By: Gregory H. Water Dictionary

Adhesion (add-hee-shun) noun Water molecules stick to something other than water. In swimming, when the swimmer gets out of the pool, the water sticks to their body due to adhesion. Also the water sticks to their goggles. This is adhesion.

Capillary Action (Cap-uh-larry-Ack-shun) noun Waters habit of rising in narrow tubes. This is also know as absorption. In swimming as the swimmer dries off, the water is absorbed by their towel due to Capillary Action. Water is being absorbed by the towel.

Cohesion (Co-he-shun) noun Water molecules stick to one another. This is when water droplets touch, they become one large droplet. When the water is splashed out of the pool, the water droplets link back together forming puddles on the pool deck. The water molecules are sticking to one another.

Density (Din-suh-tea) noun How tightly packed matter is in a substance. Unit is usually grams per milliliters. Waters density is 1.0 g/mL. This is important because it gives us an idea of what other substances density’s are. If an object floats in water, than its density is below one (less). If an object sinks in water, than its density is above one (more). In swimming, when a swimmers lungs is filled with air they float because air is less dense than water. When the swimmers lungs are empty, they sink. The swimmers lungs are filling up with air, so he is floating.

Hydrogen Bond (Hi-druh-jin-Bond) noun A water molecule (oxygen atom, 2 hydrogen atoms) links together with other water molecules. This is why there are lakes, ponds, oceans, and pools. When there are more molecules, the bonds become stronger. In swimming, when swimmers dive into the pool, the hydrogen bonds are not broken because there are so many of them. The water molecules keep bonding around the swimmer. The water is linked around the swimmer.

____ Polarity (Poh-lar-i-tee) noun An imbalance in the molecule. Oxygen is negative. Hydrogen is positive. Gives water a magnetic quality. This is why water sticks together. In swimming, the molecules are attracted to each other thus making the pool.

Specific Heat (Spuh-sif-ick-Heet) noun Amount of energy needed to raise the temperature of a substance. Water has a high specific heat. This is important because it keeps the oceans, lakes, and ponds from heating and freezing too fast. If it did heat up really fast the marine plants and animals wouldn’t be able to live. In swimming, if the water heated up to fast the swimmers wouldn’t be able to swim as fast because swimmers swim faster in cold (not freezing) water.

Surface Tension (Sir-fis-Ten-shun) noun Gives water the effect that it is covered in plastic wrap. This is why when you look at a puddle, it looks like a dome. In swimming, when the swimmers dive into the pool, they break the surface tension and cause ripples.

Universal Solvent (Yoo-nuh-vur-suhl-Sohl-vent) noun Water causes more substances to dissolve in it than any other liquid. This is because hydrogen bonding causes water to be stronger and not let any substances break it apart. In swimming, chemicals that help kill germs are mixed in the pool are dissolved by the water. Water (solvent) + Chemicals (solute) = Pool (solution)

Water Cycle (Wot-er-Sigh-kuhl) noun The Water Cycle is the process that moves water around the earth in various forms. The parts of the water cycle are evaporation, condensation, and precipitation. Evaporation is when the sun changes the water into vapor and it rises into the air. Then water condenses into clouds and rain, snow, and hail sometimes collect their. Due to gravity, the water falls and becomes run-off into lakes, ocean, and ponds. It then either stays in the cycle, is used by plants, or turns into ground water. In swimming, the water that is used in the pool (not the chlorine and other chemicals) was once part of this cycle.

Fun Facts! Did you know that there is 326 million cubic miles of water on the earth!! The United States uses 346,000 million gallons of fresh water daily. Humans can only use 3/10 of all the water in the world! We cannot use ocean water which is a big part of the water on the planet. The average person uses gallons of water a day. Flushing the toilet uses the most water. For every glass of water brought to your table at a restaurant, another 2 glasses of water is used to rinse and wash that glass.