What does weathering refer to?

Weathering refers to the breaking down of rocks into smaller pieces through various physical, chemical, or biological processes. This can occur due to factors such as temperature changes, water, wind, and organic activity. Unlike erosion, which involves the movement of those particles after they have been broken down, weathering strictly deals with the degradation of the rock itself.

The other options describe different geological processes: the formation of magma pertains to igneous rock formation, solidification of igneous rocks refers to the cooling and hardening of molten rock, and the movement of tectonic plates relates to the shifting of the Earth's lithosphere, which can lead to earthquakes and mountain building, but does not describe the process of breaking down rocks. Thus, breaking down of rocks is the most accurate description of weathering.