MS Excel Questions and Answers

Answer: B

Correct answer: Adds the values in cells A1 through A10

=SUM(A1:A10) adds the values in every cell of the range A1 to A10. The colon is a range operator, meaning through, so A1:A10 is ten cells. Had a comma been used - =SUM(A1,A10) - only those two cells would be added, which is the distinction the fourth option tests. The two operators can be combined: =SUM(A1:A10,C1:C10) adds both ranges. SUM ignores text and blank cells rather than reporting an error, which is why it is safe to apply to a column that has a heading. The related functions are worth knowing as a family: AVERAGE for the mean, COUNT for numeric entries, COUNTA for non-empty cells of any kind, MAX and MIN for the extremes. Alt + = inserts a SUM formula with the range Excel guesses, which is usually the column above.

Answer: B

Correct answer: Select Data > Form from the menu to open the Data Form dialog box, find the record and click the Delete button

The data form treats each row as a record and has a Delete button that removes the whole row and closes the gap. Deleting a column would remove a field from every record instead.

Answer: C

Correct answer: Bar charts, line graphs and pie charts

Excel produces all the common chart types - column and bar, line, pie, scatter, area, doughnut, radar and more - so any option restricting it to one or two is wrong.

Answer: A

Correct answer: Combines the selected cells into one and centres the content

Merge and Centre joins the selected cells into a single larger cell and centres its content. Only the value in the upper left cell is kept; everything else is discarded, with a warning. It is useful for a title spanning several columns, and harmful almost everywhere else. Merged cells break sorting and filtering, prevent selecting a whole column cleanly, confuse formulas that expect one value per cell, and make pivot tables and keyboard navigation awkward. The alternative that gives the same appearance without the damage is Center Across Selection, in the Format Cells alignment tab. It centres text visually across several columns while leaving every cell separate, and it is what should be used in any range that will be sorted or analysed. The third option describes that setting, and the second describes SUM. Merging can be undone with the same button, which restores the cells but not the values that were discarded.

Answer: C

Correct answer: Column letters and row numbers

A cell is identified by its column letter and row number - A1, B7, IV65536 - in that order.

Answer: A

Correct answer: SUBTOTAL can ignore filtered-out rows while SUM always includes them

SUM adds every cell in its range, whether or not the rows are visible. SUBTOTAL ignores rows hidden by a filter, so a filtered total reflects only what is displayed. That is why the Total Row of an Excel Table uses SUBTOTAL, and why the Subtotal command on the Data tab inserts it rather than SUM. Its first argument selects the operation and, importantly, the behaviour towards manually hidden rows. Codes 1 to 11 - where 9 is SUM and 1 is AVERAGE - ignore filtered rows but include rows hidden by hand. Codes 101 to 111 ignore both. So =SUBTOTAL(9,B2:B100) and =SUBTOTAL(109,B2:B100) differ only when rows have been hidden manually. SUBTOTAL also skips any nested SUBTOTAL within its range, which is what allows subtotals inside a grand total without double counting. AGGREGATE extends the idea further, adding options to ignore error values as well.

Answer: D

Correct answer: all of above

A design template can be applied to the current slide, to every slide in the presentation, or set as the default for new presentations.

Answer: D

Correct answer: 10+50

Without a leading = the entry is text, not a formula, so the cell shows the characters 10+50 rather than 60.

Answer: D

Correct answer: All of above

A cell becomes active when it is clicked, when Tab moves to it, or when an arrow key reaches it - all three simply move the selection.

Answer: D

Correct answer: All of above

Any of the three fits the column to its contents: double-clicking the boundary at the right of the heading, and the equivalent gestures the question lists. The right boundary is the one that belongs to that column.