What term refers to a large depression on the Earth’s surface that holds ocean water and is formed by tectonic processes?

• A. Rift Valley
• B. Ocean Basin
• C. Fault
• D. Planets farthest from the Sun

Answer: (B)

A large depression on the Earth's surface that holds ocean water is called an ocean basin. Ocean basins are broad, low-lying regions of the ocean floor that form and evolve through plate tectonics—spreading at mid-ocean ridges creates new crust and causes the surrounding area to subside, while subduction and other tectonic motions deepen and shape these basins so they can fill with seawater.

Rift valleys are tectonically formed depressions too, but they are typically continental features or volcanic basins and may contain lakes rather than oceans. A fault is a fracture along which rocks move; it can contribute to landscape shaping but isn’t itself a basin that holds ocean water. The option about planets far from the Sun is unrelated to this geological feature.