Displacement is the act of moving something or someone from their usual place or position. When a new highway gets built through a neighborhood, it might cause the displacement of families who have to move elsewhere. When floodwaters rise, they can cause the displacement of entire communities.

In physics, displacement has a precise meaning: it's the straight-line distance between where something started and where it ended up. If you walk around your school building in a complete circle, you've traveled a long distance but your displacement is zero because you ended up right where you started. But if you walk straight from your classroom to the library, your displacement is exactly that straight-line distance.

The word also describes what happens when one thing pushes another out of its space. When you lower yourself into a bathtub, you displace water, which is why the water level rises. Ancient Greek scientist Archimedes discovered this principle: any object placed in water displaces an amount of water equal to its own volume.

In psychology, displacement describes redirecting feelings from their real source to something safer. A student frustrated with a difficult test might come home and snap at their younger sibling, displacing anger that belongs elsewhere.