Matter and Materials Glossary

• abundant: when something exists, or is available, in large quantities; plentiful

• acid: a substance which is corrosive, has a sour taste and feels rough (grippy) between your fingers

• alkali: a base that is dissolved in water

• alloy: a mixture of two or more metals (stainless steel is an example of an alloy)

• altitude: the height of a place above sea level; places that are inland, or on mountains, are said to be at a higher altitude than places on the coast

• ascorbic acid:a natural acid that occurs in some fruits and vegetables; also known as Vitamin C

• atomic number: a unique number that represents a given element and shows its position on the Periodic Table

• base: a substance that can also be corrosive, has a bitter taste, and feels slippery between your fingers

• boiling point:the temperature at which a particular material changes from the liquid to the gas state (boils)

• capillary action:the process by which liquid is drawn up in a narrow tube

• chemical formula:a representation of chemicals using symbols that tell us which elements a compound contains and in what ratio

• chemoreceptor: a sensory nerve cell or sense organ that detects chemical signals

• chromatogram: the pattern formed on the paper by the components separated by chromatography

• chromatography: a process in which a mixture carried by a liquid is separated into components

• citric acid:a natural acid that occurs in citrus fruit

• clear: transparent; see-through

• concern: (noun) something that you are worried about

• condensation: the process of changing a gas to a liquid

• condense: when particles come together; to change from the gaseous state to the liquid state

• constant: a variable, or physical quantity, that is constant or does not change over time

• contract: (verb) the physical size of an object gets smaller

• controversial: controversial issues are issues that people do not agree about; issues that people argue about because they hold different opinions

• corrosive: a corrosive substance damages ('eats away') other materials by chemical action (the related verb is corrode)

• dependent variable: a dependent variable is one that we do not directly choose values for, but can only measure as we go along

• disperse: to spread evenly throughout

• distillation: a technique for separating the components of a liquid solution through evaporation and condensation

• ductile: the property of a material that allows it to be pulled and stretched out into thin wires

• durable: a material that is durable can last for a long time without breaking down

• element: a pure substance which cannot be broken down further

• emulsion: a mixture of two or more liquids that usually do not mix, such as tiny oil droplets in water

• environmental concerns: worries about the negative effects on habitats and ecosystems in our environment, caused by humans and their activities

• essential: necessary and important; required

• evaporation: the process of changing a liquid to a gas

• expand: (verb) the physical size of an object gets bigger

• filtrate: the liquid that has passed through a filter is called the filtrate

• filtration: the process of passing something through a filter

• flavour: the taste and smell of food in the mouth

• flexible: a material that is flexible will change shape easily without breaking when it is bent, and will return to its original shape when it is released

• formic acid:a natural acid found inside the bodies of some ant species

• grain: a very small piece of something

• heat: is the transfer of energy, from a hotter object to a colder object

• immune system:the biological system inside our bodies that protects us from disease and infection

• impact: to have an effect on something else

• independent variable:an independent variable is one whose values we can choose (manipulate); we still have to be able to measure it

• indicator: a substance that changes colour in the presence of another substance, showing that that substance is present

• instinct: a natural or inborn way of responding to something

• litmus: a well known acid-base indicator that turns red when mixed with an acid and blue when mixed with a base

• magnetic: a property of some materials that allows them to be attracted to a magnet

• malleable: the property of a material that allows it to be shaped by flattening with a hammer or squeezing it between rollers

• melting point:the temperature beyond which a particular material changes from the solid to the liquid state (melts)

• mixture: matter consisting of two or more components (substances) that retain their own properties

• moulding: a process that involves melting a substance and then pouring it into a specially shaped hollow container (mould) that will give it that particular shape when it cools down and returns to the solid state; clay can also be moulded

• neutral substance:a substance that is neither acidic nor basic

• neutralise: to make something chemically neutral

• opaque: something that we cannot see through is opaque; opaque is the opposite of transparent

• Periodic Table: a table in which the chemical elements are arranged in order of increasing atomic number

• pigment: a substance that gives colour to other materials

• property: a distinctive attribute, characteristic or quality (of a certain material)

• residue: the substances that are left behind in the filter after filtering

• savoury: refers to salty or spicy food (not sweet)

• semi-conductor: a material that conducts electricity only under special conditions, for instance at very low temperatures

• semi-metal: an element that has properties of both metals and non-metals

• sense: to become aware of something (specifically through our sense organs, e.g. by smelling tasting, feeling, hearing or seeing something)

• sieve: a device with small holes through which finer particles of a mixture may be passed to separate them from coarser ones

• solute: the substance that is dissolved in a solvent to make a solution, for example sugar (solute) dissolved in water (solvent)

• solution: when a solid, liquid or gas dissolves in a liquid, we call the resulting mixture a solution; a mixture that has no cloudiness

• solvent: the substance that the solute is dissolved in to make a solution

• soot and ash: small particles of burnt material that are the solid components in smoke

• still: the apparatus used for distillation

• suspension: a mixture in which the tiny clumps and pieces are mixed in a liquid but they are undissolved; all suspensions are milky/cloudy in appearance

• symbol (or element symbol):a unique letter (or letters) that represents a given element

• taste buds:taste buds are very small structures contained within papillae on the surface of the tongue responsible for taste

• temperature: a measurement of how hot or cold something is

• thermometer: a device for measuring the temperature of an object or a material

• tongue map:a map of the human tongue, showing which areas on the tongue are sensitive to which flavours; some scientists do not believe that the 'tongue map' is accurate