JAMB Physics past questions and answers

Checked by the Skolra question team · Last updated 23 October 2026

JAMB Physics: 570 past questions from 10 papers between 2015 and 2025, each with the answer and an explanation. In the UTME you answer 40 Physics questions, with Use of English and two other subjects, in 2 hours. Here are ten.

1. 1.

   A person standing waist-deep in a swimming pool appears to have short legs because of light?

   1. A
      diffraction
   2. B
      reflection
   3. C
      refraction
      Correct
   4. D
      dispersion
   Show answerHide answer

   Answer: C

   The legs only look short — they are not actually shortened. This is caused by refraction of light.

   Therefore, the correct explanation is refraction of light at the water-air interface.

2. 2.

   When two objects A and B are supplied with the same quantity of heat, the temperature change in A is obtained to be twice that of B. The mass of P is half that of Q. The ratio of the specific heat capacity of A to B is

   1. A
      1:1
      Correct
   2. B
      4:1
   3. C
      2:1
   4. D
      1:2
   Show answerHide answer

   Answer: A

   Both objects absorb the same quantity of heat, so we use Q = mcΔθ and set the two heats equal:

   m_Ac_AΔT_A = m_Bc_BΔT_B

   We are told the temperature change in A is twice that of B, so ΔT_A = 2ΔT_B, and the mass of A is half that of B, so m_A = 0.5m_B.

   Substituting:

   0.5m_B × c_A × 2ΔT_B = m_B × c_B × ΔT_B

   The 0.5 and 2 cancel out, leaving m_Bc_AΔT_B = m_Bc_BΔT_B, so c_A = c_B, giving a ratio of 1:1.

3. 3.

   A car moving at 20m/s with its horn blowing (f = 1200Hz) is chasing another car going at 15m/s. What is the apparent frequency of the horn as heard by the driver being chased?

   1. A
      1200 Hz
   2. B
      1183 Hz
   3. C
      1219 Hz
      Correct
   4. D
      1275 Hz
   Show answerHide answer

   Answer: C

   Both cars move in the same direction, so this is a Doppler effect problem where the source (blowing horn) is behind and approaching the observer (the chased car), which is moving away from it. Using the speed of sound v = 340 m/s:

   f' = f × (v − v_o)/(v − v_s)
   f' = 1200 × (340 − 15)/(340 − 20)
   f' = 1200 × 325/320
   f' = 1218.75 ≈ 1219 Hz

   Since the source is approaching, its motion reduces the denominator (raising the frequency), while the observer moving away reduces the numerator (lowering the frequency). The two effects partly cancel, giving a value only slightly above the original 1200 Hz.

4. 4.

   A man will exert the greatest pressure when he?

   1. A
      stands on one foot
      Correct
   2. B
      lies flat on the ground
   3. C
      stands on both feet
   4. D
      kneels down on both knees
   Show answerHide answer

   Answer: A

   Pressure = Force ÷ Area. A man's weight (the force pressing down) stays the same no matter how he stands, so the pressure he exerts changes only with the area of contact between his body and the ground. The smaller the area, the greater the pressure, because the same weight is now concentrated on a smaller surface.

5. 5.

   Musical instruments playing the same note can be distinguished from one another owing to the difference in their

   1. A
      wavelength
   2. B
      pitch
   3. C
      loudness
   4. D
      quality (timbre)
      Correct
   Show answerHide answer

   Answer: D

   Two instruments playing the 'same note' are producing sound of the same pitch (frequency) — what lets your ear tell a trumpet from a piano is the mix of overtones riding on top of that note, which is called quality or timbre.

   Since the note itself is the same, pitch cannot be the distinguishing feature — the difference has to come from something else layered onto that same fundamental frequency.

6. 6.

   A semiconductor is formed by?

   1. A
      Doping a pure crystal such as silicon or germanium with impurity atoms
      Correct
   2. B
      Melting two different metals together to form an alloy
   3. C
      Removing all free electrons from a good conductor
   4. D
      Heating an insulator until it starts to conduct permanently
   Show answerHide answer

   Answer: A

   A semiconductor is made from a pure crystalline material, usually silicon or germanium (Group IV elements), whose conductivity is deliberately changed by doping — adding a small, controlled amount of impurity atoms.

   Adding a pentavalent impurity (like phosphorus) gives extra free electrons, producing an n-type semiconductor. Adding a trivalent impurity (like boron) creates electron vacancies called holes, producing a p-type semiconductor. This doping process is exactly how semiconductors used in diodes and transistors are formed.

7. 7.A train with an initial velocity of 20ms^-1 is subjected to a uniform deceleration of 2ms^-2. The time required to bring the train to a complete halt is
   1. A
      5s
   2. B
      10s
      Correct
   3. C
      22s
   4. D
      40s
   Show answerHide answer

   Answer: B

   Using v = u − at, with the final velocity v = 0: t = u/a = 20ms^-1 ÷ 2ms^-2 = 10s.

8. 8.What is the cost of running seven 40 W lamps and five 80 W la mps for 12 hours of the electrical energy cost N7.00kWk?
   1. A
      ₦47.60
   2. B
      ₦40.80
   3. C
      ₦68.00
   4. D
      ₦57.12
      Correct
   Show answerHide answer

   Answer: D

   Total power = (7 × 40W) + (5 × 80W) = 280 + 400 = 680W = 0.68kW.

   Energy used in 12 hours = 0.68 × 12 = 8.16kWh.

   Cost = 8.16 × ₦7.00 = ₦57.12.

   Adding the wattages of just one lamp type, or forgetting to convert watts to kilowatts before multiplying by the tariff, are the usual sources of error here.

9. 9.

   A hydraulic press consists of two cylinders of cross-sectional radius r$_1$ and r$_2$. If a force of 200N applied to the smaller piston (r$_1$), causes a force of 3200N to be transmitted onto the larger piston (r$_2$). The ratio r$_1$: r$_2$ is?

   1. A
      4:1
   2. B
      16:1
   3. C
      1:4
      Correct
   4. D
      1:16
   Show answerHide answer

   Answer: C

   Pascal's principle says pressure applied to a confined fluid is transmitted equally throughout, so the pressure at the small piston equals the pressure at the large piston:

   F₁/A₁ = F₂/A₂, and since A = πr², this becomes F₁/r₁² = F₂/r₂².

   Rearranging: r₁²/r₂² = F₁/F₂ = 200/3200 = 1/16.

   Taking the square root of both sides gives r₁/r₂ = 1/4, so the ratio r₁:r₂ = 1:4 is correct.

   A student who forgets to take the square root and just uses the force ratio directly lands on 1:16 instead. Flipping the ratio the wrong way round gives 4:1, and squaring instead of taking the root of the force ratio gives 16:1 — all common slips, but none matches the actual physics.

10. 10.

    The inside portion of part of a hollow metal sphere of diameter 20cm is polished. The portion will therefore form a?

    1. A
       A concave mirror
       Correct
    2. B
       A concave lens
    3. C
       A convex mirror
    4. D
       A convex lens
    Show answerHide answer

    Answer: A

    A hollow sphere has two surfaces: the inside surface, which curves inward like the inside of a bowl, and the outside surface, which bulges outward.

    Polishing a surface makes it act as a mirror (it reflects light), not a lens. A lens must be transparent so light can pass through and bend (refract); a polished metal surface reflects light instead, so it can never be a lens. This already rules out any lens option.

    Since it is the inside portion that is polished, and the inside of a hollow sphere curves inward towards the centre, the reflecting surface formed is a concave mirror.

The questions come from past JAMB, WAEC and NECO papers. We use software to help write the answer options and explanations, and every answer is checked twice before it goes on the site. How we check

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