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 diagram represents the surface of a transparent liquid. Two rays of light are travelling within the liquid. They both reach the surface. The path of each ray is shown.

What is the refractive index of this liquid?

1. 1.2

2. 1.7

3. 1.6

4. 1.3

2 / 40

2) 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. B

3. C

4. A

3 / 40

3) An electric heater which is rated ‘240 V, 1500 W’ is connected to a 3-pin socket. Which of the following correctly describes the current in the neutral wire and the potential difference between the earth and neutral wire during normal operation?

1. D

2. A

3. C

4. B

4 / 40

4) Waves in the electromagnetic spectrum have different uses.

Which uses of the electromagnetic spectrum are incorrect?

1 . X-rays are used for prenatal scanning of the foetus.

2. Infra-red radiation is used in suntanning beds.

3. Microwaves are used in wireless telecommunications.

1. 1 and 2 only

2. 1 and 3 only

3. 1, 2 and 3

4. 2 and 3 only

5 / 40

5) Which statement about the transfer of thermal energy is correct?

1. Transfer upwards in fluids is mainly through the vibrations of neighbouring particles.

2. Transfer by radiation does not require a medium.

3. Transfer in solids is by means of density changes in the material.

4. Transfer is from a region of lower temperature to one of higher temperature.

6 / 40

6) 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. C

2. D

3. B

4. A

7 / 40

7) A 3-pin plug is connected to a heater with a rating of ‘200V, 1200 W’.

Which of the following is/are correct?

1 . A 5A fuse should be used inside the heater.

2 . The fuse should be placed on the brown wire of the cable.

3 . The neutral wire should be connected to the metal case of the heater.

1. 2 and 3 only

2. 2 only

3. 3 only

4. 1 and 2 only

8 / 40

8) In nuclear ……1……, hydrogen nuclei ……2…… to form helium nuclei, releasing energy.

Which words correctly complete blanks 1 and 2?

1. B

2. D

3. A

4. C

9 / 40

9) An image is formed in a plane mirror.

1. C

2. A

3. D

4. B

10 / 40

10) The diagram shows a network of resistors. Each resistor has a resistance of 6.0 Ω.

What is the total resistance of the network between points X and Y?

1. 7.2

2. 3.0

3. 5.0

4. 18

11 / 40

11) A boy climbs slowly at a steady speed to the top of a small hill.

What is the main energy transfer taking place for the boy as he climbs?

1. chemical potential store to gravitational potential store

2. internal store to kinetic store

3. chemical potential store to kinetic store

4. kinetic store to gravitational potential store

12 / 40

12) What is the function of the earth wire?

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

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

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

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

13 / 40

13) The displacement–time graph for an air particle in the path of a sound wave is shown.

Which property of the sound wave must be increasing?

1. amplitude

2. wavelength

3. period

4. frequency

14 / 40

14) 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. D

3. A

4. C

15 / 40

15) Two identical beakers contain the same mass of liquid.
Each beaker contains a different liquid.

Liquid Q has a density ρ.
What is the density of liquid P

1. ρ

2. ρ ÷ 3

3. 9ρ

4. 3ρ

16 / 40

16) 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 bottom of the liquid with more energy than others

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

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

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

17 / 40

17)

1. C

2. D

3. A

4. B

18 / 40

18) Light in a vacuum strikes a glass surface at an angle of incidence of 42 °. In the glass, the angle of refraction is 29 °.

What is the speed of light in glass?

1. 2.2× 10^8 m / s

2. 2.1 × 10^8 m / s

3. 4.1 × 10^8 m / s

4. 3.0 × 10^8 m / s

19 / 40

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

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

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

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

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

20 / 40

20) The speed of a wave is 4.0 × 10^5 m/s. The wavelength of the same wave is measured to be 5.0 × 10^6 m.

Determine the period of the wave.

1. 2.0 × 10^12 s

2. 0.080 s

3. 5.0 × 10^-13 s

4. 12.5 s

21 / 40

21) A metal rod AB is placed on two smooth horizontal metal rails on the bench. The rail and the rod are subjected to an external magnetic field. The top view of the setup is shown below.

When switch S is closed, in which direction will rod AB move?

1. out of the page

2. into the page

3. to the right of the page

4. to the left of the page

22 / 40

22) The diagram shows two wires, X and Y, made of the same material.

Wire X has resistance R and length 𝑙𝑙. Wire Y is twice as long as wire X, and its radius, r, is half of that of wire X.

What is the resistance of wire Y?

1. 8R

2. R/2

3. 2R

4. 4R

23 / 40

23) The graph shows the total resistive force that acts on a car of mass 830 kg over a period of time. The car is at rest at t = 0 s. A constant driving force of 2500 N acts on the car from t = 2 s to t = 24 s.

Which statement is incorrect?

1. The resultant force acting on the car increases from t = 2 s to t = 16 s.

2. The car is stationary from t = 0 s to t = 2 s.

3. The acceleration of the car is zero after t = 16 s.

4. The acceleration of the car is 3.0 m/s2 at t = 2 s.

24 / 40

24) Which of the following best describes the conventional current and its unit?

1. It is the rate of flow of negative charges and its unit is the ampere.

2. It is the rate of flow of positive charges and its unit is the coulomb.

3. It is the rate of flow of positive charges and its unit is the ampere.

4. It is the rate of flow of negative charges and its unit is the coulomb.

25 / 40

25) The diagram shows the distance-time graph of a moving object.

Which of the following describes this moving object?

1. It is a rock that is dropped from a high cliff and falling into the sea below

2. It is a ball thrown vertically upwards and falling back to the thrower.

3. It is a train slowing down and coming to a stop at a train station.

4. It is a car that starts from rest and speeds up as it moves away from a traffic signal.

26 / 40

26) The diagram below shows the plug of an old electric iron wired wrongly.

What happens when the electric iron is plugged into the electrical socket?

1. The electric iron catches fire.

2. The fuse in the plug blows.

3. The metal case becomes live.

4. The electric iron does not work.

27 / 40

27) 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. B

2. C

3. A

4. D

28 / 40

28) The diagram below shows a simple d.c. motor

Which of the following statements is/are correct?

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

II. The coil will rotate in a clockwise direction about the axle.

III. The split-ring commutator will reverse the direction of the current every 360°.

1. I and II only

2. I only

3. I and III only

4. II and III only

29 / 40

29) A converging lens L acts as a magnifying glass when an object AB is placed 4.0 cm from the centre of the lens. The image CD is 6.0 cm from A. Focal length of the lens is 6.0 cm.

What are the characteristics of the image formed when the object is placed 12.0 cm away from the centre of the lens ?

1. real and diminished

2. virtual and same size as object

3. virtual and diminished

4. real and same size as object

30 / 40

30) 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 vibrate faster.

3. They hit the container more frequently.

4. They expand.

31 / 40

31) A car of mass 1500 kg is towing a trailer of mass 1100 kg along a level road. The acceleration of the car is 1.30 m/s2. Ignoring friction and air resistance, what is the driving force on the car?

1. 1950 N

2. 520 N

3. 1430 N

4. 3380 N

32 / 40

32) In a game of softball, a player strikes a ball using a bat, exerting a force F on the ball.

Which of the following, with F, forms an action-reaction pair?

1. the force of the Earth on the ball

2. the force of the ball on the bat

3. the force of the air on the ball

4. the force of the ball on air

33 / 40

33) A house-owner replaces a blown fuse for the lights of the house. When the lights are switched on, the second fuse also blows. The house-owner then uses a third fuse with a higher rating than the previous two.

Why is this not a sensible thing to do?

1. Using a fuse with too high a rating causes electric shocks.

2. Fuses only allow the circuit to work if the rating is exactly right.

3. The third fuse will melt because the rating is too high.

4. The circuit may work, but the fault is not corrected.

34 / 40

34) A consultant for a cookware manufacturer wishes to make a pan that will have two features:

(i) absorb energy from a flame as quickly as possible, and

(ii) has a cooking surface that stays as hot as possible when heated.

Which pan would be recommended?

1. outer surface black and inner surface shiny

2. outer and inner surface shiny

3. outer surface shiny and inner surface black

4. outer and inner surface black

35 / 40

35) Object X is stationary and positively charged. It experiences a force due to the field produced by object Y. The arrows show the direction of the field produced by Y.

Which statement about the direction of the force on X is correct?

1. It is towards the right because it is in a magnetic field.

2. It is towards the left because it is in a magnetic field.

3. It is towards the right because it is in an electric field.

4. It is towards the left because it is in an electric field.

36 / 40

36) A loudspeaker and a microphone are placed side by side in front of a wall. The loudspeaker makes a sound that is detected by the microphone. The microphone is connected to a device known as an oscilloscope, which is set so that each horizontal division on its screen represents a duration of 0.01 s. The microphone detects the original sound and the echo.

The speed of sound in air is 300 m/s.

What is the distance between the loudspeaker and the wall?

1. 24 m

2. 6.0 m

3. 12 m

4. 48 m

37 / 40

37) Block A and block B are connected by a light inextensible string. A force of 12 N acts on block A as shown.

Given that the floor is smooth, what is the tension in the string connecting block A and block B?

1. 2.0 N

2. 8.0 N

3. 4.0 N

4. 12 N

38 / 40

38) Alex is jogging at constant speed beside a road. He sees the traffic lights in front of him turn amber, so he begins to jog at a lower constant speed. Which distance-time graph illustrates Alex’s motion?

1. D

2. C

3. B

4. A

39 / 40

39) Two resistors of 3 ohms and 6 ohms are arranged in parallel. A p.d. is connected across the terminals X and Y.

The current through the 6 ohms resistor is 4 A.

What is the current in the ammeter?

1. 12A

2. 8A

3. 4A

4. 6A

40 / 40

40) 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

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.