O Levels Physics Mcq Simulation

This is a simulation for your MCQ physics paper.

The Actual paper is 40 questions and 1 hour long.

You will only have 50 minutes for this simulation. 40 minutes to do and 10 minutes to check your work.

Times up!

O level Pure physics

1 / 40

1) The pressure inside a gas cylinder is measured separately using two different mercury
manometers as shown in Fig. P and Q. One of the manometers has an open end while the other has a sealed end.
A barometer, as shown in Fig. R, is used to measure the atmospheric pressure at the location of the experiment.

The diagrams are not drawn to scale.
What is the height, h, of the mercury in Fig. Q?

1. 1000 mm

2. 800 mm

3. 40 mm

4. 720 mm

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2) Wiping the body of a patient who has a high fever with a wet towel makes use of the cooling effect of evaporation. When liquid evaporates, some liquid molecules in the liquid escape.

Which molecules in the liquid escape?

1. the molecules at the surface of the liquid with more energy than others

2. the molecules at the bottom of the liquid with less energy than others

3. the molecules at the surface of the liquid with less energy than others

4. the molecules at the bottom of the liquid with more energy than others

3 / 40

3) In the circuit shown, the resistance of R1 R2, and R3 are all equal to 3.0 Ω.

What is the power dissipated by R2?

1. 6.0 W

2. 12 W

3. 9.0 W

4. 3.0 W

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4) The front wheel of a car is turned in a anticlockwise direction by the engine as the car accelerates towards the left, as shown in the diagram. There is a force of friction between the wheel and the road.

1. B

2. A

3. D

4. C

5 / 40

5) A computer engineer wants the speed of a fan to increase when the temperature inside a computer increases. The engineer knows that a larger current causes the fan to turn more quickly.

Which component should be placed at X to make this happen?

1. a relay

2. a transformer

3. a variable resistor

4. a thermistor

6 / 40

6) A 5.0 W lamp is switched on for 180 s. It transfers 600 J to the internal store (thermal) of the surroundings. What is the efficiency of the lamp?

1. 70 %

2. 67 %

3. 33 %

4. 43 %

7 / 40

7) Which of the following correctly describes an action-reaction pair of forces?

1. The reaction force on a book resting on a table and the weight of the book.

2. A runner pushes backward on the ground and the ground pushes forwards on runner.

3. The backward force acting on water by propeller and the resistive force acting on the boat.

4. The pulling force acting on a trolley and the frictional force acting on the trolley.

8 / 40

8) A gas is in a sealed container of constant volume. The gas is heated and the pressure of the gas on the walls of the container increases.

How do the particles of the gas cause this increase in pressure?

1. They hit each other more frequently.

2. They expand.

3. They hit the container more frequently.

4. They vibrate faster.

9 / 40

9) A ray of light is incident on a plastic block in air, at an angle of incidence i. The refractive index of the plastic is n. The light ray refracts along the plastic-air boundary when it reaches X.

1. B

2. C

3. A

4. D

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10) A gas is heated in a rigid sealed container. Which quantity does not change?

1. The average speed of the gas particles.

2. The average distance between the gas particles.

3. The average force exerted on the walls of the container by the gas particles.

4. The frequency of collisions on the walls of the container by the gas particles.

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11) A resultant force acts on an object and causes it to move in a straight line. The graph shows how the resultant force varies with time.

1. B

2. A

3. D

4. C

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12) The diagram shows an object on the principal axis of a converging (convex) lens. F is the principal focus of the lens.

Where is the image formed by the lens?

1. between F and O

2. to the right of Q

3. at Q

4. between F and Q

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13)

1. B

2. A

3. C

4. D

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14) The figure shows an iron bar P and steel bar Q being wound by wire and connected to a d.c. supply. A compass is placed between the two metal bars at position X.

1. C

2. B

3. A

4. D

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15) The diagram shows a simple d.c. electric motor.

When the switch is closed, which of the following statements is correct?

I. A current will flow round the coil in the direction PQRT.

II The coil will rotate in a clockwise direction when viewed from side PT.

III The split-ring commutator reverses the current after every complete cycle.

1. I only

2. III only

3. I and III

4. II and III

16 / 40

16) A simple electromagnet can be made by winding a wire round an iron nail and supplying a current through a cell as shown in the diagram below.

1. D

2. C

3. B

4. A

17 / 40

17) Which graph represents the motion of a body falling vertically that reaches a terminal speed?

1. B

2. D

3. A

4. C

18 / 40

18) In a nuclear power station, energy released from nuclear reactions are harnessed to produce electricity. Which statement about the reactors in a nuclear power plant is correct?

1. Nuclear reactors make use of reactions where heavy nuclei decay into smaller nuclei.

2. Large amount of radioactive substances are required to produce a small amount of electricity.

3. A nuclear reaction may be initiated when a proton bombards a heavy nucleus, causing more protons to be released in a chain reaction.

4. The reactions are easily controlled and no harmful substances are produced in a nuclear reaction.

19 / 40

19) A detector of ionising radiation gives a background reading of 20 counts/minute.
A radioactive isotope with a half-life of 2.0 days is brought near to the detector. The reading on the detector increases to 100 counts/minute.
How long does it take for the reading on the detector to decrease to 40 counts/minute?

1. 10 days

2. 4.0 days

3. 2.0 days

4. 5.0 days

20 / 40

20) Electromagnetic waves from the Sun are absorbed by a solar panel. These waves transfer energy electrically to a portable traffic light system.

A few solar panels with a total area 12 m2 were used to operate the traffic light system. 1.0 m2 of a panel receives 0.85 kJ of energy via electromagnetic waves from the Sun in 1.0 s.

If the efficiency of the panels is 16 %, how much power do they transfer electrically?

1. 1.6 kW

2. 64 kW

3. 160 kW

4. 2.2 kW

21 / 40

21) A stone has a mass of 390 g and a density of 2.7 g/cm3. Cooking oil has a density of 0.90 g/cm3.

Which mass of cooking oil has the same volume as the stone?

1. 130 g

2. 1200g

3. 900g

4. 160g

22 / 40

22) The diagram shows two divergent rays of light from an object O being reflected from a plane mirror. At which position is the image formed?

1. C

2. D

3. A

4. B

23 / 40

23) A beam of radiation enters a region in which there is a very strong, uniform magnetic field directed into the page. All the equipment is in a vacuum.

The beam splits and the curved path and the straight path taken by the radiation in the magnetic field are shown on the diagram. What types of radiation are in the incident beam?

1. α-particles, β-particles and γ-rays

2. α-particles and γ-rays only

3. β-particles and γ-rays only

4. α-particles and β-particles only

24 / 40

24) Which statement about electromagnetic waves is correct?

1. X-rays are used to check for counterfeit notes.

2. Microwaves are used in satellite communications.

3. Visible light can damage human proteins and DNA.

4. Infrared rays are used in sunbeds for artificial sun tanning.

25 / 40

25) The diagram below shows light travelling from water and undergoing refraction.

1. B

2. D

3. A

4. C

26 / 40

26) A magnet is pushed slowly into a coil, and there is a current in the coil in the direction shown.

The magnet is then pulled out quickly from the same end of the coil.

What happens to the direction and the size of the current?

1. D

2. C

3. A

4. B

27 / 40

27) The input power to a motor is 300 W. In 20 s, it lifts a load through a height of 6.0 m.

The efficiency of the motor is 60%.

What is the weight of the load?

1. 900 N

2. 600 N

3. 1000 N

4. 100 N

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28) The diagram shows a simple A.C generator, consisting of a coil of wire WXYZ placed in between two magnets.

1. C

2. D

3. A

4. B

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29) A gymnast of mass 60 kg lands on a trampoline. If he rebounds upwards with an acceleration of 0.60 m/s^2, what is the maximum force exerted by the trampoline on the gymnast?

1. 564 N

2. 36 N

3. 672 N

4. 636 N

30 / 40

30) What is the function of the earth wire?

1. It closes the circuit so current may flow to operate a device.

2. It provides an alternative path for current to flow if a wiring fault occurs.

3. It allows excessive charges to be stored to conserve energy

4. It is a high resistance wire to reduce the amount of current to a safe level.

31 / 40

31) The acceleration of free fall on a particular planet is 8.0 m s-2. An object was dropped from rest and hit the ground after 1.5 s.

Air resistance is negligible.

From what height was the object dropped?

1. 18.0 m

2. 9.0 m

3. 12.0 m

4. 6.0 m

32 / 40

32) A water wave travels from deep water to shallow water in a ripple tank as shown in the diagram.

Waves in the deep water have a wavelength of 3.6 cm and a speed of 18 cm /s.

The speed of the waves in shallow water is 15 cm / s. What is the wavelength of the waves in the shallow water?

1. 4.3 cm

2. 5.0 cm

3. 3.6 cm

4. 3.0 cm

33 / 40

33) The diagram shows two buoys P and Q sitting on a pond. A wave moves across the pond from left to right.

At the moment shown, buoy Q is at the crest and buoy P is at the trough. Which row describes the movement of the buoys during the next cycle of the wave?

1. C

2. A

3. B

4. D

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34) Which process(es) of thermal energy transfer require a medium?

1. radiation only

2. conduction and convection

3. conduction only

4. convection and radiation

35 / 40

35)

In an experiment, smoke particles are suspended in air and viewed through a microscope. The smoke particles undergo jerky random motion.

Which statement is correct?

1. Air particles move at high speed compared to smoke particles and they move in one direction only.

2. Air particles move at high speed compared to smoke particle and they move in random directions.

3. Air particles have large mass compared to smoke particles and they move in random directions.

4. Air particles have large mass compared to smoke particles and they move in one direction only.

36 / 40

36) A crate of oranges is pulled across a rough surface by a force, causing the crate to accelerate
at 1.5 m/s2. The combined mass of the crate and oranges is 24 kg.

1. C

2. B

3. A

4. D

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37) The gravitational field strength on Earth is 9.8 N/ kg. The gravitational field strength on Mars is 3.7 N/ kg. The difference between the weight of an object on Earth and the weight of the same object on Mars is 25 N.

What is the mass of the object?

1. 1.9 kg

2. 6.8 kg

3. 4.1 kg

4. 2.6 kg`

38 / 40

38) An observer hears a clap of thunder 3.0 s after seeing the flash of lightning. The speed of sound in air is 330 m/s.

How far from the observer was the lightning?

1. 330 m

2. 110 m

3. 1980 m

4. 990 m

39 / 40

39) A rubber ducky is released from the bottom of a pool of water. Almost immediately, it rises at a constant speed to reach the surface of the water. Which of the following best describes the resultant force acting on the rubber ducky?

1. upwards and equal to the rubber ducky’s weight

2. upwards and less than the rubber ducky’s weight

3. zero

4. upwards and greater than the rubber ducky’s weight

40 / 40

40) A builder holding a brick of mass 3000 g drops the brick on his foot. What is a reasonable estimate of the change in the gravitational potential store of the brick?

1. 300 J

2. 3000 J

3. 30 J

4. 30000 J

Your score is

The average score is 14%

Physics MCQ Paper 1 now carries a 30% weightage under the current syllabus.
This is a significant portion that can easily impact your final grade by 2–3 bands. To maximise your score, aim for full marks by doing plenty of targeted practice. It might make the difference between A1 and A2.

Never underestimate the difficulty of multiple-choice questions — they are often designed to test your precision and attention to detail. Always check your answers carefully, manage your time wisely, and stay alert for tricky questions.

How are the questions being set?

-Knowledge with Understanding, approximately 45% of the marks with approximately 15% allocated to recall.

-Handling Information and Solving Problems, approximately 55% of the marks.