Multiple Choice Quiz Maker

How to Use the Multiple Choice Quiz Maker

1. 1. Type or paste your questions. A question goes on one line and its options on the lines below it, with an asterisk in front of the correct option. Load example shows the format with five water-cycle questions.
2. 2. Fix anything flagged. A question with no options, no marked answer or two marked answers is listed with its question number and line, and left out of the quiz until it is fixed.
3. 3. Set up the sheet. Add a title and instructions, keep or drop the name-and-date line, and tick the shuffle options if you want the questions or the answer choices in a new order.
4. 4. Print, copy or go online. Print the quiz and the answer key on separate sheets, copy the quiz as plain text, or choose Take it online so a student can answer on screen and check their score.

The Question Format

1. What is it called when water vapor cools into droplets?
a) Evaporation
*b) Condensation
c) Precipitation

2. Which process moves water from leaves into the air?
- Runoff
* - Transpiration
- Infiltration

• A question is any line that is not an option. A number in front — 1., 2) or Q3: — is dropped, because the quiz numbers questions itself. A long question can run over two lines, as long as both come before the first option.
• An option starts with a letter followed by ) or . — a), B. or (c) — or with a dash. Your letters are replaced: options are lettered A, B, C … in the order they are shown, so shuffling never leaves a gap.
• The correct answer has an asterisk at the start of its line, *b) Condensation, or at the start of its text, b) *Condensation. Each question needs exactly one.
• Between questions, a blank line is clearest. A new line of text after a question's options also starts the next question, so a list pasted without blank lines still works.
• Limits: two to eight options per question, and options are lettered rather than numbered so they can never be mistaken for the next question.

Shuffled Versions and the Answer Key

Shuffling happens when you tick a shuffle option or click Reshuffle, never on its own. Answer options move within each question; options that refer to the others — All of the above, None of the above, A and B — stay where you put them, because moving them would change their meaning. The answer key always follows the version on screen, so print the key alongside each version you make. If you edit the questions after shuffling, the quiz returns to your original order until you reshuffle.

Writing Better Multiple-Choice Questions

Reviews of item-writing advice, such as Haladyna, Downing and Rodriguez (2002), keep arriving at the same short list. The quiz format makes these easy to apply:

• Put the problem in the stem. A student who knows the material should be able to answer before reading the options.
• Write one clearly best answer and distractors that are plausible — built from the mistakes students actually make, not from jokes.
• Keep options alike in length and grammar. Test-wise students learn that the longest, most qualified option is often the right one.
• Avoid negatives such as "Which is NOT…". If you need one, put the NOT in capitals so nobody misreads it.
• Use "all of the above" sparingly. A student who spots two right answers can pick it without knowing the third.
• Three good options are often enough. A meta-analysis by Rodriguez (2005) found that three well-written options usually measure as well as four or five, and they are faster to write and to read.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I make a multiple-choice quiz from my own questions?

Type each question on its own line, put its options on the lines below starting with a), b), c) and so on, and add an asterisk in front of the correct option. The quiz builds itself as you type. Add a title, then print the quiz and the answer key separately.

How do I mark the correct answer?

Put an asterisk at the start of the correct option's line, like *c) Precipitation, or right after its letter, like c) *Precipitation. Each question must have exactly one marked option; the tool tells you which question and line to fix if it finds none or more than one.

Can students take the quiz online?

Yes. Choose Take it online and the quiz appears with clickable answers. Check answers shows the score and, for each question, whether it was right and what the correct answer is; Try again clears it. It is a self-check only: no names, answers or scores are saved or sent anywhere.

How do I make different versions of the same quiz?

Tick Shuffle answer options, Shuffle question order or both, then print the quiz and its answer key. Click Reshuffle for the next version and print again. Each answer key matches only the version it was printed with, so label the versions.

Will shuffling break "All of the above" answers?

No. Options that mention "above" or point to other options by letter, such as "A and B", keep their original position while the other options move. Check any option that refers to the others in a different way before printing.

Can I put the quiz into Google Forms or my learning platform?

There is no direct export. Copy quiz as text gives you numbered questions with lettered options in plain text, which you can paste into a document or use as the source for a form or LMS quiz. The answer key is on screen to copy alongside.