veer
/vɪr/To change direction gradually towards one side while still moving forward.
Example: Veer left at the fork and follow the river path.
C223 words · Proficient
Finding Your Way vocabulary — C2
Directions vocabulary for the science of cartography, including triangulation, geolocation and a rhumb line, plus veering, wending and taking a tortuous route.
23 questions
Words in this set
23tortuous
/ˈtɔrtʃəwəs/Full of twists and turns, or unnecessarily long and complicated.
Example:
The road up the mountain was steep and tortuous.
gesticulate
To move your hands and arms about to help explain or emphasise something you are saying.
Example:
The old man gesticulated wildly towards the harbour.
make a beeline for
To go straight and quickly toward something, without any delay.
Example:
As soon as we arrived, the children made a beeline for the fountain.
waymarked
Marked with signs or symbols to show a route for walkers.
Example:
We followed the waymarked trail through the forest.
wend
/wɛnd/To go slowly in a particular direction, often on a journey.
Example:
We wended our way home through the quiet backstreets.
cardinal
/ˈkɑrdənəl/Referring to the four main compass directions: north, south, east and west.
Example:
Sailors once relied on the stars to find the cardinal points.
trajectory
/trəˈdʒɛktəri/The curved path that something follows as it moves.
Example:
We tracked the trajectory of the boat across the bay.
reconnoitre
/ˌrikəˈnɔɪtər/To explore an area to get information about it, often before deciding what to do.
Example:
We reconnoitred the old town before choosing a route.
wayfinding
The use of signs, maps and other visual clues to help people find their way around a place.
Example:
The new station has much clearer wayfinding for passengers.
contour
/ˈkɑnˌtʊr/A line on a map joining all the points that sit at the same height above sea level.
Example:
The contour lines bunch together, so that slope is steep.
cartography
The skill and practice of drawing and producing maps.
Example:
He studied cartography before joining the survey team.
triangulation
/traɪˌæŋɡjuˈleɪʃən/The method of working out exactly where a point lies by measuring angles to it from two known places.
Example:
Rescuers located the missing climbers by careful triangulation of their radio calls.
orienteer
A person who takes part in the sport of finding their way between points using a map and compass.
Example:
The young orienteer finished the course in record time.
geolocation
The process of finding the exact geographical position of something, such as a phone.
Example:
The app uses geolocation to suggest nearby cafes.
great circle
The shortest route between two points on the surface of a sphere, such as the Earth.
Example:
Long-haul flights often follow a great circle route.
datum
/ˈdætəm/A fixed reference point used as the basis for measuring positions on a map.
Example:
Modern maps are built on a satellite datum.
geospatial
Relating to the location and shape of things on the Earth's surface.
Example:
The company analyses geospatial data for city planners.
cartographic
Relating to the making of maps.
Example:
The museum has an impressive cartographic collection.
rhumb line
A navigation route that crosses every meridian at the same angle, shown as a straight path on some maps.
Example:
Sailors once preferred a rhumb line to a shorter but more complex route.
vantage point
A place high up that gives a particularly wide view over everything around.
Example:
The tower gives the best vantage point in the whole city.
equidistant
Exactly as far from one place as it is from another.
Example:
The village lies roughly equidistant from both coastal towns.
confluence
/ˈkɑnfluəns/The point where two rivers meet, or where different things come together.
Example:
The town was built at the confluence of two rivers.
