cartography

noun

car·​tog·​ra·​phy kär-ˈtä-grə-fē 

: the science or art of making maps

cartographic

ˌkär-tə-ˈgra-fik 

adjective

or less commonly cartographical

ˌkär-tə-ˈgra-fi-kəl 

cartographically

ˌkär-tə-ˈgra-fi-k(ə-)lē 

adverb

Examples of cartography in a Sentence

She studied cartography in college.

Recent Examples on the Web

Inside, a cartography of the empire’s carbon emissions since 1750 forces the viewer to reckon with the scale of the harm caused to both earth and people. —Kate Wagner, Curbed, 5 Sep. 2025

Maritime academies proliferated across Europe, teaching navigation, cartography, and global commerce. —Solange Charas, Forbes.com, 31 Aug. 2025

Illinois is no stranger to creative cartography. —Chicago Tribune, 7 Aug. 2025

Exploring Pynchon’s novels, and cross-referencing his complex jokes, exercises empathetic cartography. —Literary Hub, 5 Aug. 2025

Word History

Etymology

French cartographie, from carte card, map + -graphie -graphy — more at card entry 1

First Known Use

circa 1847, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for cartography

• arthrography
• biography
• cosmography
• cryptography
• demography
• discography
• echography
• ethnography
• filmography
• geography
• hydrography
• lithography

Kids Definition

cartography

noun

car·​tog·​ra·​phy kär-ˈtäg-rə-fē 

: the making of maps

cartographic

ˌkärt-ə-ˈgraf-ik 

adjective