Which statement about mass and weight is correct?

Which statement about mass and weight is correct?

• A. Weight is the amount of matter; mass is the gravitational force on that mass.
• B. Mass is the amount of matter; weight is the gravitational force on that mass.
• C. Mass is the gravitational force on that mass.
• D. Weight is the volume times gravity.

Answer: (B)

Mass is the amount of matter an object contains, a property that doesn’t change with location. Weight is the gravitational force acting on that mass, and it follows W = m g, so it depends on the local gravity. That’s why weight varies with where you are (Earth vs. Moon), while mass stays the same. The statement is the best fit because it correctly defines both quantities and the relationship between them. The other ideas mix up the definitions—weight isn’t the amount of matter, mass isn’t a gravitational force, and weight isn’t simply volume times gravity (which would ignore mass and density).

Mass is the amount of matter an object contains, a property that doesn’t change with location. Weight is the gravitational force acting on that mass, and it follows W = m g, so it depends on the local gravity. That’s why weight varies with where you are (Earth vs. Moon), while mass stays the same. The statement is the best fit because it correctly defines both quantities and the relationship between them. The other ideas mix up the definitions—weight isn’t the amount of matter, mass isn’t a gravitational force, and weight isn’t simply volume times gravity (which would ignore mass and density).