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Physics

Differentiate between distance and displacement.

Motion in One Dimension

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Answer

The difference between distance and displacement is as follows:

DistanceDisplacement
It is the length of the path traversed by the object in a certain time.It is the distance travelled by the object in a specified direction in a certain time (i.e. it is the shortest distance between the final and the initial positions).
It is a scalar quantity i.e., it has only the magnitude.It is a vector quantity i.e., it has both magnitude and direction.
It depends on the path followed by the object.It does not depend on the path followed by the object.
It is always positive.It can be positive or negative depending on its direction.
It can be more than or equal to the magnitude of displacement.Its magnitude can be less than or equal to the distance, but can never be greater than the distance.
It may not be zero even if displacement is zero, but it can not be zero if displacement is not zero.It is zero if distance is zero, but it can be zero if distance is not zero.

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