Okuzeka
Environment & Climate vocabulary · Climate Change and Climate Science

Sea level rise

Meaning in environment & climate, with examples

/ˈsiː ˌlevəl raɪz/nounCore term

In environment & climate, sea level rise means: The increase in the average level of the world's oceans, caused mainly by melting glaciers and ice sheets and by seawater expanding as it warms.

In Turkish: deniz seviyesi yükselmesi, deniz seviyesinin yükselmesi

How it is used

Used in climate science, coastal planning and insurance, and written 'sea level rise' or 'sea-level rise'. Planners talk about projected sea level rise, coastal flooding, coastal erosion and saltwater intrusion. It is measured in millimeters per year or in centimeters by 2100.

Example sentences

  1. Since 1900, global sea level rise has reached about 20 centimeters on average.

  2. The design of the port extension allows for half a meter of sea level rise.

Common collocations

  • projected sea level rise
  • sea level rise scenarios
  • coastal flooding
  • vulnerable to sea level rise
  • global warmingThe rise in the Earth's average surface temperature since the late 1800s, caused mainly by greenhouse gases released by human activities.
  • climate riskThe possibility that climate change, or the policies and market changes it brings, will cause financial losses or other harm to a company, investor, community or asset.
  • adaptationChanges in how people, cities, businesses and ecosystems work so that they can cope with the current and expected effects of climate change.
  • extreme weatherWeather that is much more severe than usual for a place and time of year, such as heatwaves, very heavy rain, floods, droughts and strong storms.

More terms: Climate Change and Climate Science

Practise with graded reading

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