Download • Energy – the ability to do work or cause change • Kinetic energy

Energy Vocabulary
• Energy – the ability to do work or cause change
• Kinetic energy – the energy an object has because of its motion
• Potential energy – stored energy due to the position or shape of
an object
• Gravitational potential energy – potential energy due to an
object’s height
• GPE = weight x height
• Elastic potential energy – the potential energy associated with
objects that can be stretched or compressed
• Mechanical energy - the form of energy associated with the
position and motion of an object.
• ME = PE + KE
• Thermal energy – the total potential energy and kinetic energy of
particles in an object
• Electrical energy – the energy from electrical charges
• Chemical energy – potential energy stored in chemical bonds that
hold compounds together
• Nuclear energy – the potential energy stored in the nucleus of an
atom
• Electromagnetic energy – energy that travels in waves (like
sunlight) with some electrical and some magnetic properties