Field lines
What Field lines means in Combined Science GCSE, as defined for AQA.
Definitions of Field lines
Exam boards and our study guides word this term in slightly different ways. Learn the version your board uses.
Check what you remember
Read the wording for your board, then hide it and explain Field lines in your own words. Rough notes are fine. This is a self-check, with no mark or grade.
Reference: AQA
Lines that show the direction of the force on a small positive test charge or a small compass needle, with closer lines indicating a stronger field.
A visual model that maps the field, each line leaving a magnet's north-seeking pole and curving round to enter its south-seeking pole.
Drawn from the north pole to the south pole outside the magnet, and the closer together the lines, the stronger the field.
Topics that use Field lines
- Key ideas (AQA GCSE)
- Magnetic fields (AQA GCSE)
Related terms
- Action at a distance
- Activation energy
- Active site
- Adaptation
- Alignment of a freely suspended magnet
- Anaerobic respiration
- Attraction and repulsion
- Carbon and nitrogen cycles
Using Field lines in the exam
Check the command word and mark scheme for your exact question. After comparing your explanation with the reference, use the term in an answer on the linked topic. This practice does not predict an exam mark.
Practise Combined Science questions
Create a free account to answer exam-style questions on this topic and get feedback on your answers.
A week of Premium from your first lesson · Then the free plan continues · No card, no charge