Matter Vocabulary
Matter: anything that has mass and takes up space. All matter has mass
and volume.
Mass: measure of the amount of matter in an object. Constant.
Volume: amount of space an object takes up.
Weight: measure of the gravitational force on an object. Changes.
Density: ratio of the mass of a substance to the volume of the
substance.
D=M
V
States of matter: physical states in which a substance can exist.
Solid
Liquid
Gas
Shape
+
-
Volume
+
+
-
Change of state: change of a substance from one physical state to another
This change uses or loses energy
Melting: change of state from solid to liquid. Energy added.
Freezing: change of state from liquid to solid. Energy removed.
Evaporation: change of a substance from liquid to gas at the surface.
Boiling: change of a liquid to a gas throughout the substance.
Condensation: change of a gas to a liquid.
Sublimation: change of a solid to a gas
Physical properties: characteristics that can be observed without
changing the substance. Do not change when the amount of the
substance changes.
Examples: Density, color, hardness, thermal conductivity
Ductility: able to be pulled into a wire
Malleability: able to be made into flat sheets
Chemical properties: characteristics that describe a substance’s
composition.
Physical change: change of matter from one substance to another. The
chemical properties of matter do not change.
Chemical change: substance changes into entirely new substance. The new
substance has different properties than the original.
Atom: smallest indivisible particle of matter
Molecule: 2 or more atoms bonded together
Element: a substance that cannot be broken down
Compound: combination of different elements
Proton: positive charge. In nucleus. Has mass.
Neutron: no charge. In nucleus. Has mass.
Electron: negative charge. In cloud. Has no mass.
Atomic Number: number of protons
Atomic Mass: number of protons plus neutrons
Ion: an atom that has lost or gained an electron—has a charge
Isotope: atoms of the same element with different number of neutrons