What is the symbol equation for work done?
Sarah Silva
Updated on April 03, 2026
Moreover, what is the equation for work done?
Those three quantities are force, displacement and the angle between the force and the displacement. The work is subsequently calculated as force•displacement•cosine(theta) where theta is the angle between the force and the displacement vectors.
Additionally, what does the θ represent in the work equation? The angle theta in the equation is associated with the amount of force that causes a displacement. As mentioned in a previous unit, when a force is exerted on an object at an angle to the horizontal, only a part of the force contributes to (or causes) a horizontal displacement.
Subsequently, one may also ask, what is the symbol for work done in physics?
Work (physics)
| Work | |
|---|---|
| Common symbols | W |
| SI unit | joule (J) |
| Other units | Foot-pound, Erg |
| In SI base units | 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−2 |
What is the mathematical expression for work done?
To express this concept mathematically, the work W is equal to the force f times the distance d, or W = fd. If the force is being exerted at an angle θ to the displacement, the work done is W = fd cos θ.