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Have you ever played on a swing and noticed how it moves back and forth? That repeating movement is called oscillatory motion.
In this type of motion, an object moves around a central resting position called the equilibrium, which is where it naturally comes to rest.
When you pull a swing back and let go, gravity pulls it downward, while momentum keeps it moving past the center.
As the swing moves, energy constantly changes between two forms.
Pulling the swing back from its center position stores potential energy. As it swings back toward the center, that potential energy turns into kinetic energy.
The farther you pull it, the more potential energy it has—and the faster it moves.
This back-and-forth continues until forces like friction or air resistance slow it down.
A clock’s pendulum and a stretched spring bouncing back and forth are also examples of oscillatory motion.
So, oscillatory motion is the repeated back-and-forth movement of objects around a resting position, driven by the continuous exchange of energy.
