mass vs. weight?

Question

what is the difference between mass and weight? are they measured in different units?

what about the units?

Answer 1

I'll try to say this in a less "brainy" fashion.

The quantity of stuff = mass
How hard that same stuff is to move = weight
Mass is in grams
Weight is newtons

Think of it this way, a baseball's mass is the same everywhere, the amount of "stuff" that makes it never changes, but it's easier to move on the moon than here on earth. So it's weight can change depending on the gravity where it is.

Do not confuse mass with volume. Volume is how much space the stuff takes. Like a basketball can have the same amount of stuff that it's made up of, only that it takes up more space. When it's inflated, it's mass barely changes (cause air does have mass, but not much) but it's volume goes up!

Gold and lead are said to be very dense because, they take little space and have a lot of mass.


HTH

Answer 2

Density is the concentration of matter in an object. In layman's terms, the density of an object is the amount of "stuff" inside of it. Mass vs. Weight: Although the terms mass and weight are used almost interchangeably, there is a difference between them. Mass is a measure of the quantity of matter, which is constant all over the universe. Weight is proportional to mass but depends on location in the universe. Weight is the force exerted on a body by gravitational attraction (usually by the earth).

Answer 3

To understand the differences we need to compare a few points:

1) Mass is a measurement of the amount of matter something contains, while Weight is the measurement of the pull of gravity on an object.


2) Mass is measured by using a balance comparing a known amount of matter to an unknown amount of matter. Weight is measured on a scale.


3) The Mass of an object doesn't change when an object's location changes. Weight, on the otherhand does change with location.

Answer 4

Difference:
Mass is the amount of matter an object has (remains the same)
Weight is the amount of gravitational force pulling down on an object with a set amount of mass (differs due to the mass and distance of the planet/ object pulling). It is also equal to mass multiplied by the acceleration of gravity.
They are measured in different units: mass by grams and weight by newtons (Force).
Look at http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/mass.html

Answer 5

Yes, mass is measured in kilograms and weight is in newtons.

Mass is an inherent property of matter that is not affected by gravitational fields (or their absence). Weight is the downward force of mass in a gravitational field.

It's worth noting that pounds are a unit of weight, not mass. The conversion, 2.2 lbs = 1 kg, is only valid in a 1.0g gravitational field.

Answer 6

Mass is measured in kilograms. Weight is measured in Newtons and is the force exerted by a mass in a gravitational field according to the formula F=MA. F is the force, or weight, M is the mass and A is the acceleration of the gravitational field. Since the Earth's gravitational acceleration, at ground level, is 9.8 meters per second squared, one kilogram weighs 9.8 Newtons on the Earth. In English units, mass is measured in slugs and weight in pounds. Acceleration of gravity on Earth is 32 feet per second squared so one slug weighs 32 pounds on Earth.

Now you may say that kilograms are a unit of weight, and so do 99% of the people in the world, but those 99% are dead wrong. However, the usage is so common that physics knowledgeable people have bowed to popular pressure and defined a "kilogram force" which is the weight of one kilogram of mass on the Earth. In other words, one "kilogram force" is 9.8 Newtons and it is this which 99% of the people are referring to when they say something "weighs" one kilogram. Of course that same one kilogram mass would only weigh about 1.6 Newtons on the Moon, or about 1/6 of a "kilogram force".

There is no direct way to measure mass. You can only measure weight and then measure the acceleration of gravity (by timing falling bodies), and then calculate mass.

Answer 7

Mass is a measure of the quantity of matter in an object and is commonly measured in grams using SI (metric) units or the slug in the imperial units. Weight is a measure of force and is measured in newtons using SI units or the pound in imperial units. A 500 gram block of matter will weigh about 4.9035 newtons at sea level on earth. But, If you were to take that same 500 gram chunk of matter to the moon it would only weigh about 0.81725 newtons or one sixth of its earth weight. Mass is measured using balances and weight is measured using scales. Mass can be used to "count" the number of atoms in an object by converting to moles.

Answer 8

Mass is a measure of the amount of matter contained in an object. It is usually measured in grams. Weight is the pull of gravity on a certain amount of matter & density. It is measured in lbs.

Answer 9

Mass is the amount of matter (volume) and weight is the strength of the gravitational pull on the matter.

Mass is measured in liters and gallons, while weight is measured in pounds and grams.

Answer 10

weight is what you weigh on earth. Mass is consitent to all planets and is measured with a different devise.