Physical & Chemical Changes - Notes | Study Science Class 5 - Class 5

Physical Changes 

A physical change is a temporary change that can be reversed. For example, melting of ice, evaporation of water, melting of wax and glowing of a bulb are physical changes as they give us back the original substance.

Examples: 

• Boiling, melting, freezing, and shredding
• Melting of butter, ice cream, wax 
• Shredding of paper, clothes, etc 
• Chopping wood

Original material remains same. These changes are in the state of matter and can be reversed easily.

Chemical Changes

A chemical change is a permanent change that cannot be reversed. For example, burning of paper, burning of matchsticks, cooking of food and formation of curd from milk are chemical changes.

Examples: 

• Burning, cooking, rusting, and rotting 
• Burning wood 
• Souring milk 
• Cooking an egg 
• Heating sugar to form caramel 
• Baking a cake 
• Rusting of iron

We cannot get original things back when a chemical change occurs in them. A chemical change results from a chemical reaction.