Question

What is the difference between distance travelled by a body and its displacement? Explain with digram

Answer 1

DISTANCE
1. It is the actual path covered by an object .
2. It is a scalar quantity .
3. It can not be negative .

DISPLACEMENT
1. It is the shortest distance covered by an object .
2. It is a vector quantity .
3. It can be negative .

Always DISTANCE ≥ DISPLACEMENT

Answer 2

Distance:-

Distance is the length of the actual path traversed by a body, irrespective of its direction of motion.

Distance between two given given points may be same or different paths chosen.

It is a scalar quantity.

Distance covered is always positive or zero.

Displacement:-

Displacment is the shortest distance between the initial and final positions of a body in a given direction.

Displacement between two given points is always same.

It is a vector quantity.

Displacement covered may be positive, negative or zero.