Sample

How it is used

Geologists collect, label, bag and analyse samples. Common types: hand sample (a fist-sized piece of rock), core sample, soil sample, water sample. Each sample needs a number, location, date and description in the field notebook. Also a verb: we sampled the outcrop.

Example sentences

1. Take a fresh sample from below the weathered surface.

2. The water samples were sent to the lab for chemical analysis.

Common collocations

• take a sample
• hand sample
• rock sample
• sample number
• sample location

Related terms

• outcropA place where bedrock appears at the surface, not covered by soil or plants, so that geologists can see and study it directly.
• fieldworkWork done outdoors at real sites, such as observing, measuring, mapping and sampling rocks, soils or rivers, rather than in a laboratory or office.
• rockA natural solid material made mostly of minerals, such as granite or limestone. Rocks make up the Earth's crust and are grouped by how they formed.
• soilThe loose top layer of the land surface, made of weathered rock particles, organic matter, water and air, in which plants grow.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

• sample · Software Engineering
• sample · Data Science & Analytics
• sample · Psychology
• sample · Statistics
• sample · International Trade
• sample · Academic English & Research
• sample · Music
• sample · Fashion & Textiles

More terms: Maps & Fieldwork

• geological map
• topographic map
• contour line
• strike and dip
• scale