Which term refers to the rate at which work is performed?

The term that refers to the rate at which work is performed is power. Power measures how quickly work gets done or how much energy is transferred over a specific time period. It quantifies the effectiveness of doing work, making it a crucial concept in physics and engineering.

Power is commonly expressed in watts (W), where one watt equals one joule of work done per second. For example, if a machine does 100 joules of work in 4 seconds, its power output is 25 watts, illustrating the relationship between work, energy, and time. Understanding power is essential in evaluating the performance of machines and understanding various physical processes, from engines to electrical devices.

The other terms relate to fundamental concepts in physics but do not specifically define the rate of work performed. Force pertains to the push or pull acting on an object, energy refers to the capacity to do work, and mass measures the amount of matter in an object. Each of these plays a role in work and power calculations but does not directly represent the concept of rate itself.