Reproduction: How Life Continues — CBSE Class 9 Science Important Questions
13 hand-picked CBSE Class 9 Science important questions for Reproduction: How Life Continues, each with a full model answer — the formats and topics most likely to appear in your board exam.
- 13
- Questions
- 6
- Question types
- 32
- Total marks
- ₹0
- With answers
The highest-yield Reproduction questions compare asexual reproduction (binary fission, budding, fragmentation, spore formation, vegetative propagation — producing genetically identical offspring from one parent) with sexual reproduction (fusion of male and female gametes giving variation). Human reproductive organs and the roles of testes/ovaries, fertilisation and the significance of variation are asked frequently.
About Reproduction: How Life Continues
This chapter explains reproduction — the biological process by which organisms produce new individuals of their own kind, ensuring the continuity of a species. It contrasts asexual reproduction (one parent, identical offspring) with sexual reproduction (two parents, gamete fusion, variation), surveys reproduction in plants and animals, and introduces the basic structure of the human reproductive system.
Key concepts & formulas
Asexual reproduction involves a single parent, no gametes, and produces genetically identical offspring (clones). Sexual reproduction involves two parents, fusion of male and female gametes, and produces offspring with variation.
Fertilisation is the fusion of a male gamete (sperm/pollen nucleus) with a female gamete (egg/ovum) to form a zygote, which develops into a new individual. It may be external (in water) or internal (inside the body).
Sexual reproduction mixes genes from two parents, creating variation. Variations help a species survive changing environments and are the raw material for evolution and better adaptation.
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Important questions with answers
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| Question type | Count | Marks |
|---|---|---|
| MCQ | 4 | 1 |
| Assertion–Reason | 1 | 1 |
| Very Short | 2 | 2 |
| Short Answer | 3 | 3 |
| Long Answer | 2 | 5 |
| Case-based | 1 | 4 |
Multiple-choice questions (1 mark)
Which of the following reproduces by binary fission?
- (a)
Hydra
- (b)
Amoeba
- (c)
Spirogyra
- (d)
Yeast
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Answer: (b) Amoeba.
Amoeba divides into two equal daughter cells by binary fission. Hydra reproduces by budding, Spirogyra by fragmentation and yeast by budding.
The fusion of a male gamete and a female gamete is called:
- (a)
pollination
- (b)
fertilisation
- (c)
germination
- (d)
budding
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Answer: (b) fertilisation.
Fertilisation is the fusion of male and female gametes to form a zygote. Pollination is only the transfer of pollen and precedes fertilisation in plants.
Growing a rose plant from a cutting is an example of:
- (a)
spore formation
- (b)
sexual reproduction
- (c)
vegetative propagation
- (d)
fragmentation
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Answer: (c) vegetative propagation.
A new plant is produced from a vegetative part (stem cutting) of the parent without seeds or gametes; this asexual method is vegetative propagation. The new plant is genetically identical to the parent.
A gardener wants all offspring plants of a prize-winning mango tree to have exactly the same fruit quality. Which method should be used and why?
- (a)
Growing from seeds, because seeds carry the parent's genes
- (b)
Vegetative propagation (grafting), because it produces genetically identical clones
- (c)
Sexual reproduction, because it increases variation
- (d)
Spore formation, because it is fastest
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Answer: (b) Vegetative propagation (grafting), because it produces genetically identical clones.
Seeds form by sexual reproduction and carry variation, so seed-grown mangoes differ from the parent. Vegetative methods such as grafting produce clones with identical fruit quality.
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Practise free with the AI tutor →Assertion–Reason questions (1 mark)
Assertion (A): Offspring produced by sexual reproduction show variation.
Reason (R): Sexual reproduction involves the fusion of gametes from two different parents.
- (a)
Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A
- (b)
Both A and R are true but R is not the correct explanation of A
- (c)
A is true but R is false
- (d)
A is false but R is true
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Answer: (a) Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A.
Because gametes come from two parents and carry different combinations of genes, their fusion produces offspring with new combinations, i.e. variation.
Very short answer questions (2 marks)
Differentiate between asexual and sexual reproduction on the basis of the number of parents and the nature of the offspring.
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Asexual reproduction: involves a single parent; offspring are genetically identical to the parent (clones).
Sexual reproduction: involves two parents (male and female); offspring show variation and are not identical to either parent.
Name the male and female reproductive organs in humans and state one function of each.
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Testes (male): produce male gametes (sperms) and the male hormone testosterone.
Ovaries (female): produce female gametes (ova/eggs) and female hormones such as oestrogen.
Short answer questions (3 marks)
Describe how the Hydra reproduces asexually. Include a simple labelled diagram.
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Hydra reproduces by budding. A small outgrowth called a bud appears on the side of the parent's body. This bud grows, develops a mouth and tentacles, and forms a small new Hydra. When it is mature it detaches and lives as an independent organism. Only one parent is involved and the offspring is genetically identical.
With the help of a labelled diagram of a flower, explain the process of pollination. How does it differ from fertilisation?
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Pollination is the transfer of pollen grains from the anther (male part, stamen) to the stigma (female part, carpel) of a flower. When pollen lands on its own flower's stigma it is self-pollination; when it is carried to another flower of the same kind (by wind, water or insects) it is cross-pollination.
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"Variation is beneficial to a species but may not always be beneficial to an individual." Justify this statement with a suitable example.
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Variations arise during sexual reproduction and are inherited by different individuals. For the species, a large pool of variations is beneficial because if the environment changes (temperature, disease, food), at least some individuals with a suitable variation survive and reproduce, so the species is not wiped out.
For an individual, a particular variation may be useless or even harmful under the current conditions. For example, a bacterium with a variation giving heat resistance gains nothing while the climate is cool, but if temperature suddenly rises, that variation lets it survive while others die. Thus the variation helps the species persist even though it did not help each individual earlier.
Long answer questions (5 marks)
Describe four methods of asexual reproduction, giving one example of an organism for each. State one advantage and one disadvantage of asexual reproduction.
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1. Binary fission: the parent cell splits into two equal daughter cells. Example: Amoeba, bacteria.
2. Budding: a small bud grows on the parent, matures and detaches. Example: Hydra, yeast.
3. Fragmentation: the body breaks into pieces, each growing into a new organism. Example: Spirogyra.
4. Spore formation: the organism produces many spores that germinate into new individuals under favourable conditions. Example: Rhizopus (bread mould), ferns.
(Vegetative propagation in plants, e.g. potato tubers, is also acceptable as a method.)
Advantage: it is fast, needs only one parent, and preserves useful traits since offspring are identical.
Disadvantage: there is no variation, so the whole population can be destroyed by a single unfavourable change such as a new disease.
Draw a labelled schematic of the human male and female reproductive systems (as a flow of organs) and describe the function of the testes, ovary, oviduct (fallopian tube) and uterus.
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The pathway of gametes can be shown as:
Testes: produce the male gametes (sperms) and the hormone testosterone.
Ovary: produces the female gametes (ova) and hormones such as oestrogen and progesterone; one egg is usually released each month.
Oviduct (fallopian tube): carries the egg from the ovary towards the uterus; fertilisation normally takes place here when a sperm fuses with the egg.
Uterus (womb): the muscular organ in which the fertilised egg (zygote/embryo) implants and the baby develops until birth.
Case-based questions (4 marks)
A student places a moist slice of bread under a jar for a few days and observes cottony white threads that later develop tiny black rounded structures at their tips. These black structures are sporangia that release spores. When the spores land on suitable moist food, they germinate and grow into new mould.
(i) Name the mode of reproduction shown by this bread mould.
(ii) Name the black rounded structures and state what they contain.
(iii) Is this reproduction sexual or asexual? Give one reason.
(iv) State one condition that favours this type of reproduction.
Show model answer
(i) The mode of reproduction is spore formation (the mould is Rhizopus).
(ii) The black rounded structures are sporangia; each contains hundreds of tiny reproductive units called spores.
(iii) It is asexual, because a single parent produces offspring without the fusion of gametes, and the new moulds are identical to the parent.
(iv) Warm and moist (damp) conditions favour spore germination and growth (presence of food/humidity).
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Frequently asked questions
Are these Reproduction: How Life Continues important questions free?
Yes. All 13 CBSE Class 9 Science important questions for Reproduction: How Life Continues are free, with full model answers and no login required.Do these Reproduction: How Life Continues questions follow the latest CBSE syllabus?
Yes — they are aligned to the NCERT 2026–27 syllabus for CBSE Class 9 Science, so nothing here is outside the current course.How should I practise the Reproduction: How Life Continues important questions?
Attempt each question on paper first, then reveal the model answer to check your method — not just the final result. Re-do anything you got wrong the same day.What types of questions are covered for Reproduction: How Life Continues?
A full mix — multiple-choice questions, assertion–reason questions, very short answer questions, short answer questions, long answer questions, case-based questions — so every format in the CBSE paper is covered.
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