Correct answer: A. Oceanic trench
Explanation: The correct answer is A, an oceanic trench. On a map of the ocean floor, a trench appears as a long, narrow, and exceptionally deep depression. It commonly forms where one tectonic plate is forced beneath another at a convergent boundary; this process is called subduction. B, the continental shelf, is the shallow, gently sloping submerged edge of a continent, so it is broad and relatively shallow rather than very deep. C, an abyssal plain is a wide, nearly level deep-ocean floor, not a narrow linear depression. D, a coral reef is a biological or limestone structure built by corals in suitable shallow marine conditions, not a deep trench. Memory cue: trench = thin, long, deepest; shelf = shallow edge; plain = broad and flat.