Physical Changes

Have you ever noticed ice melting into water or a paper being cut into tiny pieces? These are great examples of physical changes in matter!

A physical change happens when matter changes size, shape, or state without becoming a different substance.

For example, when ice melts into water, it changes from a solid to a liquid, but it’s still water—its chemical properties remain the same.

Cutting a piece of paper into smaller pieces changes its shape and size, but it’s still paper!

Even salt dissolving in water is a physical change; the salt spreads evenly, leaving the water with a salty flavor.

Some physical changes can be reversed, like freezing water back into ice or boiling salt water to retrieve the salt.

Even rocks undergo physical changes as wind-blown sand wears them down into smaller grains, keeping their minerals unchanged.

Changes like melting, freezing, boiling, cutting, and bending are all physical changes. They don’t make new substances, just change forms!

So, next time you see something that changes shape or state, ask yourself: Is it still the same substance?