Elements of the Universe: Geo ("Earth")

The ancients believed that the universe was composed of five basic elements: earth, air, fire, water, and sky. The Greek and Latin words for these elements still show up in our language today. Learn these words that come from the Greek root geo, meaning "earth."

Here are links to our complete set of Elements of the Universe lists: Cosm, Cosmo ("Universe") / Terr, Terra ("Earth") / Geo ("Earth") / Hydr, Hydro ("Water") / Aqua ("Water") / Ign, Igni ("Fire") / Pyr, Pyro ("Fire") / Aer, Aero ("Air") / Aether ("Sky") / Aster, Astro ("Star") / Sol ("Sun")
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. geology
    science of the history of the earth as recorded in rocks
    Stratigraphy is the branch of geology that studies rock layers, or strata, and it is stratigraphers who work on the timescale directly. The Guardian (May 30, 2019)
    geo ("earth") + logy (suffix meaning "science")
    In the 14th century, the study of geology included much more than topography (the Greek topos means "place"). Geology was once the opposite of theology and examined earthly things, such as laws.
  2. geography
    study of the earth's surface
    The freezing point “is the most critical threshold among all temperatures,” said David A. Robinson, New Jersey state climatologist and professor at Rutgers University’s department of geography. Washington Post
    geo + graphy (suffix forming names of descriptive sciences)
    Geography covers not only the physical features of the earth, but also climate, population, natural resources, and other related topics.
  3. geometry
    the mathematics of points and lines and curves and surfaces
    In geometry, we learned about angles and degrees, and I remembered builders in the trading center using such terms. The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind
    geo + metry (suffix meaning "process of measuring")
  4. geomancy
    divination by means of signs connected with the earth
    Guides to geomancy now fill bookshelves, fortunetellers are busily offering costly sessions in astrology and numerology, and tycoons consult feng shui masters for financial guidance. New York Times (May 10, 2013)
    geo + mancy (suffix meaning "divination by means of")
    The suffix comes from the Greek noun manteia, which means "oracle."
  5. geocentric
    having the earth in the middle
    In the 17th century, observations of reflected “earthshine” on the moon — in which the earth reflects the sun’s light upon the lunar surface — challenged the Aristotelian geocentric model of the solar system. Washington Post (Jul 11, 2019)
    geo + centric (suffix meaning "centered on")
  6. geopolitics
    influence of location, demographics, etc. on foreign policy
    Oil has been at the epicenter of the geopolitics of the Middle East for longer than the living memory of most people on earth today.   Forbes (Mar 30, 2015)
    geo + polites ("citizen") + ics (suffix forming names of disciplines)
  7. geostrategy
    government and military planning as it relates to land
    The response was mainly confined to anti-terrorism and geostrategy, leading to the invasion of Afghanistan and the debacle of Iraq. The Guardian (Aug 2, 2011)
    geo + strategia ("the office of a general")
  8. geosynchronous
    of or having an orbit with a fixed period of 24 hours
    Data are transmitted back and forth between terrestrial antennas and satellites in geosynchronous orbits about 22,000 miles up. BusinessWeek (Jan 22, 2015)
    geo + syn ("together") + khronos ("time") + ous (suffix forming adjectives)
  9. geostationary
    having an orbit that matches the earth's rotation
    They also pulled in signals from satellites in geostationary orbit that made international telephone calls fast and easily accessible for most Americans. New York Times (Feb 9, 2012)
    geo + stationem ("a position") + ary (suffix forming adjectives)
    In 1945, the science fiction author Arthur C. Clarke wrote a letter to the editor of a magazine proposing the idea of a geostationary orbit for communications satellites. At that time, he was not taken seriously. But now this type of orbit is also called the Clarke Orbit, and a cluster of artificial satellites in this orbit is called the Clarke Belt.
  10. geothermal
    of or relating to the heat in the interior of the earth
    Solar, wind, geothermal and hydropower are providing vast new energy resources, replacing carbon-intensive fossil fuels, and eliminating the greenhouse gas emissions that cause climate change. US News (Aug 13, 2015)
    geo + therm ("heat") + al (suffix forming adjectives)
  11. geotropism
    an orienting response to gravity
    This downward bending coincides with that due to geotropism, and both will cause the root to resume its original course. Darwin, Charles
    geo + tropos ("turning") + ism (suffix forming nouns)
  12. geomorphology
    the science that studies the formation of rocks and land forms
    Physical geography naturally falls into three divisions, dealing respectively with the surface of the lithosphere—geomorphology; the hydrosphere—oceanography; and the atmosphere—climatology. Various
    geo + morph ("shape, form") + logy (suffix meaning "science")
Created on Fri Aug 14 11:43:46 EDT 2015 (updated Mon Aug 26 14:27:24 EDT 2019)

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