moment

In physics, moment is a combination of a physical quantity and a distance. Moments are usually defined with respect to a fixed reference point or axis; they deal with physical quantities as measured at some distance from that reference point or axis. For example, a moment of force is the product of a force and its distance from an axis, which causes rotation about that axis. In principle, any physical quantity can be combined with a distance to produce a moment; commonly used quantities include forces, masses, and electric charge distributions.