force
Work is defined differently in physics than in everyday language. In physics, work means the use of force to move an object. The teens who are playing basketball in the picture above are using force to move their bodies and the basketball, so they are doing work. The teen who is studying isnt moving anything, so she isnt doing work. Not all force that is used to move an object does work. For work to be done, the force must be applied in the same direction that the object moves. If a force is applied in a different direction than the object moves, no work is done. The Figure below illustrates this point.