Free Fall Vocabulary Set

PHYSICS

free fall

motion of an object under the influence of gravity only, with no air resistance

acceleration due to gravity

constant acceleration of an object in free fall near the earth’s surface

displacement

the change in position of an object

velocity

the rate of change of displacement

initial velocity

velocity of the object at the start of free fall motion

final velocity

velocity of the object at a specific instant during its fall

time of fall

duration for which the object is in free fall

height / vertical distance

vertical distance through which the object falls or rises

upward motion

motion against gravity

downward motion

motion in the direction of gravity

air resistance / drag

force opposing motion through air

instantaneous velocity

velocity of the object at a particular moment during motion

average velocity

total displacement divided by total time

sign convention

assign positive and negative directions consistently

terminal velocity

maximum velocity of a falling object when air resistance equals weight

acceleration

the rate of change of velocity