295GLOSSARYPollutants Any substance that
contaminates the environment.
Post mortem The medical examination
of a dead body to establish the cause
of death.
Poverty Not having enough money
to take care of basic needs such as food
and clothing.
Predator An animal that hunts
other animals.
Prey An animal that is hunted by
other animals.
Prophet A person who recieves divinely
inspired revelations.
Prosthetics The branch of medicine that
deals with the manufacture of artificial
body parts.
Pupating A stage in an insect’s life cycle
when the larva breaks down inside a pupa
and transforms into an adult.
Reflection When light bounces off a
surface and then travels in a different
direction.
Refraction When light bends as it travels
from one substance to another.
Refugee A person who flees his or her
own country to escape danger.
Reptiles Group of cold-blooded
vertebrates that breathe air using lungs,
such as snakes and lizards.
Reservoir A large artificial lake used to
store water.Rodents Mammals with large incisors
used to gnaw hard substances.Ruminate To regurgitate food and chew
it again—sometimes called “chewing
the cud.”Savanna Tropical grassland with distinct
wet and dry seasons.Scavengers Organisms that feed on the
remains of dead organisms.Shaman A religious leader in some tribes
who is thought to have the power to
heal people.Species A group of similar organisms
that can breed and produce fertile
offspring.Spores The reproductive structures of
some plants and fungi.Stem cell A type of cell that can multiply
and develop into different types of cell.Sublimation When a solid changes
directly into a gas (or gas into solid)
without first becoming a liquid.Succulent A plant such as a cactus that
has fleshy tissue to conserve water.Sultan The ruler of a Muslim country.Supernova The bright explosion that
occurs as a star collapses.Tendons The strips of fibrous tissue that
connect muscles to bones.Textiles Cloth or fabric produced by
weaving or knitting.Tissues Collections of cells that work
together to do the same job.Transgenic A genetically modified
organism that contains a gene from
another species.Transpiration The loss of water by
evaporation from plant leaves and stems.Tricolor A flag with three colored stripes.Tsunami A large wave created by a
volcano or earthquake, usually under the
surface of the ocean.Veins Blood vessels that carry oxygen-
poor blood back to the heart.Velocity Speed in a given direction.Venom poisonous liquid produced by
some animals, such as snakes and spiders.Vertebrate An animal with a backbone.Viruses Tiny particles that take over cells
and reproduce inside them.Viscosity The “thickness” of a fluid.Vizier A high-ranking official in a
Muslim government.GLOSSARY(c) 2012 Dorling Kindersley. All Rights Reserved.(c) 2012 Dorling Kindersley. All Rights Reserved.