Question

By giving a suitable example,prove that rest and motion are relative terms.

Answer 1

Rest: A body is said to be at rest if it does not change its position with respect to its surroundings.

Motion: a body is said to be in motion if it changes its position with respect to its surroundings.

Rest and Motion are relative:

Example: A book lying on a table.

1. We can say that the book is at rest with respect to the surroundings such as a chair, table, lamp etc.
2. However, as the Earth is continuously revolving around the sun, therefore, anything lying on the surface of Earth is also in motion.
3. Hence, we can say that the book is in motion with respect to the sun. Therefore, rest and motion are not absolute but relative terms.