What is scale in surveying and what are its types?

Scale is the ratio between distance on map and corresponding distance on ground. Types include: representative fraction (RF) expressed as ratio like 1:1000, engineer's scale using phrases like 1 cm = 10 m, and graphical scale shown as bar scale on map. Large scale maps (1:500 to 1:5000) show more detail for site plans, medium scale (1:10000 to 1:50000) for city maps, and small scale (1:100000 and smaller) for regional maps. Scale selection depends on purpose and required accuracy.