Name Date Period
Weathering Ch 2.2 and Erosion Ch 3.1
This section describes how rocks are broken down by forces of weathering. The
section also describes factors that determine how quickly weathering occurs.
Mechanical Weathering (pp. 58–59) Match the process with its description
Process
___ 1. weathering
____ 2. erosion
Description
a. Movement of rock particles by wind,
water, ice, or gravity
b. Breaking down of rock and other
substances at Earth’s surface
3. The type of weathering in which rock is physically broken into smaller
pieces is called weathering.
4. List the types of mechanical weathering.
a. b.
c. d.
e.
5. What is abrasion?
6. Would ice-wedging be an important cause of mechanical weathering
near Earth’s equator? Explain.
Chemical Weathering (pp. 60–61)
7. The process that breaks down rock through chemical changes is ______.
8. List the agents of chemical weathering.
a. b.
c. d.
e.
9. Is the following sentence true or false? Chemical weathering produces
rock particles with the same mineral makeup as the rock they came from.
Match the cause of chemical weathering with the statement that is true
about it.
Cause
____ 10. water
___ 11. oxygen
____ 12. carbon dioxide
____ 13. living organisms
____ 14. acid rain
Statement
a. It causes iron to rust.
b. It is caused by pollution.
c. It is the most important cause.
d. It forms carbonic acid.
e. Lichens are one example.
15. Is the following sentence true or false? Water weathers rock by gradually
dissolving it.
16. Oxygen weathers rock through a process called
17. List two kinds of rock that are easily weathered by carbonic acid.
a. b.
18. How do plants dissolve rock?
Rate of Weathering (pp. 62–63)
19. The most important factors that determine the rate of weathering are
type of rock and .
20. Is the following sentence true or false? The minerals that make up a rock
determine how fast it weathers.
21. Why does chemical weathering occur more quickly in a hot climate?
Wearing Down and Building Up (pp. 88–89)
1. What is erosion?
2. List the agents of erosion.
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
3. The material moved by erosion is called .
4. Where does deposition occur?