Explain Newton's laws of motion

The first law is that an object will remain at a constant velocity or stationary (which is just a constant velocity of zero) unless acted upon by an external force.

Once acted upon by this force, then the second law comes into play. This says that F = ma, or Force equals mass times the acceleration of the object.

The third law is easily stated as every action has an equal and opposite reaction. This means the sizes of the forces on the objects will be the same, but the forces will be in opposite directions.

HM
Answered by Harry M. Physics tutor

3925 Views

See similar Physics GCSE tutors

Related Physics GCSE answers

All answers ▸

Calculate the acceleration if a force of 500N is exerted on a mass of 20kg


Describe the structure of an alpha particle


If a race car completed a full lap and is where he started, why is his average velocity zero but his average speed isn’t?


If Hannah slows down from a speed of 12 m/s to 8 m/s and has a mass of 45kg, how much force has been exerted on her to cause this deceleration?


We're here to help

contact us iconContact ustelephone icon+44 (0) 203 773 6020
Facebook logoInstagram logoLinkedIn logo

MyTutor is part of the IXL family of brands:

© 2026 by IXL Learning