Motion in Straight Line

Question

List down the similarities and difference between  displacement and distance?

Answer

Displacement and distance can be compared as follows: 

(i) Both have units and dimensions same as that of length.

(ii) The change in position of particle in particular direction is known as displacement while distance is the total length of path travelled by particle.

(iii) Displacement is a vector quantity while distance is a scalar quantity. 

(iv) Displacement can be negative, positive or zero while distance covered by particle is always positive.

(v) Displacement of a particle between two points is a unique path, while distance is not a unique path .

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