Total Evapotranspiration (ET) is the sum of evaporation and plant transpiration. Evaporation accounts for the movement of water to the air from various sources on earth surface such as soil, ocean, etc. Transpiration accounts for the movement of water within a plant and the subsequent loss of water as vapors through stomata in its leaves.
The evapotranspiration rate expresses the amount of water lost from a unit area of surface per unit time. The time unit can be an hour, day, month, year, and even decade.