Life Processes in Plants MCQs for UPSC Prelims

105 practice questions covering Life Processes in Plants, organised into 1 topics. 105 questions include a written explanation. Pick a topic below, or try the samples first.

Practice by topic

Sample questions

Q1
medium

Moist germinating seeds are shut inside a sealed flask overnight. In the morning the air of the flask is passed through clear limewater, which turns milky. This shows that the seeds have

  1. A used up all the carbon dioxide in the flask
  2. B given out oxygen while making food
  3. C stored starch inside the flask
  4. D given out carbon dioxide while respiring
Show answer and explanation

Correct answer: D - given out carbon dioxide while respiring

Limewater turns milky only where carbon dioxide is present, and the seeds in the dark flask could only have produced it by respiring. They made no food in the sealed dark flask, so they added carbon dioxide rather than using it up, and starch cannot be tested by limewater.

Q2
hard

A plant is first kept in the dark until its leaves hold no starch. A strip of black paper is then clipped over part of one leaf and the plant is left in sunlight for a whole day. When that leaf is tested with iodine, the result will be that

  1. A the covered part turns blue-black while the uncovered part does not
  2. B no part of the leaf turns blue-black
  3. C the whole leaf turns blue-black
  4. D the uncovered part turns blue-black while the covered part does not
Show answer and explanation

Correct answer: D - the uncovered part turns blue-black while the covered part does not

Only the part reached by sunlight could make food, so only that part stores starch and gives the blue-black colour. The covered strip stayed in the dark, so it stays pale, and since one part did receive light, neither the whole leaf nor none of it can give the colour.

Q3
medium

A leaf that has been making food turns blue-black when iodine solution is dropped on it. This colour shows the presence of

  1. A chlorophyll
  2. B oxygen
  3. C starch
  4. D carbon dioxide
Show answer and explanation

Correct answer: C - starch

The blue-black colour appears only where starch is present, so the test shows that food has been made and stored in the leaf. Oxygen and carbon dioxide are gases that iodine does not detect, and chlorophyll is deliberately removed before the test is carried out.

Q4
easy

A money plant is kept inside a dark cupboard and watered regularly. Over a few weeks it turns pale and weak. The factor missing here is

  1. A air
  2. B soil
  3. C water
  4. D sunlight
Show answer and explanation

Correct answer: D - sunlight

The plant is being watered and is sitting in soil with air all around it, so the only thing it lacks inside the cupboard is light. Without light a green plant cannot make food, and it slowly loses its colour and its strength.

Q5
easy

Water taken in by the roots reaches the leaves by passing through the

  1. A root hairs alone
  2. B stem
  3. C fruits
  4. D flowers
Show answer and explanation

Correct answer: B - stem

The stem is the passage that joins the roots to the leaves and carries water upward through it. Root hairs are where water enters at the very beginning, and flowers and fruits are not on the path from the soil to the leaves.

Q6
easy

The food made in the leaves of a plant is carried

  1. A to all the other parts of the plant, including the roots
  2. B out of the plant and into the soil
  3. C only upward to the topmost leaves
  4. D only to the flowers of the plant
Show answer and explanation

Correct answer: A - to all the other parts of the plant, including the roots

Every part of a plant needs food, and the food made in the leaves is carried to the stem, the roots, the flowers and the fruits alike. Sending it only to the flowers or only upward would starve the rest, and a plant does not pour its food into the soil.

Practice the full Life Processes in Plants bank free

All 105 questions with timed practice, instant scoring, and explanations. Free forever.

Other subjects

Environment & Ecology 1200 Economy 1075 Logical Reasoning 1013 Quantitative Aptitude 916 Polity & Governance 897 Geography 885 Science & Technology 830 Ancient & Medieval History 737 Art & Culture 711 Modern History 589 International Relations 582 Data Interpretation 515 Reading Comprehension 408 Number Play 317 Fractions 142 A Peek Beyond the Point 125 Light: Shadows and Reflections 120 Quadrilaterals 120 Changes Around Us: Physical and Chemical 120 Proportional Reasoning-1 120 Measurement of Length and Motion 116 Exploring Substances: Acidic, Basic, and Neutral 116 Prime Time 116 Light: Mirrors and Lenses 116 Mindful Eating: A Path to a Healthy Body 115 Exploring Forces 115 Lines and Angles 115 Measurement of Time and Motion 115 Nature's Treasures 115 Parallel and Intersecting Lines 115 Pressure, Winds, Storms, and Cyclones 115 Power Play 114 The Invisible Living World: Beyond Our Naked Eye 112 Working with Fractions 110 Diversity in the Living World 110 A Journey through States of Water 110 A Tale of Three Intersecting Lines 110 The Amazing World of Solutes, Solvents, and Solutions 110 Electricity: Circuits and their Components 110 How Nature Works in Harmony 110 Large Numbers Around Us 110 Nature of Matter: Elements, Compounds, and Mixtures 110 The World of Metals and Non-metals 110 Electricity: Magnetic and Heating Effects 110 We Distribute, Yet Things Multiply 110 A Square and A Cube 109 The Other Side of Zero 106 Heat Transfer in Nature 105 Living Creatures: Exploring their Characteristics 105 Health: The Ultimate Treasure 105 Expressions using Letter-Numbers 105 Methods of Separation in Everyday Life 105 Exploring Magnets 105 Our Home: Earth, a Unique Life Sustaining Planet 105 Beyond Earth 105 Life Processes in Animals 105 Patterns in Mathematics 103 Perimeter and Area 100 Particulate Nature of Matter 100 Materials Around Us 100 A Story of Numbers 100 Earth, Moon, and the Sun 100