What the units tell you

Units are the little letters that come after numbers when writing data. The units are VERY useful because they tell you WHAT VARIABLE YOU’VE JUST GIVEN OR BEEN GIVEN!

For example, if you see in a word problem “9.8 m/s²”, the “m/s²” tells you what variable you’ve been given, in this case, the acceleration or a.

Here’s a list of some common units and what they are.

The Unit you see What the Unit is used for Variable(s) for the Unit

m (meter) distance or radius d, r, x, ,y, l

s (seconds) time t

m/s (meters/second) speed or velocity s, v, v_f, v_I

m/s² (meters/second squared) acceleration a

° (degree symbol) degrees (angle) q (theta), j (phi)

Kg (kilogram) mass m

Kg*m/s (kilogram meter/second) momentum p

N (Newton) force F

J (Joule) work or energy KE, PE (or U), W

W (Watt) power P

N*m (Newton-meter) torque (moment of inertia) t

N/m² (Newton/square meter) pressure P

or Pa (Pascal)

Electricity

C (Coulomb) charge q, Q

A (Amp or Ampere) current I

V (Volt) voltage V

N/C (Newton per Coulomb) electric field E

Ohm or W resistance R

F (Farad) capacitance C

T (Tesla) Magnetic Field strength B

Waves

Hz (Hertz) frequency f

s (seconds (per wave or oscillation)) period T

m (meter) wavelength l (lambda)