KCET 2026 Biology
Chapter 1: The Living World
Set 1 (Q1–Q50) | Important + Very Important + Difficult MCQs
1. The basic unit of modern classification is:
A) Kingdom
B) Species
C) Genus
D) Family
Answer: B
2. The term that indicates a group of organisms capable of interbreeding under natural conditions is:
A) Taxon
B) Category
C) Species
D) Genus
Answer: C
3. Which statement is incorrect regarding taxonomic hierarchy?
A) Kingdom is the highest category
B) Species is the basic unit
C) Order includes related families
D) Class includes related phyla
Answer: D
4. In plants, the suffix generally used for family is:
A) -aceae
B) -ales
C) -opsida
D) -phyceae
Answer: A
5. In zoological nomenclature, family names usually end with:
A) -aceae
B) -idae
C) -ales
D) -inae
Answer: B
6. Binomial nomenclature was given by:
A) Aristotle
B) Theophrastus
C) Carolus Linnaeus
D) John Ray
Answer: C
7. In the scientific name Mangifera indica, indica represents:
A) Genus
B) Species epithet
C) Family
D) Order
Answer: B
8. The correct format of a scientific name is:
A) mangifera Indica
B) Mangifera indica
C) MANGIFERA INDICA
D) Mangifera Indica
Answer: B
9. Which is mandatory for a botanical name to be validly published?
A) Common name mention
B) Diagnosis/description and publication
C) DNA barcode
D) Economic importance
Answer: B
10. ICBN is now replaced by:
A) ICZN
B) ICN
C) IPC
D) IUCN code
Answer: B
11. The branch dealing with identification, nomenclature and classification is:
A) Ecology
B) Taxonomy
C) Genetics
D) Physiology
Answer: B
12. “Systematics” differs from taxonomy by emphasizing:
A) Only naming
B) Evolutionary relationships too
C) Only identification keys
D) Only herbarium studies
Answer: B
13. Herbarium sheets generally have standard size close to:
A) 11.5 × 16.5 cm
B) 29 × 41 cm
C) 5 × 10 cm
D) 50 × 70 cm
Answer: B
14. A herbarium is primarily used for:
A) Growing rare plants
B) Preserving plant specimens for reference
C) Animal tissue storage
D) Seed germination studies
Answer: B
15. The label on herbarium sheet does NOT usually include:
A) Date and place of collection
B) Collector’s name
C) Local name and family
D) Entire genomic sequence
Answer: D
16. A botanical garden is useful because it:
A) Stores only dried specimens
B) Maintains living plant collections
C) Is only for ornamental display
D) Contains only medicinal plants
Answer: B
17. The largest botanical garden among NCERT examples is:
A) Kew (England)
B) Lalbagh (India)
C) Indian Botanic Garden, Howrah
D) TBGRI, Kerala
Answer: C
18. Museums in biological context mainly preserve:
A) Live microbes only
B) Plant fossils only
C) Preserved plant/animal specimens
D) Only DNA samples
Answer: C
19. Zoological parks are important because they:
A) Classify species taxonomically only
B) Enable study of animal behavior in captivity
C) Replace wildlife sanctuaries completely
D) Preserve only extinct species
Answer: B
20. Key is a taxonomic aid based on:
A) Chemical tests
B) Couplets with contrasting characters
C) DNA sequencing only
D) Habitat mapping only
Answer: B
21. In a dichotomous key, each step has:
A) Three statements
B) One statement
C) Two contrasting choices
D) Four character sets
Answer: C
22. Flora provides information about:
A) Fauna of a region
B) Plants of a specific area
C) Microbes in a habitat
D) Only medicinal species globally
Answer: B
23. Manual in taxonomy is used for:
A) Recording weather
B) Providing keys and descriptions for identification
C) DNA fingerprinting
D) Cytological staining
Answer: B
24. Monograph is:
A) Brief note on many families
B) Detailed account of one taxon
C) Regional species checklist only
D) List of synonyms only
Answer: B
25. Taxon is:
A) Only species level unit
B) A unit at any rank in hierarchy
C) Only genus and above
D) Unit below species only
Answer: B
26. The sequence from lower to higher category is:
A) Species → Genus → Family → Order
B) Genus → Species → Family → Class
C) Species → Family → Genus → Order
D) Order → Family → Genus → Species
Answer: A
27. Which one is not a taxonomic category?
A) Class
B) Species
C) Herbarium
D) Family
Answer: C
28. “Nomenclature” specifically means:
A) Grouping organisms
B) Assigning scientific names
C) Studying ecology
D) Studying fossils
Answer: B
29. Correctly matched scientist and contribution:
A) Linnaeus – five kingdom
B) Whittaker – binomial nomenclature
C) Linnaeus – binomial nomenclature
D) Aristotle – ICZN
Answer: C
30. Rules of nomenclature are framed to ensure:
A) More common names
B) Universal validity and stability of names
C) Regional variation
D) Flexible spellings
Answer: B
31. “Mangifera indica Linn.” Here “Linn.” denotes:
A) Family name
B) Species authority
C) Variety
D) Subspecies
Answer: B
32. Which statement about common names is true?
A) They are always universal
B) One organism has only one common name globally
C) They vary from place to place
D) They replace scientific names in taxonomy
Answer: C
33. Priority in nomenclature means:
A) First discovered organism is superior
B) Earliest validly published name is accepted
C) Most popular name is accepted
D) Local name gets priority
Answer: B
34. Taxonomic aids help in all except:
A) Identification
B) Preservation/reference
C) Nomenclature support
D) Increasing mutation rate
Answer: D
35. Ex situ conservation among the following is best represented by:
A) National parks
B) Biosphere reserves
C) Botanical gardens
D) Sacred groves
Answer: C
36. The category directly above genus is:
A) Species
B) Family
C) Order
D) Class
Answer: B
37. The category directly below family is:
A) Genus
B) Species
C) Order
D) Class
Answer: A
38. Which one is a taxonomic aid in printed form?
A) Flora
B) Key
C) Manual
D) All of these
Answer: D
39. In binomial nomenclature, the first word starts with:
A) Small letter
B) Capital letter
C) Italics not needed
D) Author abbreviation
Answer: B
40. Scientific names in printed text are generally:
A) Bold
B) Underlined only
C) Italicized
D) Written in capitals
Answer: C
41. If handwritten, scientific names should be:
A) In brackets
B) Underlined separately for each word
C) In capital letters
D) Not underlined
Answer: B
42. The living world is considered diverse mainly due to variation in:
A) Only morphology
B) Only genetics
C) Form, structure, function, and behavior
D) Only habitat
Answer: C
43. Characterization, identification, classification and nomenclature are:
A) Sequential taxonomic steps
B) Steps of respiration
C) Ecological levels
D) Genetic mechanisms
Answer: A
44. Which one is not typically preserved in a herbarium?
A) Pressed leaves
B) Dried flowers
C) Mounted animal skins
D) Dried stems
Answer: C
45. A taxonomic key is generally more effective when based on:
A) One highly variable character
B) Stable, contrasting characters
C) Economic value
D) Local names
Answer: B
46. Taxonomic hierarchy is useful because it:
A) Eliminates species concept
B) Shows placement and relationship across ranks
C) Is based only on habitat
D) Avoids naming rules
Answer: B
47. Which pair is correctly matched?
A) Flora – animal listing
B) Monograph – detailed treatment of one taxon
C) Manual – only photographs, no keys
D) Key – gives economic uses only
Answer: B
48. The most specific taxonomic category among the following is:
A) Family
B) Genus
C) Species
D) Order
Answer: C
49. Classification helps in:
A) Understanding diversity and relationships
B) Preventing evolution
C) Avoiding identification
D) Eliminating nomenclature
Answer: A
50. The primary reason scientific names are preferred over common names is that they are:
A) Easier to pronounce
B) Region-specific
C) Universally accepted and standardized
D) Always shorter
Answer: C
If you want, I will send Chapter 1 Set 2 (Q51–Q100) now in the same difficult KCET style.