Distance and Displacement are two important terms of mechanics that may seem the same but have different meanings and definitions. Distance is a measure of "How much path is covered by an object in motion?" While Displacement is the measure of "How much path is covered by the object in a particular direction?" Hence, the major difference between distance and displacement is that distance is a scalar quantity and displacement is a vector quantity. Despite this difference, both quantities have ... Displacement and Distance with Examples In this article, examples of displacement and distance in physics are presented along with their definitions which is helpful for high school physics. Definition of displacement and distance Displacement is a vector quantity describes a change in position of an object or how far an object is displaced from its initial position and is given by below formula Δ x = x f x i Δx = xf −xi where the starting and ending positions are denoted by x i xi and x ... How to Find Distance and Displacement if a person travels in Zig Zag Path? Distance can be found by adding all length travelled Displacement can be found by connecting starting and ending points with a straight line, the length of the string would give the displacement . Displacement If an object moves relative to a reference frame (for example, if a professor moves to the right relative to a white board or a passenger moves toward the rear of an airplane), then the object’s position changes. This change in position is known as displacement . The word “ displacement ” implies that an object has moved, or has been displaced.
