Position tells you where an object is; displacement tells you how far and in what direction its position has changed from one moment to another.

Core definitions

  • Position : The location of an object relative to a chosen reference point (origin), often written as a coordinate like (x,y,z)(x,y,z)(x,y,z).
  • Displacement : The change in position from an initial point to a final point; it is a vector with both magnitude and direction.

Mathematically, if r⃗i\vec{r}_iri​ is the initial position and r⃗f\vec{r}_frf​ is the final position, then

displacement⃗=r⃗f−r⃗i\vec{\text{displacement}}=\vec{r}_f-\vec{r}_idisplacement​=rf​−ri​

Simple example

Imagine a 2D grid:

  • At 9:00, a particle is at position (3,4)(3,4)(3,4). This is just where it is relative to the origin.
  • At 9:05, it is at (7,2)(7,2)(7,2). That’s its new position.

The displacement from 9:00 to 9:05 is

(7−3, 2−4)=(4, −2)(7-3,;2-4)=(4,;-2)(7−3,2−4)=(4,−2)

This means it moved 4 units to the right and 2 units down compared with where it started.

Key differences at a glance

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Aspect Position Displacement
What it describes Exact location of an object relative to a reference point. Change in location from initial to final position.
Type of quantity Vector (position vector from origin to the point). Vector (has magnitude and direction).
Formula idea $$\vec{r}$$ itself, e.g., $$\vec{r} = x\hat{i} + y\hat{j} + z\hat{k}$$. $$\vec{r}_f - \vec{r}_i$$ (final minus initial position).
Depends on The chosen origin/frame of reference. Both initial and final positions, plus chosen positive direction.
Fixed vs. “moveable” Position vector is drawn from the origin to the object. Displacement vector can be drawn anywhere parallel to itself, as long as it connects start to end.
Can be zero? Only zero if the object is exactly at the origin. Zero if final position = initial position (you end where you started).

A quick story to lock it in

Think of your room as a grid on the floor.

  • The corner where two walls meet is your origin.
  • Your position at any moment is like saying, “I’m 2 steps from the corner along the wall, and 3 steps into the room.” That might be (2,3)(2,3)(2,3).
  • You walk around in circles, wander to your desk, then your bed, then back near where you started, and finally stop at (5,1)(5,1)(5,1). All those twists and turns don’t matter for displacement.

Your displacement is simply “from (2,3)(2,3)(2,3) to (5,1)(5,1)(5,1)”, which is (5−2, 1−3)=(3, −2)(5-2,;1-3)=(3,;-2)(5−2,1−3)=(3,−2): 3 steps in one direction, 2 steps in the perpendicular direction back toward the wall.

You might have walked 30 steps total (distance), but your displacement is just the straight-line vector from where you began to where you ended.

In one sentence: Position is “where you are,” while displacement is “how your position changed from start to finish, including direction.”

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.