Meaning & use
thematic map
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Meanings
nouncountabletechnical
A map that uses colors, shading, or symbols to show information about one particular topic, such as population or rainfall.
Grammar: Countable: say 'a thematic map' or 'thematic maps'; the stress falls on 'map'.
Patterns
- a thematic map of something
- a thematic map showing something
- use a thematic map to do something
The teacher gave us a thematic map of Europe showing average rainfall.
Thematic maps make it easy to compare income levels across a country.
A thematic map of the city marked every school and hospital.
nouncountabletechnical
A map whose main purpose is to present data about a theme rather than to show exact geography.
Grammar: Often contrasted with 'reference map', which shows places and borders instead of data.
Patterns
- a thematic map versus a reference map
- design a thematic map
Unlike a road atlas, a thematic map is designed around a single question.
Cartographers use colors carefully when they design a thematic map.
Word forms
| plural | thematic maps |
|---|
Common combinations
- a thematic map of the region
- She printed a thematic map of the region to show where the forests are.
- a thematic map showing population density
- A thematic map showing population density revealed how crowded the coast was.
- color-coded thematic map
- The report included a color-coded thematic map of voting patterns.
- create a thematic map
- Students used software to create a thematic map from the survey data.
- thematic map analysis
- Thematic map analysis helped the planners choose sites for new clinics.
Synonyms and how they differ
- choropleth map
- A specific kind of thematic map that shades whole areas by value; use it when the data is grouped by region.
- distribution map
- Similar in meaning but usually shows where one thing occurs, such as a plant species, rather than any topic.
- data map
- A looser everyday term for the same idea; 'thematic map' is the standard term in geography.
Word family
- thematic adjective
- Relating to a theme or topic.
- theme noun
- The main subject or idea of something.
- cartography noun
- The science of making maps.
- cartographer noun
- A person who makes maps.
Commonly confused: thematic map or topographic map? thematic map or reference map?
thematic map vs topographic map
A topographic map shows physical features such as hills and rivers in detail; a thematic map highlights one kind of data instead.
thematic map vs reference map
A reference map shows where things are (roads, borders, towns); a thematic map shows what is true there (income, climate, crops).
Practice
Which sentence uses 'thematic map' correctly?
Choose one answer.
A thematic map displays data about one topic, such as temperature. Options 2 and 4 describe jobs for a road or topographic map, and option 3 is unrelated to mapping data.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “thematic map”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.