide – Elevated terrain that separates neighbouring drainage basins
Earth:Endorheic basin – Closed drainage basin that has no outflow
Earth:Esker
Earth:Exhumed river channel – Ridge of sandstone that remains when the softer flood plain mudstone is eroded away
Earth:Floodplain
Fluvial island – Exposed landmass within a river
Earth:Fluvial terrace – Elongated terraces that flank the sides of floodplains and river valleys
Gorge
Earth:Gully – Landform created by running water and/or mass movement eroding sharply into soil
Earth:Levee
Earth:Marsh – Low-lying and seasonally waterlogged land
Earth:Meander
Earth:Misfit stream – River too large or too small to have eroded the valley or cave passage in which it flows
Earth:Narrows – Restricted land or water passage
Earth:Oxbow lake – U-shaped lake or pool left by an ancient river meander
Earth:Palaeochannel
Earth:Point bar – Landform related to streams and rivers
Earth:Plunge pool – Depression at the base of a waterfall
Pothole – Natural bowl-shaped hollow carved into a streambed
Earth:Rapids
Earth:Riffle – Shallow landform in a flowing channel
Earth:River
Chemistry:River delta – Silt deposition landform at the mouth of a river
Earth:River island – Exposed landmass within a river
Earth:River source – Starting point of a river
Earth:Rock-cut basin – Cylindrical depression cut into stream or river beds
Shut-in – Type of rock formation found in Ozarks streams
Earth:Thalweg
Towhead – Exposed landmass within a river
Earth:Shoal – Natural submerged sandbank that rises from a body of water to near the surface
Earth:Strath
Earth:Stream
Earth:Stream pool – Deep and slow-moving stretch of a watercourse
Earth:Swamp
Earth:Valley
Earth:Wadi – River valley, especially a dry riverbed that contains water only during times of heavy rain
Earth:Waterfall
Watershed – Land area where water converges to a common outlet
Earth:Yazoo stream – Hydrologic term
Earth:V-shaped valley

Impact landforms

Landforms created by extraterrestrial impacts – Collision of two astronomical objects – include:

Astronomy:Complex crater – Large impact craters with uplifted centres
Astronomy:Impact crater – Circular depression in a solid astronomical body formed by the impact of a smaller object
Earth:Impact crater lake – Lake formed within an impact crater

Lacustrine landforms

Lacustrine – associated with lakes – landforms include:

Earth:Beach
Earth:Raised beach – Emergent coastal landform
Earth:Dry lake – Basin or depression that formerly contained a standing surface water body
Earth:Chott
Earth:Endorheic basin – Closed drainage basin that has no outflow
Earth:Gilgai
Earth:Lacustrine plain – Lakes filled by sediment
Lacustrine terraces – A step-like landform
Earth:Lake
Earth:Oasis
Earth:Oxbow lake – U-shaped lake or pool left by an ancient river meander
Earth:Pond
Earth:Proglacial lake – Lake formed by the action of ice
Salt pan, also known as salt flat – Flat expanse of ground covered with salt and other minerals

Mountain and glacial landforms

Mountain and Earth:Glacial landform – Landform created by the action of glaciers – include:

Earth:Arête – Narrow ridge of rock which separates two valleys formed by glacial movement
Earth:Cirque – Amphitheatre-like valley formed by glacial erosion
Earth:Col – Lowest point on a mountain ridge between two peaks
Earth:Cordillera – Extensive chain of mountains or mountain ranges
Earth:Crevasse
Corrie – Amphitheatre-like valley formed by glacial erosion or cwm
Cove (mountain) – Small valley in the Appalachian Mountains between two ridge lines
Earth:Dirt cone – Depositional glacial feature of ice or snow with an insulating layer of dirt
Earth:Esker
Earth:Fjord
Earth:Fluvial terrace – Elongated terraces that flank the sides of floodplains and river valleys
Flyggberg
Earth:Glacier
Earth:Glacier cave – Cave formed within the ice of a glacier
Earth:Glacier foreland – Area between the leading edge of a glacier and the moraines of latest maximum
Earth:Highland
Earth:Hill
Earth:Inselberg, also known as monadnock
Earth:Kame
Earth:Kame delta – Glacial melt water landform
Kettle – Depression or hole in an outwash plain formed by retreating glaciers or draining floodwaters
Earth:Moraine – Glacially formed accumulation of debris
- Earth:Rogen moraine, also known as Ribbed moraines – Landform of ridges deposited by a glacier or ice sheet transverse to ice flow
Moulin – Shaft within a glacier or ice sheet which water enters from the surface
Earth:Mountain
Earth:Mountain pass – Route through a mountain range or over a ridge
Earth:Mountain range – Geographic area containing several geologically related mountains
Earth:Nunatak – Landform within an ice field or glacier
Earth:Proglacial lake – Lake formed by the action of ice
Earth:Pyramidal peak, also known as Glacial horn – Angular, sharply pointed mountainous peak
Earth:Outwash fan – Type of sediment deposition by a melting glacier
Earth:Outwash plain – Plain formed from glacier sediment transported by meltwater
Earth:Rift valley – Linear lowland created by a tectonic rift or fault
Earth:Rôche moutonnée
Sandur – Plain formed from glacier sediment transported by meltwater
Earth:Side valley – Valley with a tributary to a larger river
Earth:Summit
Earth:Trim line – Clear line on the side of a valley marking the most recent highest extent of the glacier
Earth:Truncated spur – Ridge that descends towards a valley floor or coastline that is cut short
Earth:Tunnel valley – Glacial-formed geographic feature
Earth:Valley
Earth:U-shaped valley – Valleys formed by glacial scouring

Slope landforms

Slope landforms include:

Bluff
Earth:Butte – Isolated hill with steep, often vertical sides and a small, relatively flat top
Earth:Canyon
Earth:Cliff
Earth:Col – Lowest point on a mountain ridge between two peaks
Earth:Cuesta – Hill or ridge with a gentle slope on one side and a steep slope on the other
Dale
Defile – Narrow pass or gorge between mountains or hills
Dell – Small secluded hollow
Place:Doab, also known as interfluve – Land between two converging, or confluent, rivers, mainly in the Punjab
Draw – Terrain feature formed by two parallel ridges or spurs with low ground in between
Earth:Escarpment, also known as scarp – Steep slope or cliff separating two relatively level regions
Earth:Fall line – Meeting point of uplands and coastal plain
Earth:Flat (landform) – Relatively level surface of land within a region of greater relief
Earth:Glen
Earth:Gully – Landform created by running water and/or mass movement eroding sharply into soil
Earth:Hill
Earth:Hillock, also known as Knoll – Small hill
Earth:Mesa
Earth:Mountain pass – Route through a mountain range or over a ridge
Earth:Plain
Earth:Plateau – Highland area, usually of relatively flat terrain
Earth:Ravine
Earth:Ridge – Long, narrow, elevated landform
Earth:Rock shelter – A shallow cave-like opening at the base of a bluff or cliff
Saddle – Land connecting two high points
Earth:Scree – Broken rock fragments at base of cliff
Earth:Solifluction lobes and sheets
Earth:Strath
Earth:Summit
Terrace – A step-like landform
Earth:Terracette – Small natural step-arranged soil ridges on hillsides
Vale
Earth:Valley

Tectonic landforms

Landforms created by tectonic activity include:

Earth:Asymmetric valley – Valley that has steeper slopes on one side
Dome – Geological deformation structure
Faceted spur – Ridge that descends towards a valley floor or coastline that is cut short
Earth:Fault scarp – Small vertical offset on the ground surface
Earth:Graben
Earth:Half-graben
Horst – Raised fault block bounded by normal faults
Earth:Mid-ocean ridge – Basaltic underwater mountain system formed by plate tectonic spreading
Earth:Mud volcano – Landform created by the eruption of mud or slurries, water, and gases
Earth:Oceanic trench – Long and narrow depressions of the sea floor
Earth:Pull-apart basin – Type of basin in geology
Earth:Rift valley – Linear lowland created by a tectonic rift or fault
Earth:Sand boil – Cone formed by the ejection of sand on a surface from a central point
Earth:Triple junction – Meeting point of three tectonic plates

Volcanic landforms

Volcanic landforms include:

Company:Caldera
Earth:Cinder cone – Steep hill of pyroclastic fragments around a volcanic vent
Earth:Complex volcano – Landform of more than one related volcanic centre
Astronomy:Cryovolcano
Earth:Diatreme – A volcanic pipe formed by a gaseous explosion
Dike – A sheet of rock that is formed in a fracture of a pre-existing rock body
Earth:Geyser
Earth:Guyot – Isolated, flat-topped underwater volcano mountain
Earth:Hornito – Conical structures built up by lava ejected through an opening in the crust of a lava flow
Earth:Kīpuka – Area of land surrounded by one or more younger lava flows
Earth:Lava – Molten rock expelled by a volcano during an eruption
Earth:Lava dome – Roughly circular protrusion from slowly extruded viscous volcanic lava
Earth:Lava field, also known as lava plain – Large, mostly flat area of lava flows
Earth:Lava lake – Molten lava contained in a volcanic crater
Earth:Lava spine – Vertical growth of solid volcanic lava
Earth:Lava tube – Natural conduit through which lava flows beneath the solid surface
Earth:Maar
Malpais – Rough and barren landscape of relict and largely uneroded lava fields
Mamelon – Rock formation created by eruption of relatively thick or stiff lava through a narrow vent
Earth:Mid-ocean ridge – Basaltic underwater mountain system formed by plate tectonic spreading
Earth:Pit crater – Depression formed by collapse of the surface into a void
Earth:Pyroclastic shield – Shield volcano formed mostly of pyroclastic and highly explosive eruptions
Earth:Resurgent dome – Volcanic landform
Earth:Rootless cone, also known as pseudocrater – Volcanic landform
Earth:Seamount
Earth:Shield volcano – Low-profile volcano usually formed almost entirely of fluid lava flows
Earth:Stratovolcano
Earth:Somma volcano – Volcanic caldera that has been partially filled by a new central cone
Earth:Volcanic crater lake – Lake formed within a volcanic crater
Earth:Subglacial mound – Volcano formed when lava erupts beneath a thick glacier or ice sheet
Earth:Submarine volcano – Underwater vents or fissures in the Earth's surface from which magma can erupt
Earth:Supervolcano
Earth:Tuya – Flat-topped, steep-sided volcano formed when lava erupts through a thick glacier or ice sheet
Earth:Volcanic cone – Landform of ejecta from a volcanic vent piled up in a conical shape
Earth:Volcanic crater – Roughly circular depression in the ground caused by volcanic activity
Earth:Volcanic dam – Natural dam produced directly or indirectly by volcanism
Earth:Volcanic field – Area of Earth's crust prone to localized volcanic activity
Earth:Volcanic group – Collection of related volcanoes or volcanic landforms
Earth:Volcanic island – Island of volcanic origin
Earth:Volcanic plateau – Plateau produced by volcanic activity
Earth:Volcanic plug – Volcanic object created when magma hardens within a vent on an active volcano
Earth:Volcano

Weathering landforms

Weathering landforms include:

Earth:Flared slope – Rock-wall with a smooth transition into a concavity at the foot zone
Flute
Earth:Inselberg
Earth:Karst
Nubbin – Small hill of bedrock with rounded residual blocks
Earth:Panhole (Weathering pit)
Earth:Tafoni – Small to large indentations in vertical to steeply sloping granular rock
Tor – Large, free-standing rock outcrop on a gentle hill summit

Landforms by shape

Positive landforms

Earth:Cinder cone – Steep hill of pyroclastic fragments around a volcanic vent
Dome – Geological deformation structure
Earth:Drumlin
Earth:Hillock – Small hill
Earth:Inselberg
Earth:Lava dome – Roughly circular protrusion from slowly extruded viscous volcanic lava
Earth:Lava spine – Vertical growth of solid volcanic lava
Earth:Mesa
Earth:Mogote – Steep-sided residual hill of limestone, marble, or dolomite on a flat plain
Nubbin – Small hill of bedrock with rounded residual blocks
Earth:Palsa
Earth:Pingo
Earth:Pyroclastic shield – Shield volcano formed mostly of pyroclastic and highly explosive eruptions
Earth:Resurgent dome – Volcanic landform
Earth:Seamount
Earth:Shield volcano – Low-profile volcano usually formed almost entirely of fluid lava flows
Earth:Stratovolcano
Tor – Large, free-standing rock outcrop on a gentle hill summit
Earth:Tower karst
Earth:Tuya – Flat-topped, steep-sided volcano formed when lava erupts through a thick glacier or ice sheet
Earth:Volcanic cone – Landform of ejecta from a volcanic vent piled up in a conical shape
Earth:Volcanic island – Island of volcanic origin

Depressions

Company:Caldera
Company:Cave
Earth:Cirque – Amphitheatre-like valley formed by glacial erosion
Earth:Crevasse
Doline – Depression or hole in the ground caused by collapse of the surface into an existing void space
Earth:Graben
Astronomy:Impact crater – Circular depression in a solid astronomical body formed by the impact of a smaller object
Joint valley
Kettle – Depression or hole in an outwash plain formed by retreating glaciers or draining floodwaters
Earth:Lagoon
Earth:Lake
Earth:Lava lake – Molten lava contained in a volcanic crater
Earth:Maar
Nivation hollow
Earth:Oxbow lake – U-shaped lake or pool left by an ancient river meander
Earth:Panhole
Pothole – Natural bowl-shaped hollow carved into a streambed
Earth:Plunge pool – Depression at the base of a waterfall
Earth:Pond
Earth:Pull-apart basin – Type of basin in geology
Earth:Quarry
Rift – Part of a volcano where a set of linear cracks form
Earth:Sea cave – Cave formed by the wave action of the sea and located along present or former coastlines
Earth:Sinkhole – Depression or hole in the ground caused by collapse of the surface into an existing void space
Sor
Earth:Tafoni – Small to large indentations in vertical to steeply sloping granular rock
Earth:Thermokarst
Earth:Volcanic crater – Roughly circular depression in the ground caused by volcanic activity
Earth:Volcanic dam – Natural dam produced directly or indirectly by volcanism

Flat landforms

Earth:Abyssal fan – Underwater geological structures associated with large-scale sediment deposition
Earth:Abyssal plain – Flat area on the deep ocean floor
Bench – Long, relatively narrow land bounded by distinctly steeper slopes above and below
Earth:Butte – Isolated hill with steep, often vertical sides and a small, relatively flat top
Earth:Coastal plain – Area of flat, low-lying land adjacent to a seacoast
Earth:Continental shelf – Coastal and oceanic landform
Cryoplanation terrace – Formation of plains, terraces and pediments in periglacial environments
Earth:Dissected plateau – Plateaus area that has been severely eroded so that the relief is sharp
Earth:Floodplain
Earth:Fluvial terrace – Elongated terraces that flank the sides of floodplains and river valleys
Inselberg plain
Lacustrine terrace – A step-like landform
Earth:Lava field, also known as lava plain – Large, mostly flat area of lava flows
Earth:Oceanic basin – Geologic basin under the sea
Earth:Oceanic plateau – Relatively flat submarine region that rises well above the level of the ambient seabed
Earth:Outwash fan – Type of sediment deposition by a melting glacier
Earth:Outwash plain – Plain formed from glacier sediment transported by meltwater
Paleoplain - A buried erosion plain; a particularly large and flat erosion surface
Earth:Pediplain
Earth:Peneplain – Low-relief plain formed by protracted erosion
Earth:Plain
Earth:Planation surface – Large-scale surface that is almost flat
Earth:Plateau – Highland area, usually of relatively flat terrain
Earth:Polje – Type of large plain found in karst regions
Earth:Raised beach, also known as Marine terrace – Emergent coastal landform
Chemistry:River delta – Silt deposition landform at the mouth of a river
Earth:Salt marsh – Coastal ecosystem between land and open saltwater that is regularly flooded
Salt pan – Flat expanse of ground covered with salt and other minerals
Sandur – Plain formed from glacier sediment transported by meltwater
Earth:Strandflat
Earth:Strath
Earth:Swamp
Table – Raised landform with a flat top
Earth:Tidal marsh – Marsh subject to tidal change in water
Earth:Tepui
Earth:Volcanic plateau – Plateau produced by volcanic activity
Earth:Wave-cut platform – Narrow flat area created by erosion

Landforms, alphabetic

Earth:Abîme – Geographical term referring to vertical shaft in caves
Earth:Abyssal fan – Underwater geological structures associated with large-scale sediment deposition
Earth:Abyssal plain – Flat area on the deep ocean floor
Earth:Ait
Earth:Alluvial fan – Fan-shaped deposit of sediment
Earth:Anabranch – A section of a river or stream that diverts from the main channel and rejoins it downstream.
Arch – Arch-shaped natural rock formation
Earth:Archipelago
Earth:Arête – Narrow ridge of rock which separates two valleys
Arroyo
Earth:Atoll
Earth:Badlands
Bajada
Bar – Natural submerged sandbank that rises from a body of water to near the surface
Barrier bar – Natural submerged sandbank that rises from a body of water to near the surface
Earth:Barrier island – Coastal dune landform that forms by wave and tidal action parallel to the mainland coast
Earth:Bay
Earth:Baymouth bar – Sandbank that partially or completely closes access to a bay
Earth:Bayou
Earth:Beach
Earth:Beach cusps – Shoreline formations made up of various grades of sediment in an arc pattern
Earth:Beach ridge – Wave-swept or wave-deposited ridge running parallel to a shoreline
Bench – Long, relatively narrow land bounded by distinctly steeper slopes above and below
Bight – Shallowly concave bend or curve in a coastline, river, or other geographical feature
Blowhole – Hole at the top of a sea-cave which allows waves to force water or spray out of the hole
Blowout – Depressions in a sand dune ecosystem caused by the removal of sediments by wind
Bluff
Braided channel – Network of river channels
Earth:Butte – Isolated hill with steep, often vertical sides and a small, relatively flat top
Earth:Calanque – Narrow, steep-walled inlet on the Mediterranean coast
Company:Caldera
Earth:Canyon
Cape – Large headland extending into a body of water, usually the sea
Company:Cave
Channel – Type of landform in which part of a body of water is confined to a relatively narrow but long region
Earth:Cirque – Amphitheatre-like valley formed by glacial erosion
Corrie – Amphitheatre-like valley formed by glacial erosion or cwm
Earth:Cliff
Earth:Coast
Earth:Coastal plain – Area of flat, low-lying land adjacent to a seacoast
Earth:Col – Lowest point on a mountain ridge between two peaks
Astronomy:Complex crater – Large impact craters with uplifted centres
Earth:Complex volcano – Landform of more than one related volcanic centre
Earth:Confluence
Earth:Continental shelf – Coastal and oceanic landform
Earth:Coral reef – Outcrop of rock in the sea formed by the growth and deposit of stony coral skeletons
Earth:Cordillera – Extensive chain of mountains or mountain ranges
Earth:Cove
Cove (mountain) – Small valley in the Appalachian Mountains between two ridge lines
Earth:Crevasse splay – Sediment deposited on a floodplain by a stream which breaks its levees
Earth:Crevasse
Astronomy:Cryovolcano
Earth:Cuesta – Hill or ridge with a gentle slope on one side and a steep slope on the other
Earth:Cuspate foreland – Geographical features found on coastlines and lakeshores
Earth:Cut bank – Outside bank of a water channel, which is continually undergoing erosion
Dale
Defile – Narrow pass or gorge between mountains or hills
Dell – Small secluded hollow
Delta, River – Silt deposition landform at the mouth of a river
Earth:Desert pavement – Type of desert earth surface
Earth:Desert varnish – Orange-to-black rock coating in arid environments
Earth:Diatreme – A volcanic pipe formed by a gaseous explosion
Dike – A sheet of rock that is formed in a fracture of a pre-existing rock body
Earth:Dirt cone – Depositional glacial feature of ice or snow with an insulating layer of dirt
Earth:Dissected plateau – Plateaus area that has been severely eroded so that the relief is sharp
Place:Doab – Land between two converging, or confluent, rivers, mainly in the Punjab
Doline – Depression or hole in the ground caused by collapse of the surface into an existing void space
Dome – Geological deformation structure
Earth:Drainage basin – Land area where water converges to a common outlet
Earth:Drainage divide – Elevated terrain that separates neighbouring drainage basins
Draw – Terrain feature formed by two parallel ridges or spurs with low ground in between
Earth:Drumlin
Earth:Dry lake – Basin or depression that formerly contained a standing surface water body
Earth:Dune
Dune system
Earth:Endorheic basin – Closed drainage basin that has no outflow
Erg – Broad area of desert covered with wind-swept sand
Earth:Escarpment – Steep slope or cliff separating two relatively level regions (scarp)
Earth:Esker
Earth:Estuary
Earth:Exhumed river channel – Ridge of sandstone that remains when the softer flood plain mudstone is eroded away
Faceted spur – Ridge that descends towards a valley floor or coastline that is cut short
Earth:Fall line – Meeting point of uplands and coastal plain
Earth:Fault scarp – Small vertical offset on the ground surface
Earth:Firth
Earth:Fjard
Earth:Fjord
Flat – Relatively level surface of land within a region of greater relief
Flatiron – Steeply sloping triangular landform
Earth:Floodplain
Earth:Foothills
Fluvial island – Exposed landmass within a river
Earth:Fluvial terrace – Elongated terraces that flank the sides of floodplains and river valleys
Earth:Foiba – Type of deep natural sinkhole
Geo – Inlet, a gully or a narrow and deep cleft in the face of a cliff
Earth:Geyser
Earth:Gilgai
Glacial horn – Angular, sharply pointed mountainous peak
Earth:Glacier cave – Cave formed within the ice of a glacier
Earth:Glacier foreland – Area between the leading edge of a glacier and the moraines of latest maximum
Earth:Glacier
Earth:Glen
Gorge
Earth:Graben
Earth:Gulch – Deep V-shaped valley formed by erosion
Gulf
Earth:Gully – Landform created by running water and/or mass movement eroding sharply into soil
Earth:Guyot – Isolated, flat-topped underwater volcano mountain
Earth:Half-graben
Earth:Headland
Earth:Highland
Earth:Hill
Earth:Hillock – Small hill
Hogback – Long, narrow ridge
Earth:Homoclinal ridge – Ridge with a moderate sloping backslope and steeper frontslope
Hoodoo – Tall, thin spire of relatively soft rock usually topped by harder rock
Horst – Raised fault block bounded by normal faults
Astronomy:Impact crater – Circular depression in a solid astronomical body formed by the impact of a smaller object
Earth:Inland dune – Sand dunes found outside of coastal areas
Earth:Inlet – Indentation of a shoreline
Interfluve – Land between two converging, or confluent, rivers, mainly in the Punjab
Astronomy:Inverted relief – Landscape features that have reversed their elevation relative to other features
Earth:Island
Earth:Islet
Earth:Kame delta – Glacial melt water landform
Earth:Kame
Earth:Karst
Karst valley
Kettle – Depression or hole in an outwash plain formed by retreating glaciers or draining floodwaters
Earth:Kīpuka – Area of land surrounded by one or more younger lava flows
Knoll – Small hill
Earth:Lacustrine plain – Lakes filled by sediment
Earth:Lagoon
Earth:Lake
Earth:Lava dome – Roughly circular protrusion from slowly extruded viscous volcanic lava
Earth:Lava – Molten rock expelled by a volcano during an eruption
Earth:Lava lake – Molten lava contained in a volcanic crater
Earth:Lava field, also known as lava plain – Large, mostly flat area of lava flows
Earth:Lava spine – Vertical growth of solid volcanic lava
Earth:Lava tube – Natural conduit through which lava flows beneath the solid surface
Earth:Lavaka
Earth:Levee, natural
Earth:Limestone pavement – Natural karst landform consisting of a flat, incised surface of exposed limestone
Earth:Loess
Lacustrine terraces – A step-like landform
Earth:Maar
Earth:Machair
Malpaís – Rough and barren landscape of relict and largely uneroded lava fields
Mamelon – Rock formation created by eruption of relatively thick or stiff lava through a narrow vent
Marine terrace – Emergent coastal landform
Earth:Marsh – Low-lying and seasonally waterlogged land
Earth:Massif – The principal mass of a mountain
Earth:Meander
Médanos
Earth:Mesa
Earth:Mid-ocean ridge – Basaltic underwater mountain system formed by plate tectonic spreading
Earth:Mogote – Steep-sided residual hill of limestone, marble, or dolomite on a flat plain
Monadnock
Earth:Moraine – Glacially formed accumulation of debris
Moulin – Shaft within a glacier or ice sheet which water enters from the surface
Earth:Mountain
Earth:Mountain pass – Route through a mountain range or over a ridge
Earth:Mountain range – Geographic area containing several geologically related mountains
Earth:Mud volcano – Landform created by the eruption of mud or slurries, water, and gases
Earth:Mushroom rock – Naturally occurring rock whose shape resembles a mushroom
Earth:Natural arch – Arch-shaped natural rock formation
Earth:Nunatak – Landform within an ice field or glacier
Earth:Oasis
Earth:Ocean bank – Part of the sea which is shallow compared to its surrounding area
Earth:Oceanic basin – Geologic basin under the sea
Earth:Oceanic plateau – Relatively flat submarine region that rises well above the level of the ambient seabed
Earth:Oceanic trench – Long and narrow depressions of the sea floor
Earth:Outcrop
Earth:Outwash fan – Type of sediment deposition by a melting glacier
Earth:Outwash plain – Plain formed from glacier sediment transported by meltwater
Earth:Oxbow lake – U-shaped lake or pool left by an ancient river meander
Paha – Type of loess hill
Earth:Palaeochannel
Paleoplain - A buried erosion plain; a particularly large and flat erosion surface
Earth:Panhole
Pediment – Very gently sloping inclined bedrock surface
Earth:Pediplain
Earth:Peneplain – Low-relief plain formed by protracted erosion
Earth:Peninsula
Earth:Pingo
Earth:Pit crater – Depression formed by collapse of the surface into a void
Earth:Plain
Earth:Plateau – Highland area, usually of relatively flat terrain
Earth:Plunge pool – Depression at the base of a waterfall
Earth:Point bar – Landform related to streams and rivers
Earth:Polje – Type of large plain found in karst regions
Earth:Pond
Pothole – Natural bowl-shaped hollow carved into a streambed
Potrero – Long mesa that at one end slopes upward to higher terrain
Earth:Proglacial lake – Lake formed by the action of ice
Earth:Promontory – Prominent mass of land that overlooks lower-lying land or a body of water
Earth:Pull-apart basin – Type of basin in geology
Earth:Quarry
Earth:Raised beach – Emergent coastal landform
Earth:Rapids
Earth:Ravine
Earth:Ria – Coastal inlet formed by the partial submergence of an unglaciated river valley
Earth:Ridge – Long, narrow, elevated landform
Earth:Riffle – Shallow landform in a flowing channel
Earth:Rift valley – Linear lowland created by a tectonic rift or fault
Earth:Ripple marks – Wave structures created in sediments by bottom current
Earth:River
Chemistry:River delta – Silt deposition landform at the mouth of a river
Earth:River island – Exposed landmass within a river
Earth:River source – Starting point of a river
Earth:Rôche moutonnée
Earth:Rogen moraine – Landform of ridges deposited by a glacier or ice sheet transverse to ice flow
Rock formations
Earth:Rock shelter – A shallow cave-like opening at the base of a bluff or cliff
Earth:Rock-cut basin – Cylindrical depression cut into stream or river beds
Saddle – Land connecting two high points
Earth:Salt marsh – Coastal ecosystem between land and open saltwater that is regularly flooded
Salt pan – Flat expanse of ground covered with salt and other minerals (salt flat)
Earth:Sand boil, also known as sand volcano – Cone formed by the ejection of sand on a surface from a central point
Biology:Sandhill
Sandur – Plain formed from glacier sediment transported by meltwater
Earth:Sastrugi – Sharp irregular grooves or ridges formed on a snow surface
Earth:Scree – Broken rock fragments at base of cliff
Earth:Sea cave – Cave formed by the wave action of the sea and located along present or former coastlines
Earth:Seamount
Earth:Shield volcano – Low-profile volcano usually formed almost entirely of fluid lava flows
Earth:Shoal – Natural submerged sandbank that rises from a body of water to near the surface
Earth:Shore – The fringe of land at the edge of a large body of water
Shut-in – Type of rock formation found in Ozarks streams
Earth:Side valley – Valley with a tributary to a larger river
Earth:Sinkhole – Depression or hole in the ground caused by collapse of the surface into an existing void space
Earth:Skerry
Earth:Snowdrift – Snow deposit sculpted by wind into a mound during a snowstorm
Sound – A long, relatively wide body of water, connecting two larger bodies of water
Spit – Coastal bar or beach landform deposited by longshore drift
Stack – Geological landform consisting of a steep and often vertical column or columns of rock and stump
Earth:Strait
Earth:Strandflat
Earth:Strath
Earth:Stratovolcano
Earth:Stream pool – Deep and slow-moving stretch of a watercourse
Earth:Stream
Strike ridge – Ridge with a moderate sloping backslope and steeper frontslope
Structural bench – Long, relatively narrow land bounded by distinctly steeper slopes above and below
Structural terrace – A step-like landform
Earth:Subglacial mound – Volcano formed when lava erupts beneath a thick glacier or ice sheet
Earth:Submarine canyon – A steep-sided valley cut into the seabed of the continental slope
Earth:Submarine volcano – Underwater vents or fissures in the Earth's surface from which magma can erupt
Earth:Summit
Earth:Supervolcano
Earth:Surge channel – Type of coastal landform
Earth:Swamp
Earth:Tepui
Terrace – A step-like landform
Earth:Terracette – Small natural step-arranged soil ridges on hillsides
Earth:Tessellated pavement – Relatively flat rock surface that is subdivided into more or less regular shapes by fractures
Earth:Thalweg
Earth:Tidal island – Island accessible by foot at low tide
Earth:Tidal marsh – Marsh subject to tidal change in water
Earth:Tide pool – Rocky pool on a seashore, separated from the sea at low tide, filled with seawater
Earth:Tied island – Island that is connected to land only by a tombolo
Earth:Tombolo – Deposition landform in which an island is connected to the mainland by a sandy isthmus
Tor – Large, free-standing rock outcrop on a gentle hill summit
Tower karst
Towhead – Exposed landmass within a river
Earth:Trim line – Clear line on the side of a valley marking the most recent highest extent of the glacier
Earth:Triple junction – Meeting point of three tectonic plates
Earth:Truncated spur – Ridge that descends towards a valley floor or coastline that is cut short
Earth:Tukulan
Earth:Tunnel valley – Glacial-formed geographic feature
Turlough – Type of seasonal or periodic lake found in limestone areas of Ireland
Earth:Tuya – Flat-topped, steep-sided volcano formed when lava erupts through a thick glacier or ice sheet
Earth:U-shaped valley – Valleys formed by glacial scouring
Uvala – Toponym for a closed karst depression
Vale
Earth:Valley
Earth:Ventifact
Earth:Volcanic arc – Chain of volcanoes formed above a subducting plate
Earth:Volcanic cone – Landform of ejecta from a volcanic vent piled up in a conical shape
Earth:Volcanic crater – Roughly circular depression in the ground caused by volcanic activity
Earth:Volcanic crater lake – Lake formed within a volcanic crater
Earth:Volcanic dam – Natural dam produced directly or indirectly by volcanism
Earth:Volcanic field – Area of Earth's crust prone to localized volcanic activity
Earth:Volcanic group – Collection of related volcanoes or volcanic landforms
Volcanic island – Island of volcanic origin
Earth:Volcanic plateau – Plateau produced by volcanic activity
Earth:Volcanic plug – Volcanic object created when magma hardens within a vent on an active volcano
Earth:Volcano
Earth:Wadi – River valley, especially a dry riverbed that contains water only during times of heavy rain
Earth:Waterfall
Watershed – Land area where water converges to a common outlet
Earth:Wave-cut platform – Narrow flat area created by erosion
Earth:Wetland – Land area that is permanently, or seasonally saturated with water
Earth:Yardang

v t e Earth's landform
List of landforms
Mountainous	Table Butte Flat Hill Mountain Mountain range Plateau Ridge Valley
Continental plain	Ice sheet Plain Steppe Tundra
Fluvial	Alluvial fan Beach Canyon Cave Channel Cliff Floodplain Lake Levee Meander Oasis Pond Rapids River River delta River mouth River valley Strait Swamp Waterfall
Glacial	Arête Cirque Esker Fjord Glacier Ice field Tunnel valley
Oceanic and coastal landforms	Atoll Bay Cape Channel Coast Continental shelf Coral reef Estuary High island Island Isthmus Lagoon Mid-ocean ridge Oceanic trench Peninsula Seamount
Volcanic	Caldera Crater lake Geyser High island Mid-ocean ridge Lava dome Lava field Lava plateau Submarine volcano Guyot Volcanic crater Volcanic plug Volcano Wall rock
Aeolian	Desert Dry lake Dune Sandhill Tundra
Artificial	Artificial island Artificial reef Bridge Building Canal Dam Ditch Land reclamation Levee Polder Quarry Reservoir Road Tunnel
See also: Geographical feature