geography

noun

ge·​og·​ra·​phy jē-ˈä-grə-fē 

plural geographies

1

: a science that deals with the description, distribution, and interaction of the diverse physical, biological, and cultural features of the earth's surface

2

: the geographic features of an area

3

: a treatise on geography

4

a

: a delineation or systematic arrangement of constituent elements : configuration

The philosophers … have tried to construct geographies of human reason …

—Times Literary Supplement

b

: makeup sense 1

her emotional geography

Synonyms of geography

• topography
• landscape
• terrain

Examples of geography in a Sentence

studying the geography of the western United States

the geography of the region matches ancient descriptions of the location of the lost city

Recent Examples on the Web

The extreme exploitation that drives modern slavery accelerates chronic disease progression and blocks access to care just as effectively as geography or income. —Nicole F. Roberts, Forbes.com, 12 June 2026

One of the world’s most durable and amicable alliances — born of geography, heritage and centuries of common interests — is broken, as seen in several recent examples of tension between leaders. —ABC News, 12 June 2026

Banff World Media Festival-goers are used to unpredictable Canadian Rockies weather, where drizzling rain can become snow showers and then balmy sunshine over a single day due to geography and elevation. —Etan Vlessing, HollywoodReporter, 12 June 2026

In a 2014 profile by The Times’ Jeffrey Fleishman, Wagner spoke his frequent use of Los Angeles as a psycho-geography of anxiety, insecurity and general bad vibes. —Mark Olsen, Los Angeles Times, 12 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

Latin geographia, from Greek geōgraphia, from geōgraphein to describe the earth's surface, from geō- + graphein to write — more at carve

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing geography

• dialect geography
• linguistic geography
• physical geography

Rhymes for geography

• angiocardiography
• electrocardiography
• arteriography
• autobiography
• biogeography
• cholangiography
• cinematography
• historiography
• photolithography
• photomicrography
• ultrasonography
• ventriculography

Kids Definition

geography

noun

ge·​og·​ra·​phy jē-ˈäg-rə-fē 

plural geographies

1

: a science that deals with the location of living and nonliving things on earth and the way they affect one another

2

: the natural parts of an area

the geography of the western U.S.

geographer

-fər

noun

geographic

ˌjē-ə-ˈgraf-ik

adjective

or geographical

-i-kəl

geographically

-i-k(ə-)lē

adverb