epeiro-, epeir-, epiro-, epir- +

(Greek: land; mainland; continent)

epeiric (adjective), more epeiric, most epeiric
Referring to a sea that extends inland from a continental margin: Jane learned in class that an epeiric sea was one that stretched over the continental shelf.
epeiric sea (s) (noun), epeiric seas (pl)
In oceanography, a shallow sea covering part of a continental landmass, epicontinental sea; Typically an epeiric sea is less that 200 meters in depth.
epeirogenesis (s) (noun), epeirogeneses (pl)
The formation of continents, ocean basins and plateaus via movements of the earth’s crust: In Tim's college course, the professor told the students about epeirogenesis as being the vertical movement of the earth's crust which affected large areas of continents.

Epeirogenesis can be explained as the deforming of the earth’s crust, producing continents, ocean basins, and great plateaus.

epeirogenic, epeirogenetic (adjective) (not comparable)
A reference to the deformation of the earth's crust: Epeirogenic processes produce broader features of the earth's relief.

An epeirogenic uplift or depression of the earth's crust affects large areas of land or ocean bottom.

epeirogenically (adverb) (not comparable)
Descriptive of how a vertical movement of the earth's crust changes the formation of the continents, plateaus, and ocean basins: It was fascinating to learn about the earth's crust being epeirogenically altered by upward shifts.
epeirogeny, epirogeny (s) (noun); epeirogenies; epirogenies (pl)
An uplift or depression of the earth's crust, affecting large areas of land or of the bottoms of oceans: An epeirogeny is the deformation of the earth's crust by which continents and ocean basins are produced.

Basins and plateaus are often formed as the result of epeirogeny.

Epeirogeny differs from orogeny in that it affects larger regions of the earth's crust and is not as frequently associated with the folding and the faulting of rocks.

Cross references of word families related directly, or indirectly, to: "land, ground, fields, soil, dirt, mud, clay, earth (world)": agra-; agrest-; agri-; agro-; argill-; choro-; chthon-; geo-; glob-; lut-; myso-; pedo-; pel-; rhyp-; soil-; sord-; terr-.