Types of Forces

Front

Force Noun

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[fors]

Back

Force

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An interaction, such as a push or a pull, that can cause a change in an object's motion.

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Example: A person pushing on a wall demonstrates that forces come in pairs; the 'action' force on the wall is matched by an equal 'reaction' force.

Front

Mass Noun

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[mas]

Back

Mass

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A measure of the amount of matter in an object, which also determines its inertia or resistance to acceleration.

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Example: This image shows a balance scale tipping towards a rock and away from a feather, visually demonstrating that the rock has more mass.

Front

Acceleration Noun

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[ak-sel-uh-rey-shuhn]

Back

Acceleration

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The rate at which an object's velocity changes over time, involving changes in speed, direction, or both.

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Example: This diagram of the formula F=ma shows that acceleration ('a') is what happens when a force ('F') is applied to an object with mass ('m').

Front

Contact Force Noun

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[kon-takt fors]

Back

Contact Force

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A force that represents the interaction between objects that are in direct physical contact with each other.

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Example: A person pushes a box, showing a force that requires direct physical contact to act on an object.

Front

Noncontact Force Noun

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[non-kon-takt fors]

Back

Noncontact Force

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A force, also called a field force, representing the interaction between two objects separated by some distance.

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Example: This image shows a magnetic force pushing two magnets apart without them touching, which is a perfect example of a noncontact force.

Front

Gravitational Force Noun

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[grav-i-tey-shuhn-l fors]

Back

Gravitational Force

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The noncontact attractive interaction that exists between any two objects that possess mass.

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Example: The arrows show that Earth's gravitational force is an attractive force that pulls all surrounding objects toward the planet's center.

Front

Weight Noun

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[weyt]

Back

Weight

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The downward gravitational force experienced by an object resulting from its attraction to a large celestial body like Earth.

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Example: An object's mass is constant everywhere, but its weight, which is the force of gravity acting on it, changes depending on the planet's gravitational pull.

Front

Center of Mass Noun

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[sen-ter ov mas]

Back

Center of Mass

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A single point representing the mean, or average, position of all the matter that constitutes an object.

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Example: The image shows the center of mass (C) for a system of two objects (m1, m2), representing the average position of their mass.

Front

Deformation Noun

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[dee-for-mey-shuhn]

Back

Deformation

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A change in the shape or size of an object that occurs due to the application of an external force.

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Example: This image shows five types of forces—tension, compression, shear, bending, and torsion—that cause an object to change its shape, which is called deformation.

Front

Spring Constant Noun

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[spring kon-stuhnt]

Back

Spring Constant

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A constant of proportionality (k) that represents a spring's stiffness or its inherent resistance to being deformed.

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Example: This image shows the formula for spring constant (k), which is the force (F) applied to a spring divided by the distance (x) it stretches or compresses.