Certified Floodplain Manager (CFM) Exam – Practice
Questions & 100% Verified Answers | Complete CFM
Certification Exam Review | 2026–2027
, Types of floodplains Riverine, coastal, and shallow
Watershed area that drains into a lake, stream, or body of water. Also called basin or catchment
area.
Channel Ground features that carry water through and out of a watershed
Riverine Flooding flooding that occurs along a channel
Flash flooding flooding that occurs in hilly and mountainous areas that may come scant minutes
after a heavy rainfall. One can also occur in urban areas where pavements and
drainage improvements speed runoff to a stream.
Overbank Flooding The most common type flooding in the US. It occurs when downstream channels
receive more rain or snowmelt than normal, or a channel is blocked by ice or debris.
Excess water overloads the channels and flows out onto the floodplain
Velocity One measure of a flood is the speed of moving water. Measured in feet per second
Thalweg The channel bottom
Meander a curve in the channel. The outside bank of the meander is subject to erosion, the
inside bank is subject to deposits
Accrete to build up a shoreline by depositing sand, either by nature or human actions
Actual Cash Value The replacement cost for a building, minus a depreciation percentage based on age
and condition.
Alluvial Fan An area at the base of a valley where the slope flattens out, allowing the floodwater
to decrease in speed and spread out, dropping sediment and rock over a fan-
shaped area.
Amendment A change to a FEMA floodplain map that removes an area that was inadvertently
included in the Special Flood Hazard Area
Approximate studies Flood hazard mapping done using approximate study methods that show the
approximate outline of the base floodplain. An approximate study does not produce
a base flood elevation.
Questions & 100% Verified Answers | Complete CFM
Certification Exam Review | 2026–2027
, Types of floodplains Riverine, coastal, and shallow
Watershed area that drains into a lake, stream, or body of water. Also called basin or catchment
area.
Channel Ground features that carry water through and out of a watershed
Riverine Flooding flooding that occurs along a channel
Flash flooding flooding that occurs in hilly and mountainous areas that may come scant minutes
after a heavy rainfall. One can also occur in urban areas where pavements and
drainage improvements speed runoff to a stream.
Overbank Flooding The most common type flooding in the US. It occurs when downstream channels
receive more rain or snowmelt than normal, or a channel is blocked by ice or debris.
Excess water overloads the channels and flows out onto the floodplain
Velocity One measure of a flood is the speed of moving water. Measured in feet per second
Thalweg The channel bottom
Meander a curve in the channel. The outside bank of the meander is subject to erosion, the
inside bank is subject to deposits
Accrete to build up a shoreline by depositing sand, either by nature or human actions
Actual Cash Value The replacement cost for a building, minus a depreciation percentage based on age
and condition.
Alluvial Fan An area at the base of a valley where the slope flattens out, allowing the floodwater
to decrease in speed and spread out, dropping sediment and rock over a fan-
shaped area.
Amendment A change to a FEMA floodplain map that removes an area that was inadvertently
included in the Special Flood Hazard Area
Approximate studies Flood hazard mapping done using approximate study methods that show the
approximate outline of the base floodplain. An approximate study does not produce
a base flood elevation.
