A World of Words: Mexico - Introductory

It's time for a vocabulary fiesta! Learn all about the geography, culture, and history of Mexico with this list of essential terms. Travel from the jungle to the desert as you explore the climate of Mexico, the history of the Mayan and Aztec civilizations, and contemporary influences on the Mexican economy, such as globalization and free trade. You'll also get a taste of Mexican cuisine, including maize, tortillas, and chili peppers.
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. agriculture
    the practice of cultivating the land or raising stock
  2. air pollution
    pollution of the atmosphere
  3. Amerindian
    a dated term applied to an Indigenous person living in the Americas
  4. aquifer
    underground layer of rock or sand that yields groundwater
  5. arable
    capable of being farmed productively
  6. arid
    lacking sufficient water or rainfall
  7. avocado
    a pear-shaped tropical fruit with green or blackish skin
  8. Aztec
    a member of the Nahuatl people who established an empire in Mexico that was overthrown by Cortes in 1519
  9. barrio
    a district in a Spanish-speaking country
  10. biodiversity
    the variety of plant and animal life in a habitat
  11. bloc
    a group united for a particular purpose
  12. border
    a line that indicates a boundary
  13. business district
    the central area or commercial center of a town or city
  14. calendar
    a system of timekeeping that defines divisions of the year
  15. chili pepper
    plant bearing very hot and finely tapering long peppers
  16. chipotle
    a ripe jalapeno pepper that is dried and used in cooking
  17. city-state
    an independent nation comprised of a single town
  18. climate
    the weather in some location averaged over a period of time
  19. coastal
    of or relating to the shoreline
  20. coastal plain
    a plain adjacent to a coast
  21. coastline
    the outline of a coast
  22. conquistador
    a 16th-century Spanish conqueror of Peru and Mexico
  23. deciduous
    shedding foliage at the end of the growing season
  24. deforestation
    the state of being clear of trees
  25. depletion
    the state of being used up
  26. desert
    arid land with little or no vegetation
  27. district
    a region marked off for administrative or other purposes
  28. diversity
    noticeable variety
  29. dry season
    one of the two seasons in tropical climates
  30. earthquake
    vibration from underground movement along a fault plane
  31. elevation
    distance of something above a reference point
  32. empire
    the domain ruled by a single authoritative sovereign
  33. eruption
    the sudden occurrence of a violent discharge
  34. executive
    persons who administer the law
  35. fiesta
    a public celebration or party
  36. foothill
    a relatively low hill on the lower slope of a mountain
  37. fossil fuel
    energy-producing substance derived from preserved organisms
  38. free trade
    the exchange of goods without governmental interference
  39. globalization
    growth to a worldwide scale
  40. Gulf of Mexico
    an arm of the Atlantic to the south of the United States and to the east of Mexico
  41. habitat
    the type of environment in which an organism normally lives
  42. hacienda
    a large estate in Spanish-speaking countries
  43. humid
    containing or characterized by a great deal of water vapor
  44. hurricane
    a severe tropical cyclone usually with heavy rains and winds
  45. immigration
    movement of people into a country or area
  46. indigenous
    originating where it is found
  47. industrialization
    the development of commercial enterprise
  48. industry
    the action of making of goods and services for sale
  49. infrastructure
    basic facilities needed for the functioning of a country
  50. irrigation
    the act of supplying dry land with water by artificial means
  51. judicial
    relating to the administration of justice
  52. jungle
    an impenetrable equatorial forest
  53. legislative
    relating to a lawmaking assembly
  54. maize
    corn
  55. manufacture
    put together out of artificial or natural components
  56. mariachi
    a group of traditional Mexican folk musicians
  57. Maya
    a member of an American Indian people of Yucatan and Belize and Guatemala who had a culture (which reached its peak between AD 300 and 900) characterized by outstanding architecture and pottery and astronomy
  58. Mesoamerica
    Mexico and Central America
  59. Mexican Revolution
    a revolution for agrarian reforms led in northern Mexico by Pancho Villa and in southern Mexico by Emiliano Zapata (1910-1911)
  60. Mexico
    a republic in southern North America
  61. Mexico City
    the capital and largest city of Mexico is a political and cultural and commercial and industrial center; one of the world's largest cities
  62. migrant
    traveler who moves from one region or country to another
  63. migration
    the movement of persons from one locality to another
  64. mining
    the act of extracting ores or coal from the earth
  65. mountainous
    containing many mountains
  66. mountain range
    a series of hills or mountains
  67. natural gas
    a fossil fuel in the gaseous state
  68. natural resource
    material in the environment that can be used by people
  69. peninsula
    a large mass of land projecting into a body of water
  70. petroleum
    a dark oil consisting mainly of hydrocarbons
  71. plateau
    a relatively flat raised area of land
  72. plaza
    a public square with room for pedestrians
  73. population
    the number of inhabitants in a given place
  74. president
    the leader of a republic or democracy
  75. rainy season
    one of the two seasons in tropical climates
  76. raw material
    material suitable for manufacture or use or finishing
  77. revolution
    the overthrow of a government by those who are governed
  78. Sonoran Desert
    a desert in the southwestern U.S. and northwestern Mexico
  79. Spanish
    the Romance language spoken in most of Spain and the countries colonized by Spain
  80. state
    a politically organized body under a single government
  81. tamale
    corn and cornmeal dough stuffed with a meat mixture then wrapped in corn husks and steamed
  82. tariff
    a government tax on imports or exports
  83. tectonic
    pertaining to the structure or movement of the earth's crust
  84. temperate
    mild or free from extremes
  85. textile
    artifact made by weaving or felting or knitting fibers
  86. tortilla
    thin unleavened pancake made from cornmeal or wheat flour
  87. tourism
    the business of providing services to travelers for pleasure
  88. tribute
    something given or done as an expression of esteem
  89. tropical
    hot and humid
  90. urbanization
    the social process whereby cities grow
  91. volcano
    a fissure in the earth's crust through which gases erupt
  92. Yucatan Peninsula
    a peninsula in Central America extending into the Gulf of Mexico between the Bay of Campeche and the Caribbean Sea
Created on Tue Jan 17 16:26:23 EST 2017 (updated Tue Apr 04 14:10:22 EDT 2017)

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