SIMPLIFIED: "Tension vs. Compression Force: What's the Difference?"

Link to article: https://www.uscargocontrol.com/blogs/blog/tension-vs-compression-force-whats-the-difference?srsltid=AfmBOopZvoKjWVnt2rhuCM1Ao-A4VLtgO3u2ZBartJmsTibc8pegJic2 

Note: The image above was taken from the original article.

The article linked above talks about the difference between tension and compression. I have already simplified an article that deals with tension force, and that simplified article can be found under the physics tab. If you want to learn more about tension force, then go check that out. However, this specific simplified article will go into the details regarding the difference between tension and compression.

Tension is a force where you pull something with a string, cable, rope, or anything else that is a pull (tension force isn’t limited to only strings, cables, and ropes, but these are the most common objects used in problems). Think about stretching a rubber band on both ends. A tension force is being exerted on the rubber band because it is being stretched in opposite directions. You can probably imagine what I am talking about.

On the other hand, compression is not a pull, rather it is a pushing force. The easiest example to think about compression would probably be a spring in my opinion. If a spring is glued to the ground and you are pushing downwards on it, that spring is being compressed because you are pushing the spring towards its other end. Another easy example to think about would be a hydraulic press. A hydraulic press pushes down on another object, therefore compressing the object. This is why in conversations, when someone says something is being compressed, they mean that a pushing force is applied to that object.