Speed vs. Velocity

Speed is defined as the rate of change of the position of an object. In order to get the rate of
change of something or the rate of doing work, we need to divide the change by the time it takes
for the change to happen. As change in position is measured using the unit of distance, we
divide length by time to get the speed. Thus, mathematically,
Speed = distance/time

Velocity is another concept that’s associated with motion. It is similar to speed but it is not
exactly the same. The main difference between speed and velocity is that velocity shows not
only the magnitude but also the direction of the motion. It is also defined as the rate of change
of displacement. As such, we can write:
V = displacement/time

The unit of velocity is m/s. Displacement is the shortest distance from the initial to the final
position of an object. It is measured in meters. It is a vector quantity and therefore has direction.
Just as speed and velocity are different, displacement is different from distance. For example,
when an object travels around a 100-meter long circular path, the distance covered is 100
meters but the displacement is zero because the initial position and the final position are the
same.