Question

Ice and steam exist as two different states of matter. What is one way you can tell ice apart from steam?

Answer 1

Keep in mind that these are terms that were not invented by scientists, so there is a common use of them that is different from their technical use.

The technical use has gas as a material in which the molecular bonds have broken and the particles move freely independent of each other.  A vapor is typically a gas that is mixed with a much larger gas, such as a small amount of water vapor mixed in air. Steam in physics is used to refer to  hot water vapor, above the boiling point of water at normal temperature and pressure.

Steam is typically used in common language to refer to the small water droplets that condense from hot water vapor, making cloud-like particles.  Some scientists say that use is "wrong" -- but the word steam pre-dated the scientists, and they don't have any intrinsic right to redefine it.  But if you are taking a physics test, you better not use that definition; you may have a hard time convincing your teacher, even

Answer 2

Answer:

Ice has a definite shape, is not compressible, and the motions of the atoms are locked in a specific matrix. Steam has no definite shape, is compressible, and the motions of the atoms vary widely and are at great velocities.

Explanation:

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