What is Acceleration?

What is Acceleration?

• A. Constant regardless of mass or force
• B. Depends on the mass of the object and the force applied to it
• C. Proportional to velocity
• D. Inverse to mass

Answer: (B)

Acceleration is the rate at which an object's velocity changes. According to Newton's second law, it equals the net force acting on the object divided by its mass (a = F/m). This means acceleration depends on both how hard you push (the force) and how heavy the object is (the mass). If you push with more force, acceleration increases; if the mass increases while the force stays the same, acceleration decreases because the object has more inertia resisting the change in motion. For a fixed force, doubling the mass halves the acceleration; for a fixed mass, doubling the force doubles the acceleration. Because it reflects how both force and mass shape the change in motion, the statement that acceleration depends on the mass of the object and the force applied to it is the best description. The other options misstate the relationship: acceleration is not constant regardless of mass or force, it is not proportional to velocity, and it is not simply inverse to mass without mentioning the force.

Acceleration is the rate at which an object's velocity changes. According to Newton's second law, it equals the net force acting on the object divided by its mass (a = F/m). This means acceleration depends on both how hard you push (the force) and how heavy the object is (the mass). If you push with more force, acceleration increases; if the mass increases while the force stays the same, acceleration decreases because the object has more inertia resisting the change in motion. For a fixed force, doubling the mass halves the acceleration; for a fixed mass, doubling the force doubles the acceleration. Because it reflects how both force and mass shape the change in motion, the statement that acceleration depends on the mass of the object and the force applied to it is the best description. The other options misstate the relationship: acceleration is not constant regardless of mass or force, it is not proportional to velocity, and it is not simply inverse to mass without mentioning the force.