Newton's third law can be illustrated by which of the following statements?

Newton's third law can be illustrated by which of the following statements?

• A. For every action force, there is an equal and opposite reaction force.
• B. A force cannot have an opposite equal reaction.
• C. Reaction forces occur before the action.
• D. Action forces do not have reaction forces.

Answer: (A)

The idea being tested is that forces come in action–reaction pairs: for every force exerted on one object, there is an equal in magnitude but opposite in direction force exerted back on the other object. These paired forces act on two different bodies and occur at the same time, so they don’t cancel each other out for the motion of a single object. This captures why the statement that for every action force there is an equal and opposite reaction force is the correct description. A good way to see it is to imagine pushing against a wall: your hand applies a force to the wall, and the wall pushes back on your hand with the same strength in the opposite direction. Rockets, jumping off the ground, and pushing off a boat are other familiar examples—every interaction involves a pair of forces on two objects. The idea that reactions come before the action is incorrect because these forces are simultaneous, not sequential. The notion that a force cannot have an opposite equal reaction, or that action forces do not have reaction forces, contradicts this fundamental pairwise interaction.

The idea being tested is that forces come in action–reaction pairs: for every force exerted on one object, there is an equal in magnitude but opposite in direction force exerted back on the other object. These paired forces act on two different bodies and occur at the same time, so they don’t cancel each other out for the motion of a single object.

This captures why the statement that for every action force there is an equal and opposite reaction force is the correct description. A good way to see it is to imagine pushing against a wall: your hand applies a force to the wall, and the wall pushes back on your hand with the same strength in the opposite direction. Rockets, jumping off the ground, and pushing off a boat are other familiar examples—every interaction involves a pair of forces on two objects.

The idea that reactions come before the action is incorrect because these forces are simultaneous, not sequential. The notion that a force cannot have an opposite equal reaction, or that action forces do not have reaction forces, contradicts this fundamental pairwise interaction.