In simple terms, a flood is an excess of water on land that is normally dry.

Here`s the official definition used by the National Flood Insurance Program: A flood is "A general and temporary condition of partial or complete inundation of two or more acres of normally dry land area or of two or more properties (at least one of which is your property) from:

• Overflow of inland or tidal waters;
• Unusual and rapid accumulation or runoff of surface waters from any source;
• Mudflow; or
• Collapse or subsidence of land along the shore of a lake or similar body of water as a result of erosion or undermining caused by waves or currents of water exceeding anticipated cyclical levels that result in a flood as defined above"

Mudflow is defined as "A river of liquid and flowing mud on the surfaces of normally dry land areas, as when earth is carried by a current of water".

Actual Cash Value (ACV)
The cost to replace an insured item of property at the time of loss, less the value of physical depreciation.

Anchored
Adequately secured to prevent flotation, collapse, or lateral movement.

Appurtenant Structure
A detached garage servicing a 1-4 family dwelling.

Base Flood
A flood having a one percent chance of being equaled or exceeded in any given year.

Basement
Any area of the building, including any sunken room or sunken portion of a room, having its floor below ground level (subgrade) on all sides.

Breakaway Wall
A wall that is not part of the structural support of the building and is intended through its design and construction to collapse under specific lateral loading forces, without causing damage to the elevated portion of the building or supporting foundation system.

Building

• A structure with two or more outside rigid walls and a fully secured roof, that is affixed to a permanent site; or
• A manufactured home (a "manufactured home", also known as a mobile home, is a structure built on a permanent chassis, transported to its site in one or more sections, and affixed to a permanent foundation); or
• A travel trailer without wheels, built on a chassis and affixed to a permanent foundation, that is regulated under the community`s floodplain management and building ordinances or laws.

"Building" does not mean a gas or liquid storage tank or a recreational vehicle, park trailer, or other similar vehicle, except as described above.

Building in the Course of Construction
A walled and roofed building (see the General Rules section of the Flood Insurance Manual for exception) that is principally above ground and affixed to a permanent site. It does not include building materials or supplies intended for use in construction, alteration, or repair unless such materials or supplies are within an enclosed building on the premises.

Cistern
Covered cisterns and the water in them are defined as an integral part of an insurable building, meaning under the building or above ground and physically attached to a side of the building with one of the walls of the building and cistern being common to each other.

Closed Basin Lake
A natural lake from which water leaves primarily through evaporation and whose surface area exceeds or has exceeded one square mile at any time in the recorded past. NFIP-insured buildings that are subject to continuous lake flooding from a closed basin lake are covered under the provisions of Standard Flood Insurance Policy.

Coastal Barrier
A naturally occurring island, sandbar, or other strip of land, including coastal mainland, that protects the coast from severe wave wash.

Coastal High Hazard Areas
Special Flood Hazard Areas along the coasts that have additional hazards due to wind and wave action. These areas are identified on Flood Insurance Rate Maps as Zones V, V1-V30, and VE.

Coinsurance
A penalty imposed on the loss payment unless the amount of insurance carried on the damaged building is at least 80% of its replacement cost or the maximum amount of insurance available for that building under the NFIP, whichever is less. Coinsurance applies only to building coverage under the Residential Condominium Building Association Policy.

Community
A political entity that has the authority to adopt and enforce floodplain ordinances for the area under its jurisdiction.

Community Number
A 6-digit designation identifying each NFIP community. The first two numbers are the state code. The next four are the FEMA-assigned community number. An alphabetical suffix is added to a community number to identify revisions in the Flood Insurance Rate Map for that community.

Date of Construction
The date that the building permit was issued, provided the actual start of construction, repair, reconstruction, or improvement was within 180 days of the permit date.

Described Location
The location where the insured building or personal property is found. The described location is shown on the Declarations Page.

Diagram Number
Any of the numbers used in the instructions to the NFIP Elevation Certificate to identify the diagrams of the eight main types of buildings.

Direct Physical Loss By or From Flood
Loss or damage to insured property, directly caused by flood. There must be evidence of physical changes to the property.

Doublewide Manufactured (Mobile) Home
A manufactured (mobile) home that, when assembled as a nonmovable, permanent building, is at least 16 feet wide and has an area within its perimeter walls of at least 600 square feet.

Elevated Building
A building that has no basement and has its lowest elevated floor raised above the ground level by foundation walls, shear walls, posts, piers, pilings, or columns. Solid perimeter foundations walls are not an acceptable means of elevating buildings in V and VE zones.