Lesson 3.5.2

3.5.2 Collisions Quiz: OCR Physics, Unit 2

20 questions

Written by Revision Ninja · Last reviewed 11 October 2026

In partnership with Revision Ninja

Lesson 3.5.2, Collisions: 20 multiple choice questions for the OCR Physics (H156), Unit 2: Forces and motion, written with Revision Ninja.

Host it live on the board and students join with a game code on their own devices, or revise alone with Free Play. The answers are revealed in the game.

Host this setFree Play

The 20 questions

  1. Total linear momentum is conserved in any system provided what condition is met?

    • Zero internal energy
    • Constant velocity
    • Zero net external force
    • Constant kinetic energy

  2. Which quantity is conserved in a perfectly elastic collision but not in an inelastic collision?

    • Mass
    • Kinetic energy
    • Total energy
    • Total momentum

  3. What happens to total kinetic energy during an inelastic collision between two objects?

    • It increases
    • It stays constant
    • It decreases
    • It doubles

  4. What happens to colliding objects during a perfectly inelastic collision?

    • They explode
    • They stick together
    • They bounce apart
    • They remain stationary

  5. Two equal masses collide head-on elastically, one initially at rest. What happens to the moving mass?

    • It rebounds backwards
    • It stops completely
    • It continues unchanged
    • It speeds up

  6. In a two-dimensional collision, how is momentum conserved in perpendicular directions?

    • Only horizontally
    • Separately in each
    • As one scalar
    • Only vertically

  7. Which quantity is always conserved in any collision provided no external forces act?

    • Total velocity
    • Total momentum
    • Mechanical power
    • Kinetic energy

  8. A 2 kg object moving at 6 m s^-1 sticks to a stationary 4 kg object. What is the common velocity?

    • 1 m s^-1
    • 3 m s^-1
    • 2 m s^-1
    • 6 m s^-1

  9. A 1 kg object moving at 4 m s^-1 collides head-on with a stationary 3 kg object and they stick together. What is their combined velocity?

    • 0.75 m s^-1
    • 4.0 m s^-1
    • 3.0 m s^-1
    • 1.0 m s^-1

  10. A 0.01 kg bullet leaves a 4 kg rifle at 400 m s^-1. Ignoring other effects, what is the recoil speed of the rifle?

    • 0.1 m s^-1
    • 1 m s^-1
    • 4 m s^-1
    • 40 m s^-1

  11. A 0.5 kg ball moving at 4 m s^-1 hits an identical stationary ball in a perfectly elastic head-on collision. What is the speed of the ball that was initially at rest?

    • 4 m s^-1
    • 2 m s^-1
    • 8 m s^-1
    • 0 m s^-1

  12. A 3 kg object moving at 4 m s^-1 sticks to a stationary 1 kg object. How much kinetic energy is lost in the collision?

    • 18 J
    • 6 J
    • 4 J
    • 12 J

  13. Two 2 kg masses moving perpendicularly at 3 m s⁻¹ collide and stick together. What is their combined speed?

    • 1.5 m s⁻¹
    • 4.2 m s⁻¹
    • 2.1 m s⁻¹
    • 3.0 m s⁻¹

  14. A 3 kg mass at 2 m s⁻¹ sticks to a 1 kg mass at −2 m s⁻¹. What is their final speed?

    • 1 m s⁻¹
    • 2 m s⁻¹
    • 4 m s⁻¹
    • 0 m s⁻¹

  15. A 1000 kg car at 20 m s^-1 collides with an identical 1000 kg car at rest and they stick together. What is their common velocity?

    • 20 m s^-1
    • 10 m s^-1
    • 5 m s^-1
    • 40 m s^-1

  16. A 2 kg object moving at 4 m s^-1 hits a stationary 1 kg object in a perfectly elastic head-on collision. What is the velocity of the 1 kg object afterwards?

    • 5.3 m s^-1
    • 4.0 m s^-1
    • 1.3 m s^-1
    • 2.7 m s^-1

  17. Two bodies stick together after a collision. Which quantity is not conserved in this collision?

    • Total mass
    • Kinetic energy
    • Total energy
    • Momentum

  18. A 0.5 kg ball moving at 4 m s^-1 sticks to a stationary 0.5 kg ball. How much kinetic energy is lost?

    • 1 J
    • 4 J
    • 2 J
    • 3 J

  19. A 0.02 kg bullet travelling at 300 m s^-1 embeds in a 2 kg block at rest. What is the speed of the block immediately afterwards?

    • 3.0 m s^-1
    • 300 m s^-1
    • 30 m s^-1
    • 0.3 m s^-1

  20. What is the relative speed of approach compared to the relative speed of separation in an elastic collision?

    • Half
    • Double
    • Equal
    • Zero

All OCR Physics quizzes