Others have answered your question rather well. Let me offer a perspective. I believe it was Feynman who said that theoretical physicists have a very simple go

Others have answered your question rather well. Let me offer a perspective. I believe it was Feynman who said that theoretical physicists have a very simple goal: they just wants to predict the future. Now this might be impossible in full generality, but in controlled circumstances (which we usually call "experiments") they can often do a pretty good job of predicting the outcome. As far as we know, predicting the future requires mathematics which is therefore the physicists' main tool. In doing so it is practical to give a name, like 'force' or 'geodesic motion' or 'particle' or 'wave', to certain mathematical concepts. But in my view one should not get too hung up on the precise meaning of any of those words, simply because it is not productive if the mathematics is already clear enough. In fact, I think this is the most common misconception for people with a passing interest in physics. (See also discussions elsewhere on this page...) So allow me to stress this: these words really mean very little without the equations. Of course, mine is just a physicist's perspective. I imagine your question would be the bread and butter for a philosopher.