Linear Motion Flashcards

Flashcards covering key vocabulary related to linear motion.

Linear Motion

Motion along a straight-line path.

Displacement

Change in position.

Distance

The length of the actual path traveled by an object.

Displacement

The shortest distance between the initial and final points of a path.

Speed

A measure of how fast an object is moving.

Speed

The rate at which distance is covered.

Instantaneous Speed

The speed of an object at a specific moment.

Average Speed

Total distance covered divided by the time it takes to travel that distance.

Speed

How fast an object moves.

Velocity

How fast and in what direction an object moves.

Scalar Quantity

A quantity with only magnitude.

Vector Quantity

A quantity with both magnitude and direction.

Constant Speed

The motion remains at the same speed; the object does not move faster or slower.

Constant Velocity

Requires both constant speed and constant direction.

Acceleration

The rate at which velocity changes during a given amount of time.

Deceleration

Slowing down; negative acceleration.

Free Fall

Gravity causes an object to accelerate downward.

g

The acceleration due to gravity, approximately 9.8 m/s² or 10.0 m/s².