S5 Physics Practice Paper: Forces And Motion, Work And Energy, Momentum, Waves, Light And Electricity

S5 Physics Practice Paper: Forces and Motion, Work and Energy, Momentum, Waves, Light and Electricity

2026-11-13

S5 Physics – School Exam Practice

S5 Physics practice paper: six questions, 24 parts on forces, energy, momentum, waves, sound, light and electricity, with full answers and marking notes for exam revision.

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Paper details　S5 Physics practice paper with full answers: Newton laws, work and energy, momentum, waves, sound, refraction and circuits.

Part A: Forces and Motion

State the formula used and give units in every answer.

#	Question	Answer and marking notes
1	A car starts from rest and accelerates uniformly at 2 m/s^2 for 5 s. Find its final velocity and displacement.	v = at = 10 m/s, s = 0.5 a t^2 = 25 m (1 mark each formula, 1 mark substitution, 1 mark each answer)
2	A 4 kg object has a horizontal resultant force of 12 N. Find its acceleration; if a 4 N friction also acts, find the new acceleration.	a = F/m = 3 m/s^2; with friction net force 8 N gives a = 2 m/s^2 (1 mark formula and 1 mark answer each part)
3	A car travelling at 20 m/s brakes uniformly and stops in 4 s. Find the magnitude of its deceleration and the braking distance.	deceleration = 20/4 = 5 m/s^2, distance = 0.5 x 20 x 4 = 40 m (1 mark formula, 1.5 marks each answer)
4	A ball falls freely from a 45 m tower (g = 10 m/s^2). Find the time of fall and the speed on landing.	t = sqrt(2 x 45 / 10) = 3 s, v = gt = 30 m/s (2 marks each formula, 1 mark time, 2 marks speed)

Part B: Work, Energy and Power

Take g = 10 m/s^2 and give units in all answers.

#	Question	Answer and marking notes
5	A 50 N horizontal force pushes a 6 kg box 4 m along a smooth floor in 5 s. Find the work done and the power.	W = Fs = 200 J, P = W/t = 40 W (1 mark each formula and each answer)
6	A 2 kg object falls freely from 5 m (g = 10 m/s^2). Find the loss in potential energy, the kinetic energy on landing and the landing speed.	potential energy lost = mgh = 100 J, kinetic energy also 100 J, v = sqrt(2 x 100 / 2) = 10 m/s (2 marks each, 1 mark speed)
7	A machine takes in 500 J and delivers 300 J of useful work. Find its efficiency and the energy wasted.	efficiency = 300/500 = 60 percent, energy wasted = 200 J (2 marks formula, 1 mark each answer)
8	A 1.5 kW motor lifts 60 kg of water 10 m in 20 s (g = 10 m/s^2). Find the total work input, the useful work and the efficiency.	total work = 1500 x 20 = 30000 J, useful work = mgh = 6000 J, efficiency = 20 percent (1 mark each, 2 marks efficiency)

Part C: Momentum and Collisions

Ignore friction unless stated otherwise.

#	Question	Answer and marking notes
9	A 2 kg ball moves at 6 m/s. Find its momentum; if it stops uniformly in 0.2 s, find the average net force.	p = mv = 12 kg m/s, F = p/t = 60 N (1.5 marks each formula, 1 mark each answer, 1 mark direction)
10	A 3 kg trolley at 4 m/s hits a stationary 1 kg trolley and they stick together. Find the common velocity, the total kinetic energy before and after, and the energy lost.	12 = 4v gives v = 3 m/s; kinetic energy 24 J becomes 18 J, so 6 J is lost (1 mark each)
11	A 50 kg person jumps at 2 m/s onto a stationary 50 kg cart. Find their common velocity.	momentum conserved: 100 = 100v, v = 1 m/s (3 marks equation, 2 marks answer)
12	A 2 kg object moving right at 5 m/s hits a stationary 3 kg object. After the collision the 2 kg object moves right at 1 m/s. Find the velocity of the 3 kg object.	10 = 2 + 3v, v = 8/3 which is about 2.67 m/s to the right (2 marks equation, 1 mark substitution, 1 mark answer)

Part D: Waves and Sound

Take the speed of sound as 340 m/s in air and 1500 m/s in sea water.

#	Question	Answer and marking notes
13	A wave has frequency 50 Hz and wavelength 4 m. Find its speed.	v = f x wavelength = 200 m/s (2 marks formula, 1 mark answer)
14	Sound travels at 340 m/s. Thunder is heard 3 s after lightning is seen. Find the distance to the strike.	s = vt = 340 x 3 = 1020 m (2 marks formula, 2 marks answer)
15	An oscillation has a period of 0.02 s. Find its frequency and the number of oscillations in 3 s.	f = 1/T = 50 Hz, and 150 oscillations in 3 s (1 mark formula, 1 mark each answer)
16	Ultrasound travels at 1500 m/s in sea water and its echo returns after 0.4 s. Find the depth of the water.	2d = 1500 x 0.4 = 600 m, so d = 300 m (2 marks return trip, 2 marks answer)

Part E: Light and Lenses

Give answers to three significant figures with units.

#	Question	Answer and marking notes
17	Light enters a medium of refractive index 1.5 from air at an angle of incidence of 30 degrees. Find the angle of refraction.	n = sin i / sin r, sin r = 0.5/1.5 = 0.333, r = 19.5 degrees (2 marks formula, 2 marks answer)
18	Find the speed of light in the medium of refractive index 1.5.	v = c/n = 3 x 10^8 / 1.5 = 2 x 10^8 m/s (2 marks formula, 2 marks answer)
19	A convex lens has focal length 10 cm and the object is 30 cm in front of it. Find the image distance and the magnification.	1/v = 1/10 – 1/30 gives v = 15 cm, magnification = v/u = 0.5 (2 marks formula, 1 mark each answer)
20	Find the critical angle between the medium of refractive index 1.5 and air.	sin c = 1/1.5 = 0.667, c = 41.8 degrees (2 marks formula, 2 marks answer)

Part F: Electricity

Write down the formula used and state the units.

#	Question	Answer and marking notes
21	A 12 V supply is connected across a 4 ohm resistor. Find the current and the power dissipated.	I = V/R = 3 A, P = VI = 36 W (1 mark each formula and each answer)
22	A 6 V battery is connected to a 2 ohm and a 4 ohm resistor in series. Find the current and the voltage across the 4 ohm resistor.	total resistance 6 ohm, I = 1 A, V = IR = 4 V (1 mark total resistance, 1 mark current, 2 marks voltage)
23	A 12 V supply is connected to a 6 ohm and a 3 ohm resistor in parallel. Find the equivalent resistance, the total current and the current in the 6 ohm resistor.	1/R = 1/6 + 1/3 gives R = 2 ohm, I = 6 A and 2 A in the 6 ohm branch (1 mark each, 1 mark total current)
24	A 2000 W heater runs for 3 hours. Electricity costs 1.5 dollars per kWh. Find the energy used in kWh and the cost.	E = 2 kW x 3 h = 6 kWh, cost = 6 x 1.5 = 9 dollars (2 marks conversion, 1 mark each answer)

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