What does deforestation mean?
Word: Deforestation
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Deforestation means the cutting down of large areas of forest, so that the land is left bare.
Synonyms: forest clearing
Antonyms: reforestation
How do you spell deforestation?
Syllables: de - for - est - a - tion
Tricky part: The word forest sits whole in the middle, with one r and one s.
Watch out for: deforrestation, deforastation, deforesstation
Memory tip: Hear the forest in the middle when you say it, and write that part exactly as you would write forest on its own.
Deforestation in a sentence
Example 1: Satellite photos showed how deforestation had shrunk the forest in ten years.
Example 2: Our project showed how deforestation leads to soil erosion.
Example 3: Planting saplings every monsoon is one way to fight deforestation.
Fun Fact
Tree roots hold soil together, so deforestation on hillsides can lead to landslides during heavy rain.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Makeup
Choose the suffix that completes the word:
deforest
a) ution
b) ation
c) asion
d) ition
Show answer
b) ation. Deforest takes -ation, the same ending as in plantation.
Spell-o-Spell
Choose the incorrectly spelt word:
a) environment
b) pollution
c) erosion
d) diforestation
Show answer
d) diforestation. The prefix that means removing is de, as in defrost.
Word Connection
Choose the antonym of the word:
deforestation
a) timber cutting
b) logging
c) afforestation
d) tree-felling
Show answer
c) afforestation. Logging, tree-felling and timber cutting all take trees away; afforestation means planting new forests.
Mingle-Mangle
Form a meaningful word from the jumbled letters:
tofetnsdoaier
a) restoration
b) deforestation
c) deformation
d) reforestation
Show answer
b) deforestation. Only deforestation uses the d, the f and the s together: reforestation needs a second r, deformation an m, and restoration has no d or f.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Which is one result of deforestation?
a) more trees grow
b) the air gets fresher
c) animals lose their homes
d) rivers become cleaner
Show answer
c) animals lose their homes
2. Which action helps to reduce deforestation?
a) clearing land for more roads
b) throwing away notebooks half used
c) using both sides of paper
d) burning more wood
Show answer
c) using both sides of paper
