GCSE Forces and motion exam-style questions
Use Clevolab for GCSE exam-style practice in forces and motion. This page shows what the topic covers, what skills the current set targets, and a few real examples from the reviewed question bank.
About this topic
Clevolab treats forces and motion as repeated practice with explanation, not just answer checking. This page is designed to make the topic legible before you open the app.
The current GCSE set covers velocity, acceleration, momentum, forces, and kinematics reasoning. 32 reviewed questions currently published for this page.
What you can practise
- Speed, velocity, and acceleration
- Newton's laws
- Momentum and impulse
- Force-resultant reasoning
- Kinematics interpretation
Real sample questions from the current set
These examples come from the reviewed questions currently stored for this topic. They are here so the page shows the actual flavour of Clevolab, not just a summary.
Sample question
A book rests on a table. What is the Newton’s third-law pair to the normal force on the book?
- AEarth’s gravity on the bookAnswer option
- BThe table’s normal on the bookAnswer option
- CFriction of the table on the bookAnswer option
- DThe book’s force on the tableCorrect answer
Why this answer is right
Third-law pairs are equal and opposite forces on different bodies. The partner to table-on-book is book-on-table.
Newton’s third law links interactions between two bodies. If the table exerts an upward normal on the book, the book exerts an equal downward force on the table. These forces act on different objects and are opposite: $$F_{\text{table on book}}= - F_{\text{book on table}}.$$ Weight is a separate interaction with Earth.
Sample question
A $0.15\,\mathrm{kg}$ ball moving at $12\,\mathrm{m\,s^{-1}}$ is caught and stops in $0.040\,\mathrm{s}$. What is the magnitude of the average force on the ball?
- A$45\,\mathrm{N}$Correct answer
- B$1.8\,\mathrm{N}$Answer option
- C$4.5\,\mathrm{N}$Answer option
- D$180\,\mathrm{N}$Answer option
Why this answer is right
Impulse equals change in momentum: $F_\text{avg}\,\Delta t=\Delta p$. Here $\Delta p=m\,\Delta v=0.15\times 12=1.8\,\mathrm{kg\,m\,s^{-1}}$. So $F_\text{avg}=1.8/0.040=45\,\mathrm{N}$.
Momentum changes from $$p_i=mv=0.15\times 12=1.8\,\mathrm{kg\,m\,s^{-1}}$$ to $$p_f=0.$$ The change is $$\Delta p=p_f-p_i=-1.8\,\mathrm{kg\,m\,s^{-1}}.$$ Average force over the time is $$F_\text{avg}=\frac{\Delta p}{\Delta t}=\frac{1.8}{0.040}=45\,\mathrm{N}.$$ The force acts opposite the initial motion; the question asks for magnitude. Forgetting to divide by time gives $1.8\,\mathrm{N}$, which is too small.
Sample question
If the resultant force on an object doubles while its mass stays the same, what happens to its acceleration?
- AIt halvesAnswer option
- BIt doublesCorrect answer
- CIt stays the sameAnswer option
- DIt quadruplesAnswer option
Why this answer is right
From $F=ma$, acceleration is proportional to resultant force for fixed mass, so it doubles.
Rearrange Newton’s second law: $$a=\frac{F}{m}.$$ With $m$ constant, scaling $F$ by $2$ scales $a$ by $2$. Halving or quadrupling would require changing mass or force differently, which is not stated.
How this page fits into Clevolab
Clevolab is broader than any one exam mode. GCSE and A-level pages are useful entry points, while the wider project is about sharpening understanding through repeated topic practice.