Question

Which of the following are matter?
(i) book
(ii) chair
(iii) air
(iv) love
(v) smell of perfume
(vi) almonds
(vii) thought
(viii) cold
(ix) cold drink
(x) hot coffee.

Answer 1

Matter:

1. Anything that occupies space and has mass is called matter.
2. All the objects around us are composed of matter.
3. Feelings, senses, and emotions are not considered a matter as they neither occupy space nor have mass.

Categorizing all the following on the basis of whether they have mass and occupy space:

S.No.	Matter	Not matter
1	Book	Love
2	Chair	Smell of perfume
3	Almonds	Thought
4	Air	Cold
5	Cold drink
6	Hot coffee

Hence, (i) book, (ii) chair, (iii) air, (vi) almonds, (ix) cold drink, (x) hot coffee all occupy some space and have mass. So, these all are matter and (iv) love, (v) smell of perfume, (vii) thought, (viii) cold are not the physical thing. So, they do not occupy space and neither have mass. Thus, these all are not matter.