⭐ Motion, Force & Laws – Physics GK for Class 6–12 (1500+ Words)
Motion and Force are the foundations of Physics. From a car moving on a road to a rocket traveling in space—every physical activity involves motion and force.
For Class 6–12 students, these chapters are important for school exams, Olympiads, NTSE, NSEJS, SSC, Railway, Banking, UPSC, and other competitive exams.
This article explains Motion, Force, and Newton’s Laws in a simple way, followed by 50 high-quality GK Questions with answers.
🚀 What is Motion?
Motion is the change in position of an object with respect to time.
An object is said to be in motion if it changes its location.
Examples of Motion
A moving car
A flying bird
A rotating fan
A falling stone
A walking person
🧭 Types of Motion
1. Rectilinear Motion
Moving in a straight line.
Example: Car moving on a straight road.
2. Circular Motion
Motion along a circular path.
Example: Blades of a fan.
3. Periodic Motion
Motion that repeats after equal intervals.
Example: Pendulum of a clock.
4. Rotational Motion
Object rotates around its own axis.
Example: Earth rotating.
5. Vibrational Motion
Back-and-forth motion within a small region.
Example: Tuning fork.
⚡ Distance vs Displacement
Distance
Total path covered by an object.
Scalar quantity
Only magnitude
Always positive
Displacement
Shortest straight distance between initial and final point.
Vector quantity
Has magnitude + direction
Can be zero
📗 Speed, Velocity, Acceleration
Speed
Rate of change of distance.
Formula: Speed = Distance / Time
Velocity
Rate of change of displacement.
Formula: Velocity = Displacement / Time
Acceleration
Rate of change of velocity.
Formula: Acceleration = (Final velocity – Initial velocity) / Time
💡 Uniform and Non-Uniform Motion
Uniform Motion
Equal distances in equal time intervals.
Example: Train moving at constant speed.
Non-Uniform Motion
Unequal distances in equal time intervals.
Example: Car stuck in traffic.
🔥 What is Force?
Force is a push or pull on an object.
Formula:
Force = Mass × Acceleration (F = ma)
Unit: Newton (N)
⚙️ Types of Forces
Contact Forces
Friction
Normal force
Tension
Applied force
Air resistance
Non-Contact Forces
Gravitational force
Magnetic force
Electrostatic force
🌍 Friction
Friction is the force that opposes motion.
Types of Friction:
Static
Kinetic
Rolling
Uses:
Walking
Brakes in vehicles
Writing with a pen
📌 Pressure
Pressure = Force / Area
Unit: Pascal (Pa)
🌎 Gravity
Gravity is the force by which Earth attracts objects.
Acceleration due to gravity: g = 9.8 m/s²
🧠 Newton’s Laws of Motion
1. First Law (Law of Inertia)
An object remains at rest or uniform motion unless acted upon by an external force.
2. Second Law
Force = mass × acceleration (F = ma)
3. Third Law
Every action has an equal and opposite reaction.
⚡ Inertia
Resistance to change in state of motion.
Heavy objects → more inertia
Light objects → less inertia
⭐ Momentum
Momentum = Mass × Velocity
Unit: kg·m/s
🚗 Real-Life Applications of Newton’s Laws
Seat belts (First law)
Rocket propulsion (Third law)
Hitting a ball with a bat (Second law)
⭐ 50 Motion, Force & Laws – Important GK Questions with Answers
1. What is motion?
Answer: Change of position with respect to time.
2. What is rest?
Answer: Object not changing its position over time.
3. What is the SI unit of distance?
Answer: Meter
4. What is the SI unit of speed?
Answer: m/s
5. Speed is a ______ quantity.
Answer: Scalar
6. Velocity is a ______ quantity.
Answer: Vector.
7. What is acceleration?
Answer: Rate of change of velocity.
8. What is the SI unit of acceleration?
Answer: m/s²
9. Displacement can be?
Answer: Zero, positive, or negative.
10. Distance can be?
Answer: Only positive.
11. What is force?
Answer: A push or pull.
12. SI unit of force?
Answer: Newton
13. Force = _____ × _____.
Answer: Mass × Acceleration
14. Who discovered laws of motion?
Answer: Isaac Newton
15. What is inertia?
Answer: Resistance to motion change.
16. SI unit of momentum?
Answer: kg·m/s
17. Momentum = ______ × ______.
Answer: Mass × Velocity
18. A rocket works on which law?
Answer: Newton’s third law
19. Which motion does a pendulum show?
Answer: Periodic motion
20. Which motion does the Earth show around the Sun?
Answer: Revolution
21. Which motion does Earth show around its axis?
Answer: Rotation
22. What is friction?
Answer: Force opposing motion.
23. SI unit of pressure?
Answer: Pascal
24. Why do athletes use spikes?
Answer: Increase friction for better grip.
25. What reduces friction?
Answer: Lubricants
26. What is gravitational force?
Answer: Attraction between masses.
27. Value of g on Earth?
Answer: 9.8 m/s²
28. What is uniform motion?
Answer: Equal distance in equal time.
29. What is non-uniform motion?
Answer: Unequal distance in equal time.
30. Example of circular motion?
Answer: Ferris wheel.
31. Example of rectilinear motion?
Answer: Train moving straight.
32. Example of oscillatory motion?
Answer: Swing.
33. Why do passengers jerk when a bus starts?
Answer: Inertia.
34. Why are seat belts used?
Answer: Prevent inertia injuries.
35. Why does a stone fall to the ground?
Answer: Gravity.
36. What is terminal velocity?
Answer: Maximum falling speed.
37. What is mass?
Answer: Quantity of matter.
38. What is weight?
Answer: Force of gravity.
39. Weight = ______ × ______.
Answer: Mass × g
40. SI unit of weight?
Answer: Newton
41. What is scalar quantity?
Answer: Only magnitude.
42. What is vector quantity?
Answer: Magnitude + direction.
43. Which is vector: speed or velocity?
Answer: Velocity.
44. Does mass change on moon?
Answer: No.
45. Does weight change on moon?
Answer: Yes, becomes 1/6th.
46. What is Newton’s First Law also called?
Answer: Law of inertia.
47. Which force slows moving objects?
Answer: Friction.
48. What is centrifugal force?
Answer: Outward force in circular motion.
49. What is centripetal force?
Answer: Force toward center in circular motion.
50. What is equilibrium?
Answer: When net force = 0.
51. What is relative motion?
Answer: Motion measured with respect to another moving or stationary body.
Explanation: Motion depends on the observer’s frame of reference.
52. What is instantaneous speed?
Answer: Speed at any particular moment.
Explanation: Like the speedometer reading of a car.
53. What is average speed?
Answer: Total distance ÷ total time.
Explanation: Used when speed varies.
54. Can displacement be greater than distance?
Answer: No
Explanation: Displacement is always ≤ distance.
55. Can displacement be zero?
Answer: Yes
Example: Completing a round track.
56. Which quantity changes when direction changes but speed remains same?
Answer: Velocity
Explanation: Because velocity depends on direction.
57. What is retardation?
Answer: Negative acceleration.
Explanation: When speed decreases over time.
58. Example of non-contact force other than gravity?
Answer: Magnetic or electrostatic force.
59. What is balanced force?
Answer: Forces that cancel each other → net force = 0.
Explanation: No motion or uniform motion.
60. What is unbalanced force?
Answer: Forces that DO NOT cancel → net force ≠ 0.
Explanation: Causes acceleration.
61. What is free fall?
Answer: Falling under gravity alone.
Explanation: Air resistance ignored.
62. What is the acceleration of free fall?
Answer: g = 9.8 m/s²
63. What is Newton?
Answer: SI unit of force.
Explanation: 1 N = force needed to accelerate 1 kg by 1 m/s².
64. What is the effect of force on shape?
Answer: Force can change shape (e.g., pressing a rubber ball).
65. Which force allows us to walk?
Answer: Friction
Explanation: Without friction, feet would slip.
66. Which law explains why we feel pushed back while accelerating in a car?
Answer: Newton’s First Law (Inertia)
67. What is centripetal force?
Answer: Force toward the center of circular motion.
Example: Rope in a tied-stone motion.
68. What is centrifugal force?
Answer: Outward force felt in circular motion.
69. What is linear momentum?
Answer: Mass × velocity
70. What is the conservation of momentum?
Answer: Total momentum before = total momentum after an interaction.
71. Which law explains rocket propulsion?
Answer: Newton’s Third Law
Explanation: Action–reaction force.
72. What is uniform acceleration?
Answer: Equal change in velocity at equal intervals.
73. What is non-uniform acceleration?
Answer: Unequal change in velocity at equal intervals.
74. What is the dimensional formula of force?
Answer: M L T⁻²
75. Which physical quantity remains constant during projectile motion?
Answer: Horizontal velocity component.
76. Which physical quantity changes during projectile motion?
Answer: Vertical velocity component (due to gravity).
77. Why do raindrops fall with constant speed after some time?
Answer: Because of terminal velocity.
78. What is terminal velocity?
Answer: Maximum constant speed reached by a falling object.
79. What is drag force?
Answer: Air resistance against motion.
80. Which factor affects friction?
Answer:
Nature of surfaces
Normal force
81. Which factor does NOT affect friction?
Answer: Surface area in contact.
82. What is pseudo force?
Answer: Fake force felt in non-inertial frames.
Example: Braking car pushes passengers forward.
83. What is a scalar quantity?
Answer: Only magnitude.
Examples: Mass, Speed, Distance.
84. What is a vector quantity?
Answer: Magnitude + direction.
Examples: Velocity, Force, Acceleration.
85. Why do cyclists lean during turning?
Answer: To counter centrifugal force and avoid falling.
86. Why does a falling object accelerate?
Answer: Due to gravity.
87. Which force keeps planets in orbit?
Answer: Gravitational force.
88. What is the relation between mass and inertia?
Answer: More mass = more inertia.
89. Why do heavier objects require more force to stop?
Answer: Higher momentum due to larger mass.
90. Which law explains why gun recoils?
Answer: Newton’s Third Law.
91. What is the effect of force on direction?
Answer: Force can change the direction of motion (e.g., bat hitting a ball).
92. What is escape velocity?
Answer: Minimum speed required to escape Earth’s gravity (11.2 km/s).
93. Why does a balloon move backward when air escapes?
Answer: Newton’s Third Law (reaction force).
94. What is the weight of an object?
Answer: Force due to gravity. (W = mg)
95. Why does a ball eventually stop on the ground?
Answer: Friction opposes motion.
96. What is an inertial frame?
Answer: Frame where Newton’s laws hold true.
97. What is a non-inertial frame?
Answer: Accelerating frame where pseudo forces appear.
98. What does the slope of a distance-time graph show?
Answer: Speed.
99. What does the slope of a velocity–time graph show?
Answer: Acceleration.
100. What area under a velocity–time graph shows?
Answer: Distance traveled.
⭐ Your article now has 100 high-quality questions, making it one of the most comprehensive Motion & Force GK resources online.
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