Distance and displacement — AQA GCSE Physics
Test yourself on Distance and displacement with AQA GCSE practice questions.
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Distance and displacement explained
Distance is the total length of the path travelled, measured along whatever route was actually taken.
Read the full explanation
It is a scalar, which means it is fully described by a magnitude and a unit, such as 350 m or 12 km, with no direction attached. A car's odometer measures distance: drive one lap of a circuit and it records the whole lap even though you finish where you started. Distances add as ordinary numbers, so walking three metres east and then four metres west gives a distance of seven metres. Because it carries no direction, a distance can never be negative and never decreases as a journey continues. Speed, mass, time, energy and temperature are scalars too; force, velocity, displacement, acceleration and momentum are not.
Your focus
- Classify given quantities as scalar or vector and justify each choice.
- Calculate the total distance travelled on a route made up of several legs.
- Explain why the distance around a closed loop is not zero.
Distance and displacement exam tips
Marking Points
- one mark for distance described as how far an object moves, measured along its path
- one mark for a scalar having magnitude only, with no direction
- one mark for adding distances as ordinary numbers regardless of direction
- one mark for a correct further example of a scalar quantity
Examiner Tips
- 💡Scalar means one number and a unit; if a direction appears, the quantity is a vector.
- 💡For any curved route, the distance is always greater than the displacement.
Common Mistakes
- giving a direction with a distance, which turns it into a displacement
- using the straight-line separation of start and finish as the distance travelled
- calling force or velocity a scalar
- allowing a distance to decrease part way through a journey