What is the rate of doing work called?

The rate of doing work is referred to as power. Power quantifies how quickly work is performed or energy is transferred over a specific period of time. It is commonly measured in watts, where one watt is equal to one joule per second. Understanding power is essential for evaluating the efficiency of machines and systems in terms of how quickly they can convert energy from one form to another.

Kinetic energy relates to the energy an object has due to its motion, while potential energy is the energy stored in an object due to its position or state. Work itself is defined as the amount of energy transferred by a force acting over a distance. While work, kinetic energy, and potential energy are all closely linked concepts within the laws of physics, they do not represent the rate at which work is done, which is why power is the correct term in this context.