Question

what is the difference between distance travelled by a body and Its displacement ? explain with the help of diagram.

Answer 1

(i) The distance is the length of path traversed. The displacement is the change of position in a particular direction.
 (ii) Distance is a scalar. But displacement is a vector.
 (iii) When a body returns to initial position, then distance is not zero but displacement is zero.  

Answer 2

Explanation:

Distance travelled is the actual length of the indirect path covered by the body whereas displacement refers to the straight line path between the initial and final positions