A term used to describe cloud formation is?

The term that describes cloud formation is condensation. This process occurs when water vapor in the atmosphere cools and changes into liquid water droplets, which cluster together to form clouds. During condensation, the water vapor loses energy and transitions from a gaseous state to a liquid state.

Clouds are essentially made up of these tiny water droplets or ice crystals, depending on the temperature. This process is a fundamental part of the water cycle and is crucial for understanding weather patterns, as it is the beginning of precipitation, where water falls back to the Earth in forms like rain, snow, or sleet. The other terms—transpiration, evaporation, and precipitation—are all related to different stages of the water cycle, but they do not directly refer to the process of cloud formation itself.