Okuzeka
Geology & Earth Sciences vocabulary · Earth's Structure

Mantle

Meaning in geology & earth sciences, with examples

/ˈmæntəl/nounCore term

In geology & earth sciences, mantle means: The thick layer of hot, mostly solid rock between the crust and the core, reaching a depth of about 2,900 km. It flows very slowly over millions of years.

In Turkish: manto

How it is used

Divided into the upper and lower mantle. Students often think it is liquid, but it is solid rock that can deform and flow slowly; only small parts melt to form magma. Common phrases: mantle convection, mantle plume, mantle rocks.

Example sentences

  1. The mantle makes up most of the Earth's volume.

  2. Pieces of the upper mantle can be seen at the surface in some ophiolites.

Common collocations

  • upper mantle
  • lower mantle
  • mantle convection
  • mantle plume
  • mantle rocks
  • crustThe thin, rocky outer layer of the Earth. It is about 5 to 10 km thick under the oceans and usually 30 to 50 km thick under the continents.
  • coreThe central part of the Earth, made mainly of iron and nickel. The outer core is liquid and creates the magnetic field; the inner core is solid.
  • asthenosphereThe hot, weak layer of the upper mantle just below the lithosphere, which can flow slowly and allows the tectonic plates above it to move.
  • convection currentA circular flow in a fluid or soft solid in which hot material rises, spreads, cools and sinks again. In the mantle, it carries heat towards the surface.

More terms: Earth's Structure

Practise with graded reading

Reading at the right level is the fastest way to make new words stick. Pick free English books by level: