Do You Have What It Takes to Be an Electrician?

By: J. Reinoehl
Estimated Completion Time
5 min
Do You Have What It Takes to Be an Electrician?
Image: Shutterstock

About This Quiz

Beginning electricians learn most of their knowledge on the job, but if you want to move up through the ranks, you have to get a license, which requires a three- to five-year apprenticeship. Although this quiz won’t cover the entire 1,000 page NEC, you might find one or two tricky questions here. Test exactly how much you know about being an electrician by taking this quiz!
What does NEC stand for?
Not Electrically Cautious.
Needing Electrical Circuits.
National Electric Code.
“By an irony of fate, my first employment was as a draughtsman. I hated drawing; it was for me the very worst of annoyances. Fortunately, it was not long before I secured the position I sought—that of chief electrician to the telephone company.” Nikola Tesla
Negative Electrical Current.

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What is electricity?
The transformations of substances in composition, structure and movement.
Using natural means to propel something through water or any liquid or gas.
The ability to act or be acted upon.
A form of energy that is either positive or negative and is expressed in terms of the movement of electrons.
William Gilbert first used the term “electricity” in 1600 to describe static electricity. Benjamin Franklin is credited with discovering lightning was electricity in 1759.

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What is a battery?
A rod or wire used to receive or transmit television or radio signals.
An object designed to convert chemical energy into electrical energy.
“To be honest, in my five years as an electrician, I never got the license.” –Nick Flynn
A device for converting sound waves into electrical energy.
A device that converts electrical energy into motion.

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Which of the following is a unit of resistance?
Hertz.
Volt.
Ohm.
The ohm is named after Georg Simon Ohm (1789-1854). It is equal to volts over amperes.
Joule.

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In the U. S., where do you have to place the bathroom outlet?
Exactly two feet away from the door.
Six inches above the shower head.
Behind the toilet.
Within three feet of the sink basin.
“Electricity is really just organized lightning.” –George Carlin

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Which is the best material to use for wiring in homes?
Aluminum.
Copper.
During the 1960s and beginning of the 1970s, aluminum replaced copper wiring as a cheaper alternative and continued to be used in mobile homes until the 1990s. Unfortunately, aluminum needs special, sometimes costly, connectors every time it is connected to an outlet or fixture or it will degrade the connection and make it prone to fires without tripping the circuit breaker to prevent it. Replacing the aluminum wire or hiring a specially trained electrician to fix the connections are the only ways to prevent future fires.
Gold
Silver.

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What is a switched receptacle?
Where the outlet pulls electricity into it, such as from solar panels.
When an outlet or light switch is installed upside down.
When a light switch operates an outlet.
“Invention is the most important product of a man’s creative brain. The ultimate purpose is the complete mastery of mind over the material world, the harnessing of human nature to human needs.” –Nikola Tesla, My Inventions
When the receptacle is connected to a circuit breaker or fuse.

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What does “short circuit” mean?
A circuit that is no more than 20 feet long.
A circuit that allows current to travel on incorrect paths of little or no resistance.
Short circuits are frequently caused by damaged or old wiring insulation, loose connections, old appliances, and household pests. They need to be repaired quickly or they can cause fires.
A circuit that is wired in series instead of parallel.
A circuit with only the basic components.

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Which tool would you need to use before you could connect two wires together?
A Phillips screwdriver.
A wire stripper.
“There is a force more powerful than steam and electricity: the will.” –Fernán Caballero
A tape measure.
A hammer.

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A ground wire will usually be which color?
Green.
Wires that are black, red, and blue are all hot and should be considered dangerous. Green wires are usually ground wires.
Black.
Red.
Blue.

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Which type of semiconductor would you find in a light switch with a dimmer?
A point-contact diode.
A tunnel diode.
A transistor.
A silicon-controlled rectifier (SCR)
“Is it a fact – or have I dreamt it – that, by means of electricity, the world of matter has become a great nerve, vibrating thousands of miles in a breathless point of time?” %0D― Nathaniel Hawthorne

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What should you do before you work on any electrical project?
Put on rubber gloves.
Lay a rubber mat on the floor where you will be working.
Turn off the power to the wire at the circuit breaker.
Signal velocity of the electrical current travels almost 186,000 miles per second in a metal wire. Individual electron velocity and drift velocity in the wire are much lower.
Put on leather gloves.

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Which kind of pliers are best for getting into smaller places because they have a tapered tip?
Combination pliers.
Tongue and groove pliers.
Needle-nose pliers.
“There are things done today in electrical science which would have been deemed unholy by the very man who discovered electricity, who would themselves not so long before been burned as wizards.” ― Bram Stoker
Crimping pliers.

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All homes in the United States must have one of what in each bedroom as well as in a central area on each floor?
A fuse box.
A smoke detector.
Smoke detectors should be replaced every ten years, regularly vacuumed, and batteries should be replaced each year. Families should also have an escape plan they practice in case of fire.
A GFCI protected outlet.
A carbon monoxide detector.

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Which tool would you use to measure current, resistance, and voltage?
Electrometer.
Multimeter.
“Who would not have been laughed at if he had said in 1800 that metals could be extracted from their ores by electricity or that portraits could be drawn by chemistry..” –Michael Faraday, The Letters of Faraday and Schoenbein
Multipurpose tool.
Utility meter.

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What does a diode do?
It provides power to a circuit during emergencies.
It creates a power surge.
It prevents a backward flow of electricity.
Diodes only allow current to flow in one direction. Because of this, their primary purpose is to prevent damage to circuits, such as when a battery is installed backward.
It resists current in any direction.

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What does GFCI stand for?
Grid flow cycle impulse.
Gas flux crystal installation.
Ground-fault circuit interrupter.
“There is no substitute for hard work.” –Thomas Edison
Generator field capacitor integration.

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Which of the following is a semiconductor?
A resistor.
A capacitor.
An inductor.
A transistor.
Semiconductors conduct electricity better than insulators but worse than most metals. Transistors can change electric signals and amplify power.

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Which of the following would you use to resist changes that might occur in an electric current?
Inductor.
“You must be ready to give up even the most attractive ideas when experiment shows them to be wrong.” –Alessandro Volta.
Transformer.
Resistor.
Capacitor.

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What is Ohm’s law?
I = Q / T
C = q / V
P = Q / R
I = V / R
Ohm’s law is considered one of the most important formulas showing the relationships between current, voltage, and electricity. It was developed by Georg Ohm in 1827.

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In a series circuit, how many different paths can the current flow through?
0.
1.
“It is evident that an acquaintance with natural laws means no less than an acquaintance with the mind of God therein expressed.” –James Prescott Joule
2.
3+.

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If you buy 60/40 solder, what does 60/40 mean?
It will resist 40 percent of the current.
It will resist 60 percent of the current.
It is made out of 60 percent tin and 40 percent lead.
All solder is made out of lead and tin. The more tin in solder, the better its quality.
It is only certified for use near currents between 40 and 60 amps.

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An electrical transformer cannot transform which of the following quantities?
Voltage.
Current.
Power.
“We will make electricity so cheap that only the rich will burn candles.” –Thomas Edison
Both voltage and current.

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When a body with a positive charge is connected to a ground wire, what will happen?
An additional positive charge will accumulate on the body.
The charge will be discharged into the ground.
An appliance can operate without a ground wire, but the ground wire prevents shock in the case of high voltage by tripping the breaker.
The charge will be reversed and the body will be negatively charged.
Nothing.

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What generally comes in Phillips or flat blade?
Hammers.
Screwdrivers.
“Each metal has a certain power, which is different from metal to metal, of setting the electric fluid in motion…” –Alessandro Volta
Sidecutters.
Pliers.

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What is AC?
Ampere circuit.
Alternating current.
Nikola Tesla and Thomas Edison argued over AC or DC currents in the 1880s. At the time, there were not methods for converting DC power to higher and lower voltages, but these have been developed today. Most things today run on AC power, but solar cells, electric vehicles, LEDs, and computers are all DC.
Alkali conductor.
Anode cathode.

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If power is constant in a distribution system, but the voltage drops, what will happen?
Current will rise.
“My object has been first to discover correct principles and then to suggest their practical development.” –James Prescott Joule
Resistance will rise.
Current will drop.
There will be no effect to the system.

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Which of the following tools could help you level planes even in smaller areas such as inside walls?
Needle-nose pliers.
Channel locks.
A tape measure.
A torpedo level.
The torpedo level measures horizontal, vertical, and diagonal planes just like a regular level, but the ends are tapered to allow it in tighter spaces.

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As temperature increases, what does the resistance value in pure metals do?
Remains the same.
Decreases.
Increases.
“If you want to find the secrets of the universe, think in terms of energy, frequency, and vibration.” –Nikola Tesla
Approaches 10 ohms.

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What is the minimum amp electrical service a modern (as of 2017) house should have?
60 amp.
100 amp.
Older homes may contain 60 amp (or even 30 amp) service. The standard service today is 100 amp, but some larger homes with electric appliances might need more. When installing wiring in new construction it is important to do load calculations to determine if 200 amp is needed.
200 amp.
220 amp.

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Which of the following is the minimum you need for a simple circuit?
An electricity source, a conductor, and a consuming device.
“Know the function of a fuse box and the appearance of a tripped circuit breaker.” –Marilyn vos Savant
A lamp, a switch, and a wire.
A battery, a resistor, and a diode.
A superconductor, an insulator, and a conductor.

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If you have three parallel-connected resistors with the values of 4 ohms, 4 ohms, and 4 ohms, what is the total resistance on the circuit?
12 ohms.
64 ohms.
6 ohms.
0.75 ohms.
When dealing with more than two resistors in a parallel-connected circuit, the correct formula is Rtot = 1/R1 + 1/R2 + 1/R3 … Therefore, Rtot = 1/4 + 1/4 + 1/4 = 3/4 = 0.75

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What does DC mean?
Diode cathode.
Direct current.
“If the presence of electricity can be made visible in any part of the circuit, I see no reason why intelligence may not be transmitted instantaneously by electricity.” –Samuel Morse
Direction change.
Discharge continuous.

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What is the superposition theorem?
To determine the total current in a linear circuit, you algebraically multiply the currents produced by each part.
To determine the total current in a linear circuit, you algebraically add the currents produced by each part.
The purpose of the superposition theorem is to take a complex system and simplify it. When using it, you eliminate all but one power source at a time creating several parts that you then add together.
To determine the total current in a linear circuit, you algebraically divide the currents produced by each part.
To determine the total current in a linear circuit, you algebraically subtract the currents produced by each part.

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Which of the following tools has a cross shaped head and is used primarily for turning screws?
A Phillips screwdriver.
“It is not enough to wire the world if you short-circuit the soul. Technology without heart is not enough.” –Tom Brokaw
A pry bar.
A flat-head stubby screwdriver.
An awl.

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