Kramizo
Log inSign up free
Home › AQA GCSE Biology › Practice Paper
AQA · GCSE · Biology

Free AQA GCSE Biology
Practice Paper

8 mixed-difficulty practice questions in the style of real AQA GCSE papers — answers, mark-scheme-style explanations, and the official exam structure all on one page.

Take a Mini Mock →

What the real AQA GCSE Biology paper looks like

Paper 1
Approximately 1 hour 30 minutes, ~70-100 marks. Covers Topics 1-4 of the specification.
Paper 2
Approximately 1 hour 30 minutes, ~70-100 marks. Covers Topics 5-8 of the specification.
Paper 3
Where applicable — e.g. Combined Science, Languages. Includes synoptic and applied questions.
Total exam time: ~3 hours across two or three papers.
Grading: Grades: 9 (highest) to 1 (lowest), with U (ungraded). A grade of 4 is a standard pass; 5 is a strong pass.

Mini practice paper: 8 questions

Mixed-difficulty questions from across the Biology syllabus. Tap "Show answer" after each to check yourself.

Q1 · Difficulty 1/3

How many pairs of chromosomes are there in a human body cell?

  1. 23 pairs
  2. 46 pairs
  3. 2 pairs
  4. 4 pairs
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: A — 23 pairs
That makes 46 chromosomes in total, with one of each pair inherited from each parent.
Q2 · Difficulty 1/3

How many different bases are found in DNA?

  1. Sixty-four
  2. Four
  3. Twenty
  4. Two
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: B — Four
They are adenine, thymine, cytosine and guanine, usually written as A, T, C and G.
Q3 · Difficulty 1/3

Why should the room be darkened during this practical?

  1. So the water stays at a constant temperature
  2. So the pondweed produces larger bubbles
  3. So the oxygen dissolves more easily
  4. So the lamp is the only source of light reaching the pondweed
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: D — So the lamp is the only source of light reaching the pondweed
Other light sources would add an uncontrolled amount to every reading.
Q4 · Difficulty 1/3

Which sex chromosomes can an egg cell carry?

  1. Either X or Y
  2. Only X
  3. Only Y
  4. Both X and Y together
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: B — Only X
A female has two X chromosomes, so every egg receives one of them.
Q5 · Difficulty 1/3

Which base always pairs with cytosine?

  1. Thymine
  2. Adenine
  3. Cytosine
  4. Guanine
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: D — Guanine
The two pairings are A with T and C with G, and no other combination occurs.
Q6 · Difficulty 1/3

What are the three parts of a DNA nucleotide?

  1. A sugar, an amino acid and a base
  2. Two sugars and one base
  3. A sugar, a phosphate group and a base
  4. A protein, a phosphate group and a base
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: C — A sugar, a phosphate group and a base
Only the base differs between one nucleotide and the next.
Q7 · Difficulty 1/3

Why can a shortage of chlorophyll limit the rate of photosynthesis?

  1. Less water can reach the leaf
  2. Less carbon dioxide can enter the leaf
  3. Less light can be absorbed for the reaction
  4. The leaf becomes too warm
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: C — Less light can be absorbed for the reaction
Disease or a magnesium shortage can both reduce the chlorophyll a plant has.
Q8 · Difficulty 1/3

What happens to the rate of photosynthesis as light intensity increases from darkness?

  1. It decreases steadily
  2. It rises and then immediately falls to zero
  3. It increases, until another factor becomes limiting
  4. It stays at zero until full daylight is reached
Show answer & explanation
✓ Answer: C — It increases, until another factor becomes limiting
At that point the graph levels off however much more light is provided.
Build a 30-question timed mock →
Free account · Instant marking

AQA GCSE Biology FAQ

What does the AQA GCSE Biology exam look like?
The AQA GCSE Biology exam is structured across 3 components. Paper 1: Approximately 1 hour 30 minutes, ~70-100 marks. Covers Topics 1-4 of the specification. Paper 2: Approximately 1 hour 30 minutes, ~70-100 marks. Covers Topics 5-8 of the specification. Paper 3: Where applicable — e.g. Combined Science, Languages. Includes synoptic and applied questions. Total exam time: ~3 hours across two or three papers.
Can I download a free AQA GCSE Biology past paper?
Real AQA past papers are published directly by AQA on their official website. Kramizo doesn't redistribute copyrighted past papers, but we do generate free AI-written practice papers in the exact same style — same command words, same difficulty tier, same mark conventions. Use this practice paper as warm-up, then time yourself on official past papers before exam day.
How is AQA GCSE Biology graded?
Grades: 9 (highest) to 1 (lowest), with U (ungraded). A grade of 4 is a standard pass; 5 is a strong pass. Kramizo's practice questions are tagged with difficulty 1-3 mapping roughly to the lower, middle, and top grade boundaries you'll encounter in the real exam.