law of motion

[ lawuhv moh-shuhn ]

/ ˈlɔ əv ˈmoʊ ʃən /

Save This Word!

noun Physics.

any of three laws of classical mechanics, either the law that a body remains at rest or in motion with a constant velocity unless an external force acts on the body (first law of motion ), the law that the sum of the forces acting on a body is equal to the product of the mass of the body and the acceleration produced by the forces, with motion in the direction of the resultant of the forces (second law of motion ), or the law that for every force acting on a body, the body exerts a force having equal magnitude and the opposite direction along the same line of action as the original force (third law of motion, or law of action and reaction ).

QUIZ

QUIZ YOURSELF ON "WAS" VS. "WERE"!

Were you ready for a quiz on this topic? Well, here it is! See how well you can differentiate between the uses of "was" vs. "were" in this quiz.

Question 1 of 7

“Was” is used for the indicative past tense of “to be,” and “were” is only used for the subjunctive past tense.

true

false

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Also called New·ton's law of mo·tion.

Origin of law of motion

First recorded in 1660–70

Words nearby law of motion

law of inertia, law of inverse square, law of large numbers, law of mass action, Law of Moses, law of motion, law of multiple proportion, law of nations, law of nature, law of parsimony, law of partial pressures

How to use law of motion in a sentence

Unless there is a court decision that changes our law, we are OK.
Jeb Bush’s Unseen Anti-Gay Marriage Emails|Jackie Kucinich|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Submission is set in a France seven years from now that is dominated by a Muslim president intent on imposing Islamic law.
Houellebecq’s Incendiary Novel Imagines France With a Muslim President|Pierre Assouline|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
A few days later, Bush replied, “We will uphold the law in Florida.”
Jeb Bush’s Unseen Anti-Gay Marriage Emails|Jackie Kucinich|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
To those who agreed with him, Bush pledged that the law against same-sex marriage would remain intact.
Jeb Bush’s Unseen Anti-Gay Marriage Emails|Jackie Kucinich|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST

I wonder what that lady is doing now, and if she knows what she set in motion with Archer?
‘Archer’ Creator Adam Reed Spills Season 6 Secrets, From Surreal Plotlines to Life Post-ISIS|Marlow Stern|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
We should have to admit that the new law does little or nothing to relieve such a situation.
Readings in Money and Banking|Chester Arthur Phillips
He that seeketh the law, shall be filled with it: and he that dealeth deceitfully, shall meet with a stumblingblock therein.
The Bible, Douay-Rheims Version|Various
To Harrison and his wife there was no distinction between the executive and judicial branches of the law.
The Bondboy|George W. (George Washington) Ogden
Now this setting up of an orderly law-abiding self seems to me to imply that there are impulses which make for order.
Children's Ways|James Sully
In this situation we waited the motion of the enemy, without perceiving any advancement they made towards us.
The Life and Most Surprising Adventures of Robinson Crusoe, of York, Mariner (1801)|Daniel Defoe