Motion is simply the change of position of
a body with respect to time. When an object is displaced from one position to another in a certain period of time that body has undergone motion. A book falling off a table, water flowing from the tap, rattling windows, etc., all exhibit motion. Even the air that we breathe exhibits motion! Everything in the universe moves. We live in a universe that is in continual motion. The fundamental particle of matter, that is, the atom, is in constant motion too. Every physical process in the universe is composed of motion of some sort.

Motion can be classified based on its direction from one point to another.

Translatory Motion is a type of motion in which all the points present on the moving body move uniformly in the same direction or path. When a body moves from one point to another such that the particles of the body move parallel to each other, it is said to experience translational motion. Examples of translational Motion are:

• The movement of a train on a track
• The movement of a car from Lagos to Benin
• A fruit falling from a tree
• A man walking on the road
• An aeroplane moving lagos to London
• Birds flying in the sky
• A bullet fired from a gun

The following are types of translational motion:

• Rectilinear motion

This is a type of translational motion in which an object moves in a straight line. Examples include:

• A car moving in a straight path
• A ball falling from a cliff
• A bullet fired from a gun
• Curvilinear motion:

This is a type of translational motion in which a body moves in a straight line along a curved path. Examples include:

• The motion of a basketball into the net
• Javelin throw
• The motion of a car turning
• The motion of a snake
• The movement of a rollercoaster

This is the movement of a body in no specified direction. This type of motion is characterized by changes in direction and speed of the moving particles which can result in collision. Examples include:

• Brownian motion (random or irregular) exhibited by gas particles
• Fish swimming underwater
• People playing football in a field
• Pollen grains in water
• Fine chalk particles floating in air
• A balloon flying in the sky
• The motion of snooker balls after been hit at the start of a game

This is the movement of an object around a fixed point or axis. It is the motion along a circular path in a fixed axis(its own axis). Examples include:

• The motion of fan blades when powered
• The motion of wheels
• The motion of the rotating blades of an helicopter
• The motion of a spinning top
• The motion of a ferris wheel
• The motion of a potter's wheel
• The motion of a rolling ball

• Revolution or circular motion:

This is the motion of a body along a circular path. In circular motion, the fixed point is outside the body. Examples include:

• Motion of the moon round the earth
• Motion of the earth round the sun
• The motion of a stone tied to a rope swung in circles
• The motion of artificial satellites moving round the earth
• The motion of a car going through a roundabout

This is the repeated to and fro movement of a body about its fixed position or mean position(equilibrium position). It can also be called vibratory motion In oscillatory motion, the body covers equal distances at equal time intervals about a fixed axis. Examples include :

• The motion of a swinging pendulum
• The motion of a diving board
• The strings of a plucked guitar
• The motion of a child swinging
• The motion of a tuning fork
• The vibrations of a generator

• Periodic motion :

This is the repeated movement of a body at fixed or equal time intervals. Oscillatory motion is a type of periodic motion. Periodic motion can be linear or rotational. Examples include:

• The motion of the hands of a clock
• The revolution of the earth.
• The motion of planets round the sun
• The motion of a heartbeat
• The motion of a rocking chair
• The motion of a swinging bob

Note: All oscillatory motions are periodic but not all periodic motions are oscillatory.

Not all bodies in motion undergo a single type of motion. A moving object can exhibit a combination of two or more types of motion. Examples include:

• The motion of car wheels undergoes translational and rotational motion
• The motion of a swinging pendulum bob exhibits both oscillatory and periodic motion
• The motion of a football when passed to an opponent exhibits both rotational and translational motion.