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Civil Engineering Vocab

Subject : engineering
Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
  • If you are not ready to take this test, you can study here.
  • Match each statement with the correct term.
  • Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.

This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. A natural underground layer of porous - waterbearing materials (sand - gravel) usually capable of yielding a large amount or supply of water.






2. An opening in pipes or sewers designed for rodding or working a snake into the pipe in either direction. Twoway cleanouts are most often found in building lateral pipes at or near a property line.






3. A strip of unspoiled - often treed - agricultural or other outlying land used to separate or ring urban areas.






4. A 19th- and 20th-century planned community traditionally featuring careful mixes of housing - open space - commercial activity and recreation. Examples include Reston - Va. - and Columbia - Md. - in the United States - and Harlow and Stevenage in Gre






5. Sewers are surcharged when the supply of water to be carried is greater than the capacity of the pipes to carry the flow. The surface of the wastewater in manholes rises above the top of the sewer pipe - and the sewer is under pressure or a head - ra






6. A chamber or well built at the curbline of a street to admit gutter flow to the storm water drainage system. Also see STORM WATER INLET and CATCH BASIN.






7. An agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture - primarily responsible for planning and overseeing the use of national forest lands by private - commercial and government users.






8. That part of rain or other precipitation that runs off the surface of a drainage area and does not enter the soil or the sewer system as inflow.






9. A professional who designs - plans - and manages outdoor spaces ranging from entire ecosystems to residential sites and whose media include natural and built elements; also referred to as a designer - planner - consultant. Not to be confused with lan






10. A sewer that receives wastewater from many tributary branches or sewers and serves a large territory and contributing population.






11. Elements added to a natural landscape - such as paving stones - gravel - walkways - irrigation systems - roads - retaining walls - sculpture - street amenities - fountains - and other mechanical features.






12. A road laid through a garden or park-like landscape - usually with median and roadside plantings.






13. The prepared and compacted base on which a manhole is constructed.






14. Water that does not contain objectionable pollution - contamination - minerals - or infective agents and is considered satisfactory for drinking.






15. The creative illustration - planning and specification of space for the greatest possible amount of harmony - utility - value and beauty.






16. Post at which the railing terminates at each floor level.






17. A dimensioned drawing indicating the form of an existing area and the physical objects existing in it and those to be built or installed upon it.






18. The pipe system for collecting and carrying water and watercarried wastes from domestic and industrial sources to a wastewater treatment plant.






19. The condition of water or soil which contains a sufficient amount of acid substances to lower the pH below 7.0.






20. Legal right to use the property of others for a specific purpose. For example - a utility company may have a fivefoot easement along the property line of a home. This gives the utility the legal right to install and maintain a sewer line within the e






21. A structure made of concrete or other durable material to protect bare soil from erosion by splashing or falling water.






22. An authorization issued by a government agency allowing construction of a project according to approved plans and specifications.






23. Masonry composed of irregularly shaped stones laid without regularity of coursing - but well bonded.






24. Most plumbing codes require a vent pipe connection of adequate size and located downstream of a trap in a building wastewater system. This vent prevents the accumulation of gases or odors and is usually piped through the roof and out of doors.






25. The lay of the land - particularly its slope and drainage patterns; the science of drawing maps and charts or otherwise representing the surface features of a region or site - including its natural and man-made features.






26. Material used to provide a bedding or foundation for pipes or other underground structures. This material is of specified quality for desirable bedding or other characteristics and is often imported from a different location.






27. Branch or lateral sewers that collect wastewater from building sewers and service lines.






28. A multinational organization of landscape architects whose purpose is the promotion of landscape design and planning.






29. A preliminary plan showing proposed ultimate site development. Master plans often comprise site work that must be executed in phases over a long time and are thus subject to drastic modification.






30. Material used for backfilling a trench or excavation which was not the original material removed during excavation. This is a common practice where tests on the original material show it to have poor compactability or load capacity. Also called BORRO






31. A record of each person involved in the handling and possession of a sample from the person who collected the sample to the person who analyzed the sample in the laboratory and to the person who witnessed disposal of the sample.






32. A water service shutoff valve located in a water service pipe near the curb and between the water main and the building. This valve is usually operated by a wrench or valve key and is used to start or stop flows in the water service line to a buildin






33. The property of a material or soil that permits considerable movement of water through it when it is saturated.






34. A wastewater treatment process used to convert dissolved or suspended materials into a form more readily separated from the water being treated. Usually the process follows primary treatment by sedimentation. The process commonly is a type of biologi






35. A small tank (usually covered) or a storage facility used to store water for a home or farm. Often used to store rainwater.






36. The upper surface of the zone of saturation of groundwater in an unconfined aquifer.






37. Any designated use or activity on a piece of land.






38. Downstream opening or discharge end of a pipe - culvert - or canal.






39. Any attempt to restore to beneficial use land that has lost its fertility and stability; most often applies to mining reclamation - such as the restoration of strip mines and quarries.






40. A large pipe to which a series of smaller pipes are connected. Also called a HEADER.






41. The formation of separate layers (of temperature - plant - or animal life) in a lake or reservoir. Each layer has similar characteristics such as all water in the layer has the same temperature. Also see THERMAL STRATIFICATION.






42. Solid material settled from suspension in a liquid.






43. A holding basin in which variations in flow and composition of a liquid are averaged. Such basins are used to provide a flow of reasonably uniform volume and composition to a treatment unit. Also called a balancing reservoir.






44. The linear or a real dimension over which a higher component transmits load to a lower component






45. In the United States - a certification of individuals entitled to use the term 'landscape architect' or to practice landscape architecture or both - by means of examination and required degree and experience criteria.






46. The taking in or soaking up of one substance into the body of another by molecular or chemical action (as tree roots absorb dissolved nutrients in the soil).






47. A manhole which fills and allows raw wastewater to flow out onto the street or ground.






48. Rain and snow water accumulated in the earth's porous rock.






49. A relatively clear or forested area left untouched in or near a city. It may be active open space - such as a baseball field - or passive open space - such as an area of natural woodland.






50. A popular social concern of the late nineteenth and early 20th centuries aimed at improving the appearance of urban areas through better planning and the addition of formal - romanticized public spaces and gardens.