Lesson Y8-U02-L01

Y8-U02-L01 Waves: The Energy of the Sea Quiz: KS3 Geography, Unit 8

20 questions

Written by Revision Ninja · Last reviewed 11 October 2026

In partnership with Revision Ninja

Lesson Y8-U02-L01, Waves: The Energy of the Sea: 20 multiple choice questions for the KS3 Geography (National Curriculum), Unit 8: Year 8: Coasts: A Changing Landscape, written with Revision Ninja.

Host it live on the board and students join with a game code on their own devices, or revise alone with Free Play. The answers are revealed in the game.

Host this setFree Play

The 20 questions

  1. What gives a wave its energy?

    • The pull of the Moon's gravity on the water
    • The wind blowing across the surface of the sea
    • Currents flowing deep beneath the ocean floor
    • Heat rising from the mantle beneath the sea floor

  2. What is fetch?

    • The height of a wave from its trough to its crest
    • The time a wave takes to crash onto the coast
    • The distance of open sea a wave travels over before it reaches land
    • The water that rushes up the beach after a wave breaks

  3. What is swash?

    • Water that drains back DOWN the beach into the sea
    • The gap between two wave crests out at sea
    • Water that rushes UP the beach after a wave breaks
    • A gentle wave that builds up a beach over time

  4. What is backwash?

    • Sand left high on the beach by a storm
    • Water that drains back DOWN the beach into the sea
    • Water that rushes UP the beach after a wave breaks
    • A powerful wave that drags material out to sea

  5. What is a constructive wave?

    • A wave formed only by strong winds at night
    • A wave that breaks far out at sea without reaching land
    • A gentle wave that builds up a beach by adding sand and pebbles
    • A powerful wave that wears a beach away over time

  6. What is a destructive wave?

    • A wave that forms when the tide is at its lowest, leaving the beach dry and bare
    • A wave that carries material up the beach only, leaving the shoreline unchanged
    • A powerful wave that drags sand and pebbles out to sea, wearing a beach away
    • A gentle wave that adds sand and pebbles to a beach, building it up over time

  7. What is the effect of a long fetch on a wave?

    • The wave produces only small ripples that never reach land, so the shore is calm
    • The wave breaks closer to the coast with less energy, so it reaches land weakly
    • The wind has more time to push, so the wave becomes larger and more powerful
    • The tide rises higher on the beach at that point, so the sea covers more sand

  8. Which ocean do the biggest waves hitting Cornwall cross before they arrive?

    • The Indian Ocean
    • The Atlantic Ocean
    • The Arctic Ocean
    • The Pacific Ocean

  9. A gentle breeze makes small ripples, while a strong storm wind makes towering waves. What does this show?

    • Wind has no effect on the size of waves
    • The stronger the wind, the more energy it gives the water
    • Wave height depends only on the time of day
    • Storms make waves by heating the surface of the water

  10. Waves on Cornwall's coast cross the whole Atlantic before arriving. Why are they so powerful?

    • The rocks of Cornwall reflect energy back into the waves
    • A huge fetch gives the wind more time to push them
    • The Atlantic is much shallower than other oceans
    • Only the Moon's tides push waves towards the coast

  11. On a beach, a foamy wave slides up the sand and carries pebbles with it. Which process is this?

    • Fetch
    • Backwash
    • Tidal range
    • Swash

  12. After each wave a beach has a strong swash and a weak backwash. What is happening to the beach?

    • It is being worn away, because the backwash is strong
    • It is shrinking, because the swash removes sand
    • It is building up, because more material is added than removed
    • It stays the same size, because the wind has no effect

  13. Which type of wave is most likely to be found on a beach during a calm summer?

    • Constructive waves that build the beach up
    • Destructive waves that strip sand from the beach
    • Storm waves driven by a very long fetch
    • Tsunami waves travelling from distant earthquakes

  14. During winter storms, destructive waves strip sand from a beach. What happens to the beach?

    • It stays the same, because swash and backwash balance
    • It grows, because the backwash pushes sand onto it
    • It moves inland, because the swash carries sand away
    • It shrinks, because more material is dragged out to sea than added

  15. Which statement correctly compares constructive and destructive waves?

    • Constructive: stronger in winter. Destructive: stronger in summer.
    • Constructive: strong backwash, weak swash. Destructive: strong swash, weak backwash.
    • Both types have an equal swash and backwash.
    • Constructive: strong swash, weak backwash. Destructive: weak swash, strong backwash.

  16. A pupil says a short fetch makes the biggest waves. What is the correct response?

    • True, because a short fetch lets waves gather more energy
    • False, because a long fetch gives the wind more time to build energy
    • True, because fetch only changes the colour of the sea
    • True, because short fetches always cause tsunamis

  17. Why does a storm wave carry far more energy than a gentle summer wave?

    • It has been heated by the Sun for much longer
    • It has been pushed by stronger wind over a longer fetch
    • It has passed over a deeper trench of rock
    • It is closer to the Moon during storms

  18. Why do the biggest UK waves often hit the south-west coast?

    • They face a very long fetch across the open Atlantic Ocean
    • They are pulled in by the curved shape of Cornwall's coastline
    • They are caused by the North Sea's shallow floor
    • They come from underwater earthquakes near the coast

  19. Explain why a constructive wave builds a beach.

    • Its weak swash leaves sand untouched on the beach, so no material is added
    • Its strong swash adds more material than its weak backwash takes away
    • Its strong backwash piles sand onto the high tide line, drawing material up
    • It has no backwash, so all material stays in place and the beach never moves

  20. Why might a beach grow in summer but shrink in winter?

    • Winter rain washes the beach away into the sea, while summer rain builds it up
    • Summer tides are lower, so sand stays higher up the beach all through the year
    • Summer waves are mostly constructive, while winter storm waves are destructive
    • Summer has no backwash, so the beach grows every single day of the season

All KS3 Geography quizzes