Forces, Motion & Newton's Laws Flashcards

A set of vocabulary flashcards covering the fundamental concepts of forces, motion, and Newton's Three Laws based on revision notes.

Force

A push or a pull, measured in Newtons ($N$).

Newton ($N$)

The unit used to measure force.

Velocity

Speed combined with a specific direction (e.g., $30\,km/h$ north).

Acceleration

The change in velocity over time, measured in $m/s^2$.

Gravity

The attractive force between objects with mass.

Friction

The force that resists motion between touching surfaces.

Inertia

An object's resistance to changing its motion.

Mass

The amount of matter in an object, measured in $kg$.

Weight

The pull of gravity on mass, measured in $N$.

Net force

The sum of all forces acting on an object.

Balanced forces

Forces that result in no change in motion.

Unbalanced forces

Forces that result in a change in motion, such as speed or direction.

Lubricants

Substances like oil or grease used to reduce friction.

Air resistance

Friction with air; it increases with more surface area, causing objects to fall slower.

Newton's First Law (Inertia)

The law stating that objects keep doing what they're doing unless a force acts on them.

Newton's Second Law ($F = ma$)

The law stating that force equals mass multiplied by acceleration ($F = m \times a$).

Newton's Third Law (Action-Reaction)

The law stating that every action has an equal and opposite reaction.

Speed

Distance divided by time, measured in $m/s$.

Acceleration Formula

$\text{Acceleration} = \frac{\text{final velocity} - \text{initial velocity}}{\text{time}}$, measured in $m/s^2$.