Unofficial practice for MTEL Physics (69): matter, forces, fields and circuits, energy and waves, each answer worked or sourced.
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Unofficial practice questions, not affiliated with the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education or Pearson. Bank checked October 12, 2026.
A sample holds 800 micrograms of an isotope whose half-life is 6 hours. How much of the isotope is left after 24 hours?Wikipedia, "Half-life", lead and table (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0001
A sealed source gives off alpha, beta and gamma radiation. A single sheet of paper is placed in front of it. Which radiation does the paper stop?Wikipedia, "Ionizing radiation", Directly ionizing radiation (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0001
A spacecraft passes Earth at 0.60c. What is the value of γ = 1/√(1 − v²/c²) for the spacecraft?MTEL Physics (69) constants and formulas, the sheet shown on screen during the test (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0002
An electron of mass 9.11 × 10⁻³¹ kg moves at 2.0 × 10⁶ m/s. With p = h/λ and h = 6.63 × 10⁻³⁴ J·s, what is its de Broglie wavelength?MTEL Physics (69) constants and formulas, the sheet shown on screen during the test (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0002
Dim violet light frees electrons from a metal plate, but bright red light frees none. What explains this?Wikipedia, "Photoelectric effect", Experimental observation (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0002
In the gold-foil scattering experiments, a few alpha particles bounced back at large angles. What did that show about the atom?Wikipedia, "Rutherford scattering experiments", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0001
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Subarea II: Motion, forces and interactions 8
A 0.15 kg ball reaches a bat at 20 m/s and leaves at 30 m/s in the opposite direction. The contact lasts 0.010 s. What average force does the bat put on the ball?MTEL Physics (69) constants and formulas, the sheet shown on screen during the test (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0005
A 2.0 kg cart moving at 3.0 m/s strikes and sticks to a 4.0 kg cart at rest on a level, frictionless track. What is their speed just after the collision?MTEL Physics (69) test objectives, subarea II, linear momentum (read 2026-10-12). Written to objective 0005
A 60.0 kg passenger stands on a bathroom scale in an elevator that is speeding up on its way up at 2.00 m/s². With g = 9.81 m/s², what force does the scale read?MTEL Physics (69) test objectives, subarea II, forces and Newton's laws; g from the constants sheet (read 2026-10-12). Written to objective 0004
A 1,500 kg car hits a stationary 60 kg shopping cart. During the collision, how does the force of the car on the cart compare with the force of the cart on the car?Wikipedia, "Newton's laws of motion", lead, third law (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0004
A cyclist moving at 4.0 m/s speeds up at a constant 2.0 m/s² over a distance of 12 m. What is the final speed?MTEL Physics (69) constants and formulas, the sheet shown on screen during the test (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0003
A hockey stick pushes a 0.50 kg training block over rough ice with a steady horizontal force of 3.0 N. The coefficient of kinetic friction is 0.30 and g = 9.81 m/s². At what rate does the block gain speed?MTEL Physics (69) test objectives, subarea II, forces and Newton's laws; g from the constants sheet (read 2026-10-12). Written to objective 0004
A soccer ball is kicked off level ground at 20.0 m/s, 30° above the horizontal. With g = 9.81 m/s² and no air resistance, how long is the ball in the air?MTEL Physics (69) constants and formulas, the sheet shown on screen during the test (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0003
On a velocity-time graph for motion along a straight line, what do the slope of the line and the area under it stand for?Wikipedia, "Motion graphs and derivatives", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0003
Subarea III: Fields and circuits 12
A +2.0 μC charge moves from a point at 15 V to a point at 3.0 V. How much work does the electric field do on it?MTEL Physics (69) test objectives, subarea III, electric potential (read 2026-10-12). Written to objective 0007
A 2.0 kg stone is whirled in a horizontal circle of radius 0.50 m at a steady 4.0 m/s. What net force toward the center keeps it on the circle?MTEL Physics (69) constants and formulas, the sheet shown on screen during the test (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0006
A minor planet circles the Sun on an orbit whose semi-major axis is 4 times Earth's. By Kepler's third law, how long is its orbital period?Wikipedia, "Kepler's laws of planetary motion", lead, third law (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0006
A negatively charged rod is held near the top of an uncharged electroscope without touching it. The top is touched briefly with a finger, and then the rod is taken away. What net charge is the electroscope left with?Wikipedia, "Electrostatic induction", Charging an object by induction (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0007
A proton moves at 3.0 × 10⁵ m/s at right angles to a uniform 0.20 T magnetic field. The charge is 1.60 × 10⁻¹⁹ C. How large is the magnetic force on the proton?MTEL Physics (69) constants and formulas, the sheet shown on screen during the test (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0008
A space heater draws 5.0 A from a 120 V supply. How much electrical energy does it turn into heat in 10 minutes?MTEL Physics (69) constants and formulas, the sheet shown on screen during the test (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0009
An ideal transformer has 200 turns on its primary winding and 50 turns on its secondary. The primary is connected to 120 V AC. What is the secondary voltage?Wikipedia, "Transformer", Ideal transformer (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0008
Kirchhoff's junction rule says that the currents flowing into a node add up to the currents flowing out of it. Which conservation law does the rule extend?Wikipedia, "Kirchhoff's circuit laws", Kirchhoff's current law (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0009
The north pole of a bar magnet is pushed toward a closed loop of wire. By Lenz's law, what does the magnetic field of the induced current do?Wikipedia, "Lenz's law", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0008
Point charges of +2.0 μC and +3.0 μC are held 0.30 m apart. With ke = 9.0 × 10⁹ N·m²/C², how large is the force between them?MTEL Physics (69) constants and formulas, the sheet shown on screen during the test (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0007
Three identical 12 Ω lamps are wired in parallel across a 6.0 V supply. How much current does the supply deliver in all?MTEL Physics (69) constants and formulas, the sheet shown on screen during the test (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0009
Two asteroids attract each other with a gravitational force F. The distance between their centers is then tripled. What is the new force?MTEL Physics (69) constants and formulas, the sheet shown on screen during the test (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0006
Subarea IV: Energy 6
A beaker of ice at 0 °C is heated at a steady rate. While the ice is melting, what does a thermometer in the ice-water mixture show, and why?Wikipedia, "Latent heat", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0011
A gas takes in 800 J of heat and does 350 J of work on its surroundings. With ΔU = Q − W, what happens to the internal energy of the gas?Wikipedia, "First law of thermodynamics", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0011
A motor lifts a 50.0 kg load straight up through 12.0 m at constant speed in 20.0 s. With g = 9.81 m/s², what power does the motor deliver to the load?MTEL Physics (69) constants and formulas, the sheet shown on screen during the test (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0010
A pendulum bob is let go from rest 0.45 m above the lowest point of its swing. With g = 9.81 m/s² and no air resistance, how fast is it moving at the lowest point?MTEL Physics (69) constants and formulas, the sheet shown on screen during the test (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0010
A spring with k = 200 N/m is squeezed 0.10 m and then launches a 0.50 kg cart along a level, frictionless track. How fast is the cart moving when it leaves the spring?MTEL Physics (69) constants and formulas, the sheet shown on screen during the test (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0010
Which statement is one way of stating the second law of thermodynamics?Wikipedia, "Second law of thermodynamics", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0011
Subarea V: Waves and information transfer 8
The 0.65 m string of a guitar is made to vibrate in its second harmonic, n = 2. How long is one wavelength of that standing wave?Wikipedia, "Standing wave", Standing wave on a string with two fixed ends (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0013
A narrow beam of white light enters a glass prism and comes out spread into a band of colors. What property of the glass causes the spreading?Wikipedia, "Dispersion (optics)", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0014
A simple pendulum swings with a period of 2.0 s. Its string is replaced by one four times as long. What is the new period?MTEL Physics (69) constants and formulas, the sheet shown on screen during the test (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0012
A tuning fork sounds at 440 Hz in air where sound travels at 343 m/s. What is the wavelength of the sound?MTEL Physics (69) constants and formulas, the sheet shown on screen during the test (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0012
An ambulance drives past a person on the sidewalk with its siren giving one steady tone. What does that person hear?Wikipedia, "Doppler effect", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0013
Light can be polarized, but sound traveling through air cannot. What does this difference show?Wikipedia, "Polarization (waves)", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0013
The sound level at a seat rises from 60 dB to 80 dB. By what factor has the intensity of the sound grown?Wikipedia, "Decibel", Definition (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0012
Which part of the electromagnetic spectrum has the shortest wavelengths and the highest photon energies?Wikipedia, "Electromagnetic spectrum", lead (read 2026-10-12). Written to MTEL Physics (69), objective 0014
How this list was compiled: Our own questions, written to the test objectives of MTEL Physics, field 69, as the test information guide prints them on the Massachusetts Tests for Educator Licensure website (https://www.mtel.nesinc.com/Content/StudyGuide/MA_SG_OBJ_69.htm and https://www.mtel.nesinc.com/TestView.aspx?f=HTML_FRAG/MA069_TestPage.html, read 2026-10-12): 100 multiple-choice questions and 2 open-response items in 4 hours; five multiple-choice subareas (Matter and Its Interactions, objectives 0001 and 0002, 11% of the score; Motion and Stability: Forces and Interactions, 0003 to 0005, 17%; Motion and Stability: Forces and Interactions in Fields and Circuits, 0006 to 0009, 23%; Energy, 0010 and 0011, 12%; Waves and Their Applications in Technologies for Information Transfer, 0012 to 0014, 17%) and the open-response subarea, 20%. This bank holds 6, 8, 12, 6 and 8 questions for the five multiple-choice subareas. Every calculation uses a formula or a constant printed on the constants and formulas sheet the test shows on screen (https://www.mtel.nesinc.com/Content/Docs/MA069_Constants_Formulas.pdf, read 2026-10-12) and was worked out a second time from the numbers in the question; every other fact was read on 2026-10-12 in the Wikipedia article named under its question. Licence: Questions, choices and explanations are original work of this site.
How it works
This physics MTEL practice test asks 40 questions of our own on Physics (69), spread by the weights of its five multiple-choice subareas. It is unofficial and not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education or Pearson.
Read the full guide
Five subareas, by weight
Matter and its interactions is 11% of the score; motion, forces and interactions 17%; fields and circuits 23%; energy 12%; waves and information transfer 17%. The bank holds 6, 8, 12, 6 and 8 questions for them.
The formula sheet
The MTEL site says a scientific calculator and a sheet of constants and formulas are provided on screen. The problems here use that sheet's formulas and its values, such as g = 9.81 m/s², and each answer was worked out twice.
Laws and concepts
The other questions rest on a stated law or finding: Lenz's law, the photoelectric effect, entropy. Each names the article where the statement was read.
The two open-response items, one on key concepts and one on science and engineering practices, are written and are not practiced here.
Questions and answers
How many questions are on the MTEL Physics test?
100 multiple-choice questions and 2 open-response assignments in 4 hours of testing time. The MTEL site adds that some questions may not count toward the score.
What is the passing score on the Physics MTEL?
The MTEL site gives a qualifying score of 240. The five multiple-choice subareas are 80% of the score and the two open-response items 20%, so a number right here carries no verdict.
Can you use a calculator on the MTEL Physics test?
Yes, the one the test supplies. The test page says an on-screen scientific calculator is provided during the test, and constants and formulas are shown on screen as well.
Is there an MTEL Physics study guide?
The official materials are on the MTEL site: the test information guide for field 69, with the overview, the test objectives and sample questions, and a practice test. These 40 questions are our own and name the objective each was written to.
What topics does an MTEL Physics practice test need to cover?
The 14 multiple-choice objectives: atomic and nuclear physics, modern physics, kinematics, Newton's laws, momentum and rotation, gravitation and circular motion, electrostatics, magnetism, circuits, energy, thermodynamics, simple harmonic motion and waves, wave phenomena, and electromagnetic waves.