Semantics in teaching introductory physics

One reason that many able students find introductory college physics difficult is the way language is used in this course. The large vocabulary we use for precise purposes in physics contains many words which have related, but potentially confusing meanings in everyday usage. A surprising number of other words we use frequently are not used consistently in the language of introductory textbooks. Even our statements of important and well-established principles like Newton's laws of motion are inconsistent. I analyze the treatment of Newton's laws of motion in several well-known introductory textbooks for evidence of such problems. A series of suggestions for ways of reducing these difficulties concludes the paper. (C) 1999 American Association of Physics Teachers.