Term | Definition |
Acceleration | the rate at which velocity changes over time; an object accelerates if its speed, direction or both change |
Average Speed | the total distance traveled divided by the total time taken |
Balanced Forces | a set of forces on an object that cancel one another out so that there is no overall force on that object; the combined force is the same as zero force; balanced forces will not cause a change in the motion of an object |
Displacement | the change in position in an object |
Force | a push or pull exerted on an object in order the change the motion of the object; force has size and direction |
Friction | a forces that opposes motion between surfaces that are in contact |
Inertia | the tendency of an object to resist being moved or, if the object is moving, to resist a change in speed or direction |
Instantaneous Speed | the rate of motion at a particular instant in time |
Motion | an object's change in position relative to a reference point |
Net Force | the combination of all the forces acting on an object |
Newton's Laws of Motion | a series of laws developed by Isaac Newton that describe the relationship between force and motion |
Newton | the SI unit for force (symbol, N) |
Position | the location of an object |
Reference Point | a location to which another location is compared |
Speed | a measure of how fast something moves; rate of motion |
Unbalanced Forces | a set of forces exerted on an object that change the motion of that object; the combined force has size and direction; unbalanced forces are needed to make an object start moving, speed up, slow down or change direction |
Vector | a quantity that has both size and direction |
Velocity | the speed of an object in a particular direction |
Velocity | the speed of an object in a particular direction |