Final answer:
Stress is the force per unit area applied to a specimen that causes it to deform, measured in pascals. The deformation measured by this force is known as strain, which can be tensile, compressive, or shear, depending on the nature of the stress applied to the material.
Step-by-step explanation:
The force or load applied to a specimen that causes it to deform is known as stress. Stress is a physical quantity defined as the force per unit area applied to a material. When a force is applied perpendicular to the surface of an object, it can cause the object to elongate (tensile stress) or to compress (compressive stress). However, if the force acts parallel to the object's surface, it may cause the material to shear, resulting in shear stress. The response of the material to stress is called strain, which represents the deformation of the object. This is a dimensionless number expressing the ratio of the change in length, volume, or shape to the original size of the object under stress.