What is the difference between speed and velocity?

• A. Speed is the rate at which an object is moving; velocity is the magnitude only.
• B. Speed is the rate at which an object is moving; velocity is the vector quantity that expresses both the rate and direction an object is moving.
• C. Speed includes direction; velocity does not.
• D. Velocity is the rate of change of position, while speed is instantaneous velocity.

Answer: (B)

The key idea is that speed and velocity are related but not the same. Speed tells you how fast an object is moving and is a scalar quantity, meaning it has only magnitude. Velocity, on the other hand, is a vector quantity that describes both how fast and in what direction the object is moving.

In practical terms, velocity equals the speed with a direction attached. The magnitude of velocity is the speed, but because velocity includes direction, two objects can have the same speed but different velocities if they’re moving in different directions. This also explains why an object moving in a circle at constant speed has changing velocity—the direction is constantly changing even though the speed stays the same.

The statements that confuse speed with direction or treat speed as the instantaneous velocity mix up these concepts. Velocity is not just the rate of motion; it specifically includes direction, and speed is the magnitude part of that velocity.