Environment Vocabulary
Word Example sentence Meaning
acid rain noun Burning fossil fuels in rain that contains harmful
one country can cause chemicals that collect in the
acid rain in other atmosphere when fossil fuels are
countries. burned
ban verb Our school has banned to not allow something (eg.
plastic bottles because smoking, alcohol, plastic bags,
they're so bad for the protest marches, etc.)
environment.
carbon-dioxide or Trees and plants absorb a gas that's released by plants
carbon (colloq.) carbon-dioxide and and by burning fossil fuels
noun release oxygen into the
air.
carbon footprint Travelling by air, a measurement of the amount of
noun driving a car or using carbon-dioxide a person adds to
coal-generated the atmosphere
electricity will make
your carbon footprint
bigger.
carcinogen noun Cigarette smoke a substance that has been linked
contains a number of to causing one or more types of
carcinogens. cancer
carpool verb I carpool to work with to share a car instead of driving
two of my neighbours one alone
who also work
downtown.
clear-cut verb Forests never recover to destroy a forest by cutting
fully after being clear- down all the trees
cut.
clearcutting (also Did you know that a forestry or logging practice in
clearfelling) noun clearcutting is the which most or all trees in an area
worst way to use a are cut down
forest's resources?
climate change Do you really think you global changes in temperature,
noun know more about wind patterns, rainfall, etc.
climate change than a mainly caused by the burning of
real climate scientist? fossil fuels like coal and oil
compost verb Since we started to put organic waste like
composting we've vegetable peels, uneaten food,
reduced our garbage by grass clippings and leaves into a
half. large container that breaks it
down into healthy soil
commute verb Imagine how much to travel from home to work and
pollution you cause by back
commuting by car for
two hours a day?
conservation noun Conservation wasn't a the protection and preservation
big issue until the book of natural environments and
Silent Spring was resources
published in 1966.
consume verb Americans consume to use things like energy, fuel,
more than their share materials, food, water, etc.
of the earth's resources.
contaminated adj. Their contaminated carrying harmful bacteria or
milk powder made lots toxins that can cause disease or
of babies really sick. death
developing country We moved our factory a poor nation that's gradually
noun to a developing becoming richer and more
country because of advanced
cheap labour and weak
environmental laws.
domestic waste How much domestic rubbish or garbage from a house
(also household waste does your family or apartment
waste) noun produce every day?
donate verb If you donate money to to give money or goods to an
Greenpeace, you'll be organization you want to help or
helping endangered support
animals.
dump verb You can be sent to jail to put waste in the wrong place
for dumping hazardous (eg. put toxic waste into a river)
waste, you know.
eco-community or Our kids want to live in a community with
ecovillage noun that eco-community environmentally-friendly
near the forest. buildings, clean technology and
renewable energy like solar and
wind
endangered Every year more animals or plants in danger of
species noun animals are listed as becoming extinct or
endangered species. disappearing in the near future
energy-efficient Those energy-efficient able to use less energy (esp. of
adj. light bulbs are much vehicles, appliances, buildings,
cheaper these days. etc.)
environmentalist Fossil fuel companies a person who protects the
noun have tried to damage natural world and educates
the image of others about environmental
environmentalists and problems
climate scientists.
ecosystem noun All those plants, insects the complex system of
and birds in your relationships between living
garden are part of an things and their environment
ecosystem.
emit verb Cars emit harmful to release or project something
pollutants into the (eg. light, sound, smoke, gas,
atmosphere. radiation, etc.)
extinct adj. Lots of Australian no longer existing or lost forever
animals have become (of an animal, bird or plant
extinct since the species)
British took control.
fertilize verb If you are going to to add chemicals or organic
fertilize your lawn, material to soil so that plants
make sure to use an grow better
organic fertilizer.
food chain noun We need to know where the order in which organisms in
each species fits in the an ecosystem eat one another
food chain.
fossil fuel noun Burning fossil fuels is a a fuel like oil or coal formed
major cause of global from very old plant and animal
warming. fossils
global warming Rising sea levels, higher air and sea temperatures
(also climate melting ice caps and partly caused by man-made
change) noun coral reef bleaching are increases in greenhouse-gas
caused by global levels
warming.
green adj. If you want to save the concerned with protecting the
planet, join one of the natural environment and the
green political parties. planet
greenhouse gas The more greenhouse a gas in the atmosphere that
noun gases we produce, the stops heat from escaping into
worse climate change space
will get.
habitat noun Lots of animals will the place in which a species
become extinct if their normally lives
natural habitats are
destroyed.
hazardous waste They increased their dangerous substances that need
noun profits by dumping careful disposal (eg. toxic or
hazardous waste into nuclear waste)
the ocean.
minimize verb Taking public transport to reduce as much as possible
instead of driving a car
minimizes your impact
on the environment.
pesticide noun Can't we find a a chemical that's sprayed on
pesticide that's safe? crops to stop insects from
destroying them
pollutant noun The Environmental a substance or material that
Protection Agency damages the natural
checks levels of environment
pollutants.
pollute verb Fumes from factories to release waste substances into
pollute our air. the air, water and soil
pollution noun All the pollution the contamination of the
around here comes environment, esp. by industrial
from factories and waste products and chemicals
mines. like pesticides
preserve verb We need stronger laws to keep something in its original
in order to preserve our state
forests.
protect verb It's really important to to keep from harm
protect our water
supply.
protest verb Environmentalists will to show you disagree with
protest if the loggers something, esp. as part of a
try to destroy the group of protesters
forest.
recycle verb The green bin's for to make something new from
things that can be materials that have been used
recycled like paper and before
glass.
reduce verb You can reduce your to use less or make something
household waste by smaller
buying products with
less packaging.
reforestation noun Plant twenty trees in the planting of trees and plants
our reforestation to help a damaged or destroyed
project and you'll get forest recover
into our dance party for
free!
renewable adj. We're producing can be used without running out,
cheaper renewable esp. of energy sources like solar
energy these days. and wind
renewables noun If you want to make forms of energy that can be
money, invest in replaced naturally, such as
renewables. hydro-electricity, solar energy
and wind power
rely on verb We won't have to rely to depend on (or need) someone
on power companies if or something
we use solar and wind
power instead.
reuse verb We try to reuse things to use again
like plastic bags and
bottles.
self-sufficient adj. We're going to live in a able to function, or produce all
self-sufficient farming that's needed, without outside
community. help
smog noun The smog was so bad a thick dirty cloud at ground
that we had to wear air- level caused by pollutants
filter masks. reacting to sunlight
throw away verb Don't throw away your to get rid of something you don't
grass clippings; leave want
them on your lawn.
toxic adj. After the mine released deadly or poisonous (of waste,
toxic waste into the chemicals, pollutants, etc.)
river, all the fish died.
toxin (toxic Smoke from factories a poisonous substance that
chemical) noun often contains damages health or the
dangerous toxins. environment
use up verb We are using up the to use something until there's
earth's natural none left
resources faster than
ever.
waste verb Don't waste toilet to use more than necessary, or to
paper; use one or two use inefficiently
sheets instead of three
or four.
wildlife noun I love taking pictures of animals, birds, insects, etc. living
wildlife in the forest. naturally in the wild
zero-emission adj. Zero-emission vehicles releasing no greenhouse gases
like electric cars are like carbon-dioxide or methane
much cheaper now.
