Creating a matching question on Google Forms
- Open a new Google Form.
- Fill out the Title and Description.
- Type your matching question.
- Choose from Checkbox grid or Multiple choice grid.
- Type in the Row and Column options.
- Click More options.
- Select Limit to one response per column.
- Click Settings.
- Select Make this a quiz.
- Click Preview.
Google Forms has a number of features that make it indispensable to teachers and educators. Whether you’re creating a sign-up form for a class trip or a surprise pop quiz, you can choose from question formats like multiple choice, short answer, and rating scales.
However, there’s one common question type that isn’t available in Google Forms — the matching question. Luckily for you, we’ve got an easy workaround you can start implementing today…
What is a matching question?
As the name suggests, a matching question requires the reader to match up items from different columns to answer a specific question. This type of question is often used in quizzes and tests to determine if students have an adequate understanding of a concept. Common topics for matching questions include vocabulary and terminology, scientific theories, events, dates, and more.
Let’s look at an example of a matching question:
Question: Can you match the English word to the corresponding word in French?
| English | French |
|---|---|
| Hello | Chaud |
| Thank you | Bonjour |
| Hot | Merci |
| Cold | Froid |
How to make a matching question in Google Forms
Creating a matching question in Google Forms is tricky because this question type isn’t offered in the dropdown menu. The instructions below present a workaround that solves this problem, essentially creating a grid that serves as a matching question:
- Open a new Google Form.
- Fill out the Title and Description.
- Type your matching question in the Untitled Question field.
- Under question type, choose from Checkbox grid or Multiple choice grid. For our example question, we’ll choose Multiple choice grid.
- For a matching question where one item in a row matches with multiple items in a column, select Checkbox grid.
- For a matching question where one item in a row matches with only one item in a column, select Multiple choice grid.
5. Type in the Row and Column options. Continue for the rest of the quiz.
- Click More options (the three vertical dots). Select Limit to one response per column.
- Click Settings.
- Select Make this a quiz and choose the desired settings.
- To preview the question, click Preview at the top right.
- You’ll see that, while the format isn’t exactly the same as a traditional matching question, it requires students to use the same thought process to complete it.
Supercharge your quizzes with Jotform
Google Forms is a great option for making simple quizzes, polls, forms, and questionnaires. But if you’re looking for a more advanced quiz maker for teachers, or a robust form builder for businesses, Jotform is an even better alternative.
Using an input table, you can create a matching question with ease. Jotform also offers multiple advanced quiz features:
- Question types: Jotform has dozens of quiz question types, so you can create the perfect quiz for your needs.
- Quiz templates: You never have to start a quiz from scratch. Just use one of the hundreds of quiz templates and customize it in the form builder.
- Answer tracking: Use Jotform Tables to track all incoming answers in one simple workspace.
- Custom user experience: Use a Smart Form so each participant gets different questions based on their previous answers in the form.
- Website embed: Instead of emailing the quiz to recipients, you can embed the quiz on your website so it’s easy for everyone to access.
Pro Tip
The Jotform AI Quiz Generator can help you create quizzes from your presentations with ease. Just upload a presentation file to the quiz generator — or use a prompt — and Jotform AI will automatically create a corresponding quiz for you.
Whether you’re wondering how to create an online quiz for students, colleagues, or someone else, Jotform can help you do it with a suite of advanced tools. Start using it for free today.
Photo by PNW Production
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