Science Olympiad papers, such as the International Science Olympiad (ISO), test concepts, reasoning and application rather than memory. This set has 50 class 8 Olympiad physics force pressure MCQs on Force and Pressure in the Olympiad pattern.

The set has three parts: 25 concept and application questions, 15 statement-based, assertion-reason and match questions, and 10 achiever (higher-order thinking) questions. Full solutions are given at the end.

Quick Revision: Key Points

• Pressure = force ÷ area (unit: pascal, 1 Pa = 1 N/m²). Weight is a force and is measured in newtons.
• A force can change speed, direction of motion and shape, but not mass.
• Gravitational, magnetic and electrostatic forces act without contact. Muscular force and friction need contact.
• Liquid pressure increases with depth and acts in all directions. Gas pressure is caused by particles hitting the walls.
• Atmospheric pressure is due to the weight of air above us, decreases with height, and is measured with a barometer.

Olympiad Exam Tips

• Read all four options before choosing. Olympiad options are often very close to each other.
• Convert everything to SI units (N, m², Pa) before calculating. Remember 1 cm² = 0.0001 m².
• In assertion-reason questions, decide whether A is true and whether R is true separately. Only then decide if R explains A.
• In statement-based questions, test each statement on its own and eliminate options one by one.
• Practice with a timer, at about one minute per question.

How to use this set: attempt Part A first, then Part B and Part C. Mark the questions you found tricky in this class 8 Olympiad physics force pressure MCQs and read their solutions carefully.

Practice Questions: 50 Olympiad-Style MCQs

Part A: Concept and Application (Q1 to Q25)

1. Which of the following is NOT an effect of a force on an object?

(a) Change of mass

(b) Change of speed

(c) Change of direction of motion

(d) Change of shape

2. Which of the following is an example of a non-contact force?

(a) A magnet attracting iron pins

(b) Hitting a cricket ball

(c) Pulling a rope

(d) Pushing a door

3. The gravitational force of the Earth acts:

(a) only on falling objects

(b) only on heavy objects

(c) only in air

(d) on all objects, whether at rest or in motion

4. The gravitational force between two objects is always:

(a) repulsive

(b) attractive

(c) zero

(d) both attractive and repulsive

5. Which of these can keep a body at rest?

(a) 4 N towards the east and 4 N towards the west along the same line

(b) 8 N towards the north and 6 N towards the south along the same line

(c) 5 N towards the east and 5 N towards the east

(d) 3 N upward and 2 N upward

6. You push against a wall with all your strength, but the wall does not move. This is because:

(a) no force acts on the wall

(b) the forces on the wall are balanced, so the net force is zero

(c) the wall is too light

(d) a push is a non-contact force

7. Which quantity does NOT change when a brick is turned from its largest face to its smallest face on the floor?

(a) The area of contact

(b) The pressure

(c) The weight of the brick

(d) Both (a) and (b)

8. Two blocks, one of iron and one of wood, have the same weight and the same base area. The pressure they exert on a table is:

(a) equal

(b) greater for the iron block

(c) greater for the wooden block

(d) zero for the wooden block

9. Railway tracks are laid on wide concrete sleepers in order to:

(a) make the track look neat

(b) spread the load over a larger area and reduce the pressure on the ground

(c) increase friction

(d) reduce the cost of the track

10. Deep-sea divers wear special suits because:

(a) water pressure increases with depth

(b) the sea water is salty

(c) the sea is cold

(d) sunlight is less in deep water

11. In a building with an overhead water tank, the water pressure at the tap is highest on the:

(a) top floor

(b) middle floor

(c) same on all floors

(d) ground floor

12. A bottle is filled with water and has two holes at the same height on opposite sides. Water spurts out:

(a) more from the left hole

(b) more from the right hole

(c) equally from both holes

(d) from neither hole

13. Atmospheric pressure exists because of:

(a) wind only

(b) the Sun’s heating only

(c) the Earth’s rotation only

(d) the weight of the column of air above us

14. A sealed packet of chips is carried from a plain to a hill station. The packet looks:

(a) shrunken

(b) puffed up

(c) unchanged

(d) melted

15. Which of these can be explained by atmospheric pressure?

(a) Drinking with a straw

(b) A rubber suction hook sticking to a wall

(c) Liquid being drawn into a syringe

(d) All of these

16. The pressure of a gas inside a closed container is caused by:

(a) the weight of the container

(b) the gas particles colliding with the walls

(c) the color of the gas

(d) gravity only

17. Which is a correct unit of pressure?

(a) N/m²

(b) N/m

(c) N·m

(d) kg/m

18. A force of 1 N acts on an area of 1 cm². The pressure is:

(a) 1 Pa

(b) 100 Pa

(c) 10,000 Pa

(d) 1,000,000 Pa

19. Which exerts the greater pressure: 100 N on an area of 2 m², or 40 N on an area of 0.5 m²?

(a) The first

(b) The second

(c) Both are equal

(d) They cannot be compared

20. The SI unit of weight is:

(a) kilogram

(b) meter

(c) liter

(d) newton

21. A person stands first on both feet and then on one foot (feet are of equal size). The pressure on the ground when standing on one foot is:

(a) the same

(b) half

(c) double

(d) zero

22. A brick is placed on soft sand in three different ways. It sinks the most when it rests on its:

(a) largest face

(b) smallest face

(c) middle-sized face

(d) all faces equally

23. Two forces of 8 N and 6 N act on a body along the same line. The greatest and least possible net forces are:

(a) 14 N and 2 N

(b) 14 N and 0 N

(c) 2 N and 0 N

(d) 8 N and 6 N

24. The instrument used to measure atmospheric pressure is a:

(a) barometer

(b) seismograph

(c) speedometer

(d) odometer

25. Which pair contains only non-contact forces?

(a) Gravitational and muscular

(b) Magnetic and electrostatic

(c) Frictional and magnetic

(d) Muscular and frictional

Part B: Statement-Based, Assertion-Reason and Match (Q26 to Q40)

For assertion-reason questions (Q30 to Q35 and Q40), choose:

(a) Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A

(b) Both A and R are true, but R is not the correct explanation of A

(c) A is true, but R is false

(d) A is false, but R is true

26. Which statements are correct?

(i) A force can change the shape of an object.

(ii) A force can change the direction of motion of an object.

(iii) A force can change the mass of an object.

(iv) A force can change the speed of an object.

(a) (i), (ii) and (iii)

(b) (i), (ii) and (iv)

(c) (ii), (iii) and (iv)

(d) All four

27. Which statements are correct?

(i) Muscular force is a contact force.

(ii) Frictional force is a contact force.

(iii) Gravitational force is a contact force.

(iv) Magnetic force is a non-contact force.

(a) (i), (ii) and (iv)

(b) (ii) and (iii)

(c) (i), (iii) and (iv)

(d) All four

28. Which statements about liquid pressure are correct?

(i) It increases with depth.

(ii) It acts only downward.

(iii) It also acts on the side walls of the container.

(iv) It is the same at all depths.

(a) (i) and (ii)

(b) (ii) and (iv)

(c) (i) and (iii)

(d) (iii) and (iv)

29. Which statements about atmospheric pressure are correct?

(i) It exists because air has weight.

(ii) It decreases with increasing height above the ground.

(iii) It is zero inside a closed room.

(iv) It acts in all directions.

(a) (i), (ii) and (iii)

(b) (ii), (iii) and (iv)

(c) (i), (iii) and (iv)

(d) (i), (ii) and (iv)

30. A: Heavy trucks have many wheels.

R: More wheels increase the area of contact with the road, so the pressure on the road decreases.

31. A: Pressure is the same as force.

R: Pressure is force acting per unit area.

32. A: Water spurts out farthest from the lowest hole of a tall bottle filled with water.

R: Liquids can flow.

33. A: A person is not crushed by the large atmospheric pressure.

R: The pressure inside the body balances the pressure of the atmosphere.

34. A: A gas exerts pressure on the walls of its container.

R: A gas exerts pressure only in the downward direction.

35. A: If two forces act on an object, it must move.

R: Two equal and opposite forces along the same line can keep an object at rest.

36. Match the force with its example.

Column I	Column II
P. Muscular force	1. Force on an iron nail by a magnet
Q. Gravitational force	2. Force between a rubbed comb and paper bits
R. Magnetic force	3. Force applied by a bullock on a cart
S. Electrostatic force	4. Force that makes a mango fall from a tree

(a) P-4, Q-3, R-1, S-2

(b) P-3, Q-4, R-2, S-1

(c) P-3, Q-4, R-1, S-2

(d) P-1, Q-2, R-3, S-4

37. Match the quantity with its unit or instrument.

Column I	Column II
P. Pressure	1. Square metre
Q. Force	2. Newton
R. Atmospheric pressure	3. Measured by a barometer
S. Area	4. Pascal

(a) P-4, Q-2, R-1, S-3

(b) P-4, Q-2, R-3, S-1

(c) P-2, Q-4, R-3, S-1

(d) P-1, Q-3, R-2, S-4

38. Arrange these pressures in increasing order:

A: 200 N on 1 m²; B: 50 N on 0.1 m²; C: 300 N on 3 m²; D: 10 N on 0.01 m².

(a) A < B < C < D

(b) C < A < B < D

(c) D < B < A < C

(d) B < A < D < C

39. Which statements are correct?

(i) Increasing the force on the same area increases the pressure.

(ii) Decreasing the area under the same force increases the pressure.

(iii) Increasing the area under the same force increases the pressure.

(iv) Pressure does not depend on the area.

(a) (iii) and (iv)

(b) (i) and (iii)

(c) (i) and (ii)

(d) (ii) and (iv)

40. A: A syringe fills with liquid when its plunger is pulled back.

R: Atmospheric pressure pushes the liquid into the syringe.

Part C: Achievers (Q41 to Q50)

41. A rectangular block weighing 400 N has dimensions 0.5 m × 0.4 m × 0.2 m. The ratio of the maximum to the minimum pressure it can exert on the ground is:

(a) 1.25

(b) 2

(c) 2.5

(d) 5

42. A man weighing 600 N stands with a total contact area of 0.03 m² between his feet and the ground. A child weighing 200 N exerts the same pressure on the ground. Her total contact area is:

(a) 0.01 m²

(b) 0.02 m²

(c) 0.03 m²

(d) 0.06 m²

43. Take atmospheric pressure as 10⁵ Pa. The force exerted by air on one side of a window of size 2 m × 0.5 m is:

(a) 10⁴ N

(b) 2 × 10⁵ N

(c) 10⁶ N

(d) 10⁵ N

44. A car weighing 12,000 N stands on four tires. Each tire has a contact area of 300 cm². The pressure exerted on the ground is:

(a) 10,000 Pa

(b) 40,000 Pa

(c) 100,000 Pa

(d) 400,000 Pa

45. A box is pulled along a floor by three forces along the same line: 40 N to the right, 25 N to the left, and a friction force of 10 N to the left. The net force is:

(a) 75 N to the right

(b) 5 N to the left

(c) 15 N to the right

(d) 5 N to the right

46. Forces of 30 N towards the east and 18 N towards the west act on a body. What additional force will keep the body in balance?

(a) 12 N towards the east

(b) 48 N towards the west

(c) 12 N towards the west

(d) 30 N towards the west

47. A block exerts a pressure of 500 Pa on the floor. An identical block is placed exactly on top of it. The pressure on the floor now becomes:

(a) 1,000 Pa

(b) 250 Pa

(c) 500 Pa

(d) 2,000 Pa

48. A block exerts a pressure of 500 Pa on the floor. Instead of stacking, an identical block is placed next to it on the floor. The pressure on the floor under each block is:

(a) 250 Pa

(b) 500 Pa

(c) 1,000 Pa

(d) 2,000 Pa

49. On a hill, atmospheric pressure falls from 100 kPa to 80 kPa. By how much does the force of air on a 0.5 m² area decrease?

(a) 1,000 N

(b) 20,000 N

(c) 10,000 N

(d) 40,000 N

50. A cube of side 0.2 m rests on a table. Another cube of the same weight has a side of 0.1 m. The ratio of the pressure exerted by the smaller cube to that of the bigger cube is:

(a) 1/4

(b) 2

(c) 8

(d) 4

Answers and Solutions

Part A

Q	Ans	Solution
1	(a)	A force can change speed, direction of motion and shape, but not the mass of an object.
2	(a)	A magnet attracts iron pins without touching them. The other examples need contact.
3	(d)	Gravity acts on every object, whether at rest or moving.
4	(b)	The gravitational force between two objects is always attractive.
5	(a)	Equal and opposite forces along the same line balance each other. 8 N and 6 N are unequal, and forces in the same direction add up.
6	(b)	The wall does not move because the net force on it is zero (the ground and the wall’s structure balance your push).
7	(c)	Weight stays the same. Only the area of contact and the pressure change.
8	(a)	Pressure = weight ÷ area. Both are the same for the two blocks, so the pressures are equal.
9	(b)	Wide sleepers spread the load over a larger area, so the pressure on the ground is less.
10	(a)	Water pressure increases with depth, so divers need suits that can withstand the high pressure.
11	(d)	The vertical distance between the tank and the tap is greatest on the ground floor, so the pressure there is greatest.
12	(c)	Both holes are at the same depth, so the pressure is the same and the water spurts equally.
13	(d)	Atmospheric pressure is due to the weight of the air column above us.
14	(b)	The outside pressure is lower at the hill station, so the gas inside pushes the packet outward and it looks puffed up.
15	(d)	Straw, suction hook and syringe all work because atmospheric pressure pushes on the liquid or the cup.
16	(b)	Gas particles move around and collide with the walls, and this causes pressure.
17	(a)	Pressure is force per unit area, measured in N/m² (pascal).
18	(c)	1 cm² = 0.0001 m². P = 1 ÷ 0.0001 = 10,000 Pa.
19	(b)	First: 100 ÷ 2 = 50 Pa. Second: 40 ÷ 0.5 = 80 Pa. The second is greater.
20	(d)	Weight is a force, so its SI unit is the newton.
21	(c)	On one foot the area is halved while the weight stays the same, so the pressure doubles.
22	(b)	The smallest face has the least area, so the pressure is greatest and the brick sinks the most.
23	(a)	In the same direction: 8 + 6 = 14 N (greatest). In opposite directions: 8 − 6 = 2 N (least).
24	(a)	A barometer measures atmospheric pressure.
25	(b)	Magnetic and electrostatic forces act without contact. Muscular and frictional forces need contact.

Part B

Q	Ans	Solution
26	(b)	(iii) is false, since a force cannot change mass. The others are true.
27	(a)	(iii) is false, since gravitational force is a non-contact force.
28	(c)	(ii) is false because liquid pressure acts in all directions. (iv) is false because pressure increases with depth.
29	(d)	(iii) is false, because atmospheric pressure is also present inside a closed room.
30	(a)	More wheels spread the load over a larger area, reducing pressure on the road. R explains A.
31	(d)	A is false, since pressure is force per unit area, not force itself. R is true.
32	(b)	Both are true, but the reason is that liquid pressure increases with depth, not that liquids can flow.
33	(a)	Pressure inside the body balances the outside pressure, so we are not crushed. R explains A.
34	(c)	A is true. R is false, because gases exert pressure in all directions.
35	(d)	A is false, since balanced forces produce no motion. R is true.
36	(c)	Muscular: bullock and cart. Gravitational: mango falls. Magnetic: magnet and nail. Electrostatic: comb and paper.
37	(b)	Pressure: pascal. Force: newton. Atmospheric pressure: barometer. Area: square metre.
38	(b)	A = 200 Pa, B = 500 Pa, C = 100 Pa, D = 1,000 Pa. Increasing order: C < A < B < D.
39	(c)	Pressure = force ÷ area, so it rises with more force or less area.
40	(a)	Pulling the plunger lowers the pressure inside, and atmospheric pressure pushes the liquid in. R explains A.

Part C

Q	Ans	Solution
41	(c)	Face areas: 0.5 × 0.4 = 0.2 m², 0.5 × 0.2 = 0.1 m², 0.4 × 0.2 = 0.08 m². Pressures: 2,000, 4,000 and 5,000 Pa. Ratio of maximum to minimum = 5,000 ÷ 2,000 = 2.5.
42	(a)	Man’s pressure = 600 ÷ 0.03 = 20,000 Pa. Child’s area = 200 ÷ 20,000 = 0.01 m².
43	(d)	Area = 2 × 0.5 = 1 m². F = P × A = 10⁵ × 1 = 10⁵ N.
44	(c)	Total area = 4 × 300 = 1,200 cm² = 0.12 m². P = 12,000 ÷ 0.12 = 100,000 Pa.
45	(d)	Net = 40 − (25 + 10) = 5 N to the right.
46	(c)	The net force is 30 − 18 = 12 N towards the east, so a 12 N force towards the west balances it.
47	(a)	The weight on the floor doubles and the base area stays the same, so the pressure doubles to 1,000 Pa.
48	(b)	Each block still has its own weight over its own base area, so the pressure stays 500 Pa.
49	(c)	Drop in pressure = 20 kPa = 20,000 Pa. Change in force = 20,000 × 0.5 = 10,000 N.
50	(d)	Pressure = weight ÷ area, and the weights are equal. Area of the bigger cube = 0.04 m², area of the smaller = 0.01 m². Pressure ratio = 0.04 ÷ 0.01 = 4.

Keep Practicing

Try the other practice sets for this chapter:

• Force and Pressure MCQs Class 8: 20 Easy Questions + Answers
• Force and Pressure Class 8: 20 Difficult MCQs with Solutions

Found a mistake or want more chapters? Leave a comment below and we will update this post.