Geodesic (general relativity)

A geodesic is like a pathway that is the shortest possible distance between two points in a curved space. Imagine you are walking on a big, bouncy ball- if you want to get from one point to another as quickly as possible, you would need to walk along the curvature of the ball, rather than walking straight across it.

In the same way, in general relativity, geodesics describe the paths that objects follow in a curved space due to the presence of mass and energy. This can explain things like how planets orbit around the sun, or how light is bent by a massive object like a black hole.

So, when talking about geodesics in general relativity, we're essentially describing how objects move in a universe that is curved and warped by mass and energy.