Definition of "plate tectonics" []

• A theory that explains the global distribution of geological phenomena such as seismicity, volcanism, continental drift, and mountain building in terms of the formation, destruction, movement, and interaction of the earth's lithospheric plates. (noun)
• The dynamics of plate movement. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "I shall explain how the modern theory of plate tectonics differs from Wegener’s theory before coming to its supporting evidence."
• "To revert to the terminology of Chapter 1, the morphing of Wegener’s hypothesis of continental drift into the modern theory of plate tectonics is a textbook example of the solidification of a tentative hypothesis into a universally accepted theorum or fact."