What does fissure mean?
Word: Fissure
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Fissure means a long, deep crack in rock or in the ground.
How do you spell fissure?
Syllables: fis - sure
Tricky part: The sh sound is spelt with a double s, not sh and not a single s. Fisure and fishure are the common slips.
Watch out for: fisure, fishure
Memory tip: Steam can hiss out of a crack in the rock, and hiss gives you the ss you need.
Fissure in a sentence
Example 1: Hot steam rose from a fissure in the rocks near the spring.
Example 2: Moss had begun to grow along the fissure in the cliff face.
Example 3: The guide in Ladakh pointed out a long fissure running across the rock.
Fun Fact
Divers in Iceland can swim through Silfra, a water-filled fissure between two of the huge plates that make up the outer layer of the Earth.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Champ
Choose the correct option to make a meaningful word:
fiss____
a) ure
b) ier
c) uer
d) ore
Show answer
a) ure. The ending matches the one in picture and nature.
Word Puzzle
Match each word with its meaning:
1. summit 2. fissure 3. ridge a. a long, narrow line of high land b. a split that runs far down into solid ground c. the very top of a mountain
a) 1-c, 2-a, 3-b
b) 1-c, 2-b, 3-a
c) 1-a, 2-c, 3-b
d) 1-b, 2-c, 3-a
Show answer
b) 1-c, 2-b, 3-a. The summit is the top, the ridge is the long high line, and the split in the ground is the page word.
Word Tally
You get 2 marks for each misspelt word you find in the list. How many marks do you get?
fissure, volcanoe, crater, glaicer, plateau
a) 2
b) 6
c) 8
d) 4
Show answer
d) 4. Two words went wrong, volcano and glacier, giving 2 x 2 = 4.
Spell Spies
Choose the incorrectly spelt word:
a) fissure
b) treasure
c) leisure
d) mesure
Show answer
d) mesure. Measure has an a after the e; the other three are spelt correctly.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Why might a geologist study a fissure in a hillside?
a) it tells the time of the next tide
b) it shows how the rock has moved
c) it shows the age of the nearby trees
d) it marks the border between two towns
Show answer
b) it shows how the rock has moved
2. What could you most likely fit into a small fissure?
a) a thin ruler
b) a family car
c) a large water tank
d) a full-size wardrobe
Show answer
a) a thin ruler
