The Water Cycle

1. ________ ________ is rainwater and melted snow that run off streets and the surface of the land.
3. A ________ is a flat area of land formed by sediment that has settled at the mouth of a river over many thousands of years.
6. As the current of a sediment-laden river slows, the sediment begins to settle to the bottom, a process called ________.
8. Large accumulations of underground water in permeable rock, soil, or sand that are excellent sources of water.
9. ________ _______ is water from sinks, baths, washing machines and toilets.
12. The process when so much water gathers in the clouds that the air currents can no longer keep it aloft.
13. Water, whether liquid, solid, or gas, that contains a low concentration of dissolved salts.
17. The movement of water that influences our weather, keeps rivers and lakes full, purifies water, and sustains many forms of life is called _______ ________.
18. Treated water that is released back into the environment.
19. Runoff from riverbanks and the surrounding land carries _______, which includes gravel, sand, silt, and mud into the river.
20. Where rivers flow into an ocean, are affected by tidal action.
21. The wearing away of Earth's surface, caused by the movement of materials from one place to another is called ________.

1. When more rain falls and the water completely fills the spaces above an impermeable layer causing the soil to become saturated with water.
2. When gravity causes the water to sink into the ground, dissolving salts and minerals as it moves through the spaces between the soil particles.
4. Long walls of soil built along the banks of a river to prevent flooding are called ________.
5. __________ is the breakdown of rock into sediments.
7. action As water evaporates a process called ________ _______ draws more water up from below ground, due to the force of cohesion between water molecules and the force of adhesion between water molecules and soil particles.
10. __________ __________ occurs when water vapour reacts with airborne pollutants, particularly sulfur dioxide and nitric oxide.
11. Water that has soaked into the soil is called ________ _______.
14. The average concentration of salt in water.
15. The upper level of the saturated zone is called ____________.
16. A _______ ________ is a relatively flat area on either side of a river that floods when the water levels rise higher than normal and the river overflows its banks.