Velocity is ______ and ______.

Velocity is ______ and ______.

• A. Direction and magnitude
• B. Distance and time
• C. Speed and direction
• D. Velocity and acceleration

Answer: (C)

Velocity is a vector that tells how fast something is changing its position and in what direction. It combines speed (how big the change in position is per unit time) with the direction of that change. That’s why the phrase describing velocity as speed and direction is the best fit: you need both how fast and where it’s headed to fully specify the motion. Distance and time describe speed in a broader sense but don’t specify direction; velocity and acceleration together describe two vector quantities but don’t define velocity itself. If an object moves at the same speed but in a different direction, its velocity changes.

Velocity is a vector that tells how fast something is changing its position and in what direction. It combines speed (how big the change in position is per unit time) with the direction of that change. That’s why the phrase describing velocity as speed and direction is the best fit: you need both how fast and where it’s headed to fully specify the motion. Distance and time describe speed in a broader sense but don’t specify direction; velocity and acceleration together describe two vector quantities but don’t define velocity itself. If an object moves at the same speed but in a different direction, its velocity changes.