GCSE Geography | Abbreviations and acronyms, LEDC, MEDC, LIC

Geography Quiz - Abbreviations and Acronyms (Questions)

GCSE Geography is full of short forms. This quiz helps you decode key abbreviations and acronyms so map symbols, case studies, and exam questions make much more sense.

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Fascinating Fact:

A TNC is a Transnational Corporation, a company with operations in more than one country, often used as an example in globalisation case studies.

In GCSE Geography, abbreviations and acronyms appear in atlas keys, case studies, and exam questions. Understanding them helps you read maps quickly and pick out important information in real-world examples.

Key Terms

Abbreviation: A shortened form of a word or phrase, such as “km” for kilometre.
Acronym: A set of initials pronounced as a word, like “GIS” for Geographic Information System.
TNC: A Transnational Corporation that operates in more than one country and links places through trade and investment.

Frequently Asked Questions (Click to see answers)

What is a TNC in GCSE Geography?

In GCSE Geography, a TNC is a Transnational Corporation, a large company with offices, factories, or shops in several countries, often used to show how globalisation connects different places.

How can I remember geography abbreviations and acronyms?

You can group similar abbreviations together, make quick revision cards, and create simple memory phrases. Regularly spotting them in atlas maps, news articles, and case studies also helps them stick.

Why are abbreviations and acronyms used in geography?

Abbreviations and acronyms save space on maps, diagrams, and tables. They also make long geographical terms quicker to write, which is useful in textbooks, data sets, and exam questions.

Try These Related Quizzes

The acronym LEDC stands for:

[ ]	Less Economically Developed Country
[ ]	Lower Economically Developed Country
[ ]	Lightly Environmentalised Distant Country
[ ]	Long Evolved Distant Cousin

Which of the following is true?

[ ]	LIC stands for Local Index of Communication
[ ]	An HIC is the opposite of an MEDC
[ ]	LIC stands for Labour Intensive Community
[ ]	The opposite of an MEDC is an LIC

GNI is a measure of what?

[ ]	The flow rate of a river or stream
[ ]	How wealthy a country is
[ ]	The air pressure in an avalanche
[ ]	Population density

What term and acronym is used to describe countries that have begun to experience high rates of economic development, usually with rapid industrialisation?

[ ]	Country of Economic Development, CED
[ ]	Low Agriculture Country, LAC
[ ]	Newly Emerging Economy, NEE
[ ]	Rapidly Industrialising Nation, RIN

A method of measuring development based on the GDP per person, life expectancy and adult literacy is the definition of the:

[ ]	HDI (Human Development Index)
[ ]	CLLI (Cash, Life and Literacy Index)
[ ]	ESI (Economic and Social Index)
[ ]	NDI (National Development Index)

TNC stands for:

[ ]	Transnational Collaboration
[ ]	Tertiary Network Challenge
[ ]	Trident Nuke Carrier
[ ]	Transnational Corporation

What does the M stand for in IMF?

[ ]	Management
[ ]	Monetary
[ ]	Motoring
[ ]	Madagascar

The abbreviation R&D stands for:

[ ]	Relief and Disaster
[ ]	Research and Development
[ ]	Rubber and Diesel
[ ]	Response and Delay

The GDP of a country measures what?

[ ]	Its population increase over a ten year period
[ ]	The erosion of the coastline
[ ]	Its carbon footprint
[ ]	Its economic performance in a given period of time

10.

The term CBD would be applied to which of the following?

[ ]	A volcanic eruption
[ ]	The infrastructure of a country
[ ]	A city
[ ]	Renewable energy resources

Geography Quiz - Abbreviations and Acronyms (Answers)

The acronym LEDC stands for:

[x]	Less Economically Developed Country
[ ]	Lower Economically Developed Country
[ ]	Lightly Environmentalised Distant Country
[ ]	Long Evolved Distant Cousin

A characteristic of an LEDC is that a large proportion of the rural population are subsistence farmers and a lot of the export economy depends on agriculture

Which of the following is true?

[ ]	LIC stands for Local Index of Communication
[ ]	An HIC is the opposite of an MEDC
[ ]	LIC stands for Labour Intensive Community
[x]	The opposite of an MEDC is an LIC

LIC stands for Low Income Country

GNI is a measure of what?

[ ]	The flow rate of a river or stream
[x]	How wealthy a country is
[ ]	The air pressure in an avalanche
[ ]	Population density

The World Bank uses the Gross National Income (GNI) per capita to classify if a country is an LIC or an HIC

What term and acronym is used to describe countries that have begun to experience high rates of economic development, usually with rapid industrialisation?

[ ]	Country of Economic Development, CED
[ ]	Low Agriculture Country, LAC
[x]	Newly Emerging Economy, NEE
[ ]	Rapidly Industrialising Nation, RIN

They differ from LICs in that they no longer rely primarily on agriculture, they have made improvements in infrastructure and industrial growth, and are therefore experiencing an increasing GNI per capita and investment from overseas. Examples of NEEs are the so-called BRICS countries - Brazil, Russia, China and South Africa

A method of measuring development based on the GDP per person, life expectancy and adult literacy is the definition of the:

[x]	HDI (Human Development Index)
[ ]	CLLI (Cash, Life and Literacy Index)
[ ]	ESI (Economic and Social Index)
[ ]	NDI (National Development Index)

The HDI uses economic and social indicators to produce an index figure that allows a comparison between countries to be made

TNC stands for:

[ ]	Transnational Collaboration
[ ]	Tertiary Network Challenge
[ ]	Trident Nuke Carrier
[x]	Transnational Corporation

A company that has operations (factories, offices, research and development labs, shops etc.) in more than one country. Many TNCs are large well-known brands

What does the M stand for in IMF?

[ ]	Management
[x]	Monetary
[ ]	Motoring
[ ]	Madagascar

The IMF is the International Monetary Fund. Countries contribute funds from which other member countries with balance of payments problems can borrow money

The abbreviation R&D stands for:

[ ]	Relief and Disaster
[x]	Research and Development
[ ]	Rubber and Diesel
[ ]	Response and Delay

Research and development is a quaternary sector industry