Contact and Non-contact Forces

Key Stage 2

Meaning

Contact forces are forces that only act when two objects are touching each other. Non-contact forces are forces that can act even if the objects are not touching.

About Contact and Non-contact Forces

Most forces are contact forces:

• Pushing a door
• Pulling a rope
• Friction
• Squeezing or squashing an object.

Only a few forces are non-contact forces:

• Magnetism
• Weight or Gravity