Download 8th Grade First Six Weeks Vocabulary

8th Grade First Six Weeks Vocabulary
TERM
DEFINITION
6.12D
Taxonomy
Domains
Unicellular
Multicellular
Prokaryotic
Eukaryotic
Autotrophic
Heterotrophic
Reproduction
7.12B
Integumentary
Muscular
Skeletal
Respiratory
Circulatory
Nervous
Endocrine
Digestion
Excretory
Immune
Reproductive
7.12D
Organelle
Cell Membrane
Nucleus
Cytoplasm
Mitochondria
Vacuole
Chromosomes
Chloroplasts
Cell Walls
Structure
Function
7.14B
Asexual Reproduction
Sexual Reproduction
The branch of science that formally names and classifies organisms by their
structure, function, and relationships
All forms of life are classified into three domains, or groups, based on their
ribosomal RNA. The domains are Archaea, Bacteria, and Eukarya.
An organism made up of one cell
An organism made up of more than one, often different, cells
A cell lacking a membrane-bound nucleus
A cell having a nucleus
An organism that is able to make its own food
An organism that cannot make its own food
Sexual or asexual process of an organism or cells producing more of its own kind
Reacts to external environmental conditions and protects the body’s deeper tissues,
includes skin, hair, nails, and sweat glands
Allows body to move and provides strength, balance, and warmth
Holds organs in place, provides structural support, stores minerals, and generates
new blood cells
Breathing supplies oxygen to the blood and gets rid of carbon dioxide
Circulates blood through the body, supplies oxygen and nutrients, and removes
waste
Functions as the control center, coordinating all actions and reactions
Regulates body by secreting hormones into the bloodstream; also controls growth,
reproduction, and metabolism
Breaks down food to make absorption into the body possible
Filters, collects, and removes excess fluids and wastes from the bloodstream
Protects body by fighting sickness and disease, such as caused by viruses and
bacteria
Structures vary in male and female; used to produce offspring
A specialized part of a cell having some specific function
The thin membrane that forms the outer surface of the cytoplasm of a cell and
regulates the passage of materials in and out of the cell
The organelle found in eukaryotic cells that contain genetic material responsible for
controlling the activities of the cell
is the gel-like substance residing within the cell membrane holding all the cell's
internal sub-structures (called organelles), except for the nucleus.
An organelle in the cytoplasm if eukaryotic cells that functions in ATP (energy)
production
The organelle that stores water and food in both plant and animal cells
Found in the nucleus and made of DNA genes, contains the genetic information
needed to make new cells, and carry out cell functions
The green organelle in plant cells that converts light energy into chemical energy
Surrounds the cell membrane of a plant to give structure and protection to the cell
How something is arranged or designed
The action for which something is specifically arranged or structured
The reproductive process that involves one parent and produces offspring identical
to the parent
The reproductive process involving two parents whose genetic material is combined
to produce a new organism different from themselves
Page 1 of 4
8th Grade First Six Weeks Vocabulary
TERM
Binary Fission
Budding
Vegetative Propagation
Uniform
Diverse
7.14C
Heredity
Genes
Trait
Inheritance
Alleles
Chromosomes
Nucleus
7.12F
Cell Theory
Cellular Respiration
Metabolism
8.11A (R)
Food Chain
Food Web
Trophic Level
Producer
Herbivore
Carnivore
Omnivore
Parasite
Host
Predator
Prey
Aquatic Ecosystem
Terrestrial Ecosystem
Marine Ecosystem
Freshwater Ecosystem
Autotroph
Heterotroph
Energy Pyramid
Biomass Pyramid
Mutualism
DEFINITION
A type of asexual reproduction in which an offspring grows out of the parent
organism
A type of asexual reproduction in which an offspring grows out of the parent
organism
A type of sexual reproduction in which one plant grows new plants that are
genetically identical to the parent plant
Consistent and unchanging (no variety)
Differing from one another (variety)
Process of characteristics transmitted from parent to offspring
The basic physical and functional unit of heredity; made of DNA
A characteristic of an organism controlled by genetics
The reception of genetic traits from parents to offspring
Variations of a gene relating to the same trait
Found in the nucleus and made of DNA, contain the genetic information needed to
make new cells, and carry out cell functions
The organelle found in eukaryotic cells that contain genetic material responsible for
controlling the activities of the cell
A theory that the cell is the fundamental structural and functional unit of living matter
The process of using oxygen to break down nutrients to release energy for the cell
Chemical reactions that happen in cells that allow organisms to grow and reproduce
The path of food energy from the Sun, to the producer, then transferred to a serried
of consumers-arrows denote the flow of energy
The elaborate interconnected feeding relationships in an ecosystem
The position an organism occupies on the food web
An organism that is capable of performing photosynthesis to use the Sun’s energy
directly
An organism that consumers only plants
An organism that consumes other animals
An organism that consumes both plants and animals
An organism that survives on a host organism and causes harm to the host
An organism that is used by another organism for nutrients, shelter, or transport; it
is harmed by the relationship
An organism that hunts for its food
An organism that is hunted by other organisms for food
An ecosystem that is located in bodies of water
An ecosystem that is found on land
An ecosystem found in oceans, seas, and gulfs where the water has a salt
concentration of at least 3.5%
An ecosystem found in streams, lakes, and rivers where the water has less than 1%
salt content
An organism that produces its own food, such as a plant
An organism that must use other organisms for food, such as animals
A diagram that shows the energy trophic levels of organism in a food web. Less
and less energy is available at each level because the energy is converted to heat
and used by the organisms to stay alive. (Energy is NOT lost only converted to
another form – Conservation of Energy)
A diagram that that shows the total dry weight of the organisms in a trophic level
(There are always more mass at the bottom because it takes a larger number of
organism to support the level above it.)
A relationship between organisms where both benefit.
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8th Grade First Six Weeks Vocabulary
TERM
DEFINITION
Decomposer
Organisms such as bacteria and fungi that break down the remains of dead plants
and animals
7.5C
Food Chain
Food Web
Energy Pyramid
Producers
Consumer
Decomposers
Herbivores
Carnivores
Primary Consumers
Secondary Consumers
Tertiary Consumer
8.11B (R)
Ecosystem
Abiotic Factors
Biotic Factors
Competition
Niche
Limiting Factor
7.10B
Biodiversity
Limiting Factor
Ecology
Sustainable
An energy path from one organism to another showing a linked series, each thing
feeds on the one next to it in a series
Overlapping food chains with different pathways for the flow of food energy in an
ecosystem
A pyramid that shows how much energy transfers to the next level in a food chain
Organisms that transform energy from the Sun and use Carbon Dioxide and water
to make food
Organisms that eat producers or other consumers to obtain energy
Organisms that get their energy by breaking down the remains of plants, animals,
and waster into nutrients that are recycled to producers
Animals that only eat plants or plant products
Animals that eat other animals
Organisms that get their energy by feeding on producers
Organisms linked to the primary consumer in the food chain; feed on primary
consumers
Organisms that get their energy only by eating secondary consumers
Interacting populations of organisms with biotic and abiotic factors
Non-living factors that affect the ecosystem: light, space, temperature, shelter,
water, soil composition
Living factors that affect the ecosystem: food sources, other population members,
other species
More than one individual or population in an ecosystem relies upon the same
limited resource
Role in an ecosystem
A biotic or abiotic factor needed as a resource for survival; depletion prevents
growth or expansion of the organism or population
The number of different species of plants and animals in an area
A Factor that limits that ability of a habitat to sustain a population
The study of how organisms interact with their environment
Capable of being maintained at a steady level without exhausting natural resources
or causing severe ecological damage
7.8C
Watershed
Surface Water
Groundwater
Saturation Zone
Aquifer
Subsidence
Point Source Water
Pollution
Non-point source Water
Pollution
An area of land where the surface water and groundwater drains into a particular
body of water separated from each other by drainage dividers
Water from precipitation that drains into a gully that flows into a stream, which in
turn flows into a river, lake, reservoir, estuary, wetland, or the ocean
Water that collects in cracks and pores in underground soil and rock layers
The top of the saturation zone, below which water fills all open spaces between the
rock
A layer of permeable rock that allows water to flow through
Sunken land surface due to underlying compression of earth material as a result of
the removal of ground water
A single identifiable and localized source of water pollution, such as wastewater
discharge into a stream
Pollutants introduced into surface or ground water that are without a specific
location source, such as water flowing over a lawn that has been fertilized and into
a drain
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8th Grade First Six Weeks Vocabulary
TERM
DEFINITION
7.11A
Dichotomous Key
Taxonomy
8.11C
Long-Term Environmental
Change
Short-Term
Environmental Change
Extinct
Endangered
Pollution
Biodiversity
Abundance
7.10C
Habitat
Microhabitat
Succession
Primary Succession
Secondary Succession
Climax Community
Biodiversity
8.11D
Runoff
Artificial Reefs
Overharvesting
Climate Change
Disease
Invasive Species
7.11C
Trait
Adaptation
Variation
Population
Natural Selection
Selective Breeding
Tool used to sort organisms by paired similarities or differences based on a series
of questions
The science of systematically categorizing organisms into a hierarchical systems
Environmental change that occurs slowly over time and affects organisms over
generations
Environmental change that occurs quickly and affects organisms immediately
Occurs when a species no longer exists
Occurs when a species becomes low in numbers in their natural habitat
When a natural environment is contaminated with harmful substances
The number of different species of plants and animals in an area
The number of one type of species in an area
A place where an organism naturally lives and grows
A very small specialized habitat, such as a space under a rock
Transition of species present in a community in an area virtually barren of life, or
after a disturbance
Succession occurring on bare rock usually where no life has existed before
Succession occurring on preexisting soil after primary succession has been
disrupted (by fire, flood, harvesting, etc.)
A relatively stable state of succession, or the end product of succession
The number of different species of plants and animals in an area
Something that drains or flows off as rain that flows off from the land
A man-made, underwater structure that promotes marine life
Harvesting a resource to the point of diminishing returns
A change in the world's climate; discuss global warming
An impairment on the health of an organism
An introduced, alien species that lives outside of its native environment and causes
a disruption to the native species within the ecosystem
A characteristic of an organism
A process by which a population becomes better suited to its habitat; a genetic
variation that provides an advantage to survive and reproduce, generally spreads
through the population
A distinct feature, behavior, or physiology of the organism that occurs to individuals
within a species or population
Members of the same species that live in the same geographical area
Process of selection whereby favorable traits become more common and less
favorable traits become less common in following generations
A form of artificial selection whereby deliberate breeding results in desired traits in
plants or animals
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