Properties of Matter Vocabulary Review
the smell of an object or substance odor
sour, sweet, salty, spicy, etc… taste
whether something is male or female gender
the ability of an object to be stretched and returned to its original shape elasticity
the measure of the heat created by the motion of the molecules in a substance temperature
the ability to see through an object (transparent, translucent, or opaque) clarity
loud, quiet, high, low, etc. sound
the temperature at which a liquid boils and turns to a vapor boiling point
the number of crests of a wave that move past a given point in a given unit of time. (measured in Hertz for sound or nanometers for light) frequency
how easily something burns flammability
the amount of mass per unit of volume density
the property of a material that enables it to resume its original shape or position after being bent, stretched, or compressed resiliency
how easily something dissolves in water solubility
how a substance or object feels when touched texture
the resistance of a substance to flowing viscosity
the ability of an object to emit visible light when it receives ultraviolet light fluorescence
how heavy an object is due to gravitational pull on the mass of an object weight
the quantity of motion of a moving body, measured as a product of its mass and velocity momentum
the amount of material in an object mass
the condition in which a material sticks to itself or another material adhesion
the motion of electrical charge that results in attractive or repulsive forces between objects magnetism
whether an object is a solid, liquid or gas state of matter
how easily something shatters brittleness
when a substance spontaneously undergoes a chemical reaction when exposed to water reactivity to water
the ability of a material to emit light in a process not caused solely by a rise in temperature luminescence
the rate of flow of a liquid or gas through a porous material permeability
the measure of void spaces in a material the measure of void spaces in a material. (volume of empty space able to be filled with other material) porosity
the ability of a material “bounce off” light from its surface reflectivity
the temperature at which a solid will melt melting point
a measure of how readily a substance vaporizes volatility
the amount of space taken up by an object volume
the ability of an object to bend flexibility
how shiny an object is luster
when materials give up electrons as when combined with oxygen oxidation
the saltiness or level of dissolved salt content of a body liquid salinity
the ability to be drawn into a thin wire ductility
the speed of something in a given direction velocity
the degree to which a substance can harm living organisms toxicity
the ability to allow electricity or heat to pass through conductivity
the intensity of light emitted from a surface per unit area in a given direction luminance
the placement of an object in relation to another object position
the ability to be pounded into a thin sheet malleability
how easily something burns combustibility