What does atmosphere mean?
Word: Atmosphere
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Atmosphere means the layer of air around the Earth or another planet. It also means the feeling that a place gives you.
Synonyms: air, feeling
Word origin: It is built from two Greek words, one meaning vapour and one meaning ball.
How do you spell atmosphere?
Syllables: at - mos - phere
Tricky part: The f sound is spelt ph. Many pupils write atmosfere.
Watch out for: atmosfere, atmospere
Memory tip: Picture the air as a giant sphere wrapped round the Earth, and sphere is spelt with ph.
Atmosphere in a sentence
Example 1: The atmosphere protects the Earth from many harmful rays of the Sun.
Example 2: There was a cheerful atmosphere in our street on the night of the cricket final.
Example 3: Clouds form high up in the atmosphere when water vapour cools.
Fun Fact
The Moon has almost no atmosphere, so there is no wind there. The footprints left by astronauts in 1969 may stay sharp for a very long time.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Cookie
Insert the correct pair of letters to form a word:
a_m_sphere
a) d, o
b) t, a
c) t, u
d) t, o
Show answer
d) t, o. At begins the word, as in atom, and mos follows the m.
Spell-o-Spell
Choose the incorrectly spelt word:
a) presure
b) atmosphere
c) climate
d) oxygen
Show answer
a) presure. Pressure needs ss in the middle, just like press.
Mingle-Mangle
Form a meaningful word from the jumbled letters:
ehsmoptare
a) hemisphere
b) stratosphere
c) atmosphere
d) atmospheric
Show answer
c) atmosphere. Hemisphere has no a or t, stratosphere needs more letters, and atmospheric needs an i and a c.
Word Connection
Choose the synonym of the word:
atmosphere
a) crowd
b) mood
c) speed
d) noise
Show answer
b) mood. The atmosphere of a place is the mood you feel there.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Astronauts carry oxygen tanks on a spacewalk because ____.
a) their suits are too heavy
b) there is no air to breathe out there
c) the tanks keep them warm
d) the Sun is too bright to see
Show answer
b) there is no air to breathe out there
2. Nitrogen makes up about 78 percent of Earth's atmosphere. Which gas comes second?
a) helium
b) hydrogen
c) oxygen
d) neon
Show answer
c) oxygen
