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Mass measures the quantity of matter contained in an object and indicates its resistance to changes in motion. This is an essential concept in physics, where mass plays a critical role in understanding motion and force. An object's mass is a scalar quantity and does not change regardless of its location in the universe, which means that it remains consistent whether the object is on Earth, the Moon, or in space.

In terms of resistance to motion, mass is directly related to inertia—the property of an object that causes it to resist changes in its state of motion. An object with greater mass will require more force to change its motion compared to an object with less mass. This concept is fundamental to Newton's Second Law of Motion, which states that the force acting on an object is equal to the mass of that object multiplied by its acceleration.

The other options refer to different concepts: velocity pertains to speed and direction of motion, weight involves the gravitational force acting on an object and varies with location, and volume measures the amount of three-dimensional space an object occupies, which is distinct from mass in terms of both definition and physical properties.