Primary, Secondary, Or Tertiary?

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| By Sarahmorehouse
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Sarahmorehouse
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Quizzes Created: 4 | Total Attempts: 8,909
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  • 1/10 Questions
    Interview Transcript - ProProfs

    Interview Transcript

    • Primary
    • Secondary
    • Tertiary
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Primary, Secondary, Or Tertiary? - Quiz
About This Quiz

A quick self-quiz to see if you can identify primary, secondary, and tertiary sources.

Quiz Preview

  • 2. 

    Magazine Article

    • Primary

    • Secondary

    • Tertiary

    Correct Answer
    A. Secondary
    Explanation
    Magazine articles like this are usually secondary sources.

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  • 3. 
    Data - ProProfs

    Data

    • Primary

    • Secondary

    • Tertiary

    Correct Answer
    A. Primary
    Explanation
    In science and social science research, the raw data is a primary source.

    Science and social science datasets are often found on the web, put there by the researchers or the institutions that sponsor them.

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  • 4. 
    Old Newspaper - ProProfs

    Old Newspaper

    • Primary

    • Secondary

    • Tertiary

    Correct Answer
    A. Primary
    Explanation
    Newspapers and other documents from the era you are studying are primary sources.

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  • 5. 

    Reference Book

    • Primary

    • Secondary

    • Tertiary

    Correct Answer
    A. Tertiary
    Explanation
    Encyclopedias, as well as dictionaries, handbooks, manuals, guides, and many other kinds of reference sources, are tertiary sources. This is because they bring together the information discovered and interpreted by many scholars.

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  • 6. 

    Documentary

    • Primary

    • Secondary

    • Tertiary

    Correct Answer
    A. Secondary
    Explanation
    Most documentaries are secondary resources because they interpret and explain the primary sources (documents... documentaries... !)

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  • 7. 
    Non-fiction Book - ProProfs

    Non-fiction Book

    • Primary

    • Secondary

    • Tertiary

    Correct Answer
    A. Secondary
    Explanation
    Non-fiction books, whether scholarly or non-scholarly, are almost always secondary sources. The only exceptions are when they are reference books (tertiary sources) or from a time period that you are studying (so you are using them as primary sources.)

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  • 8. 
    Journal Article - ProProfs

    Journal Article

    • Primary

    • Secondary

    • Tertiary

    Correct Answer
    A. Secondary
    Explanation
    Scholarly articles are secondary sources. They interpret the information found in primary sources.

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  • 9. 

    Literary Work

    • Primary

    • Secondary

    • Tertiary

    Correct Answer
    A. Primary
    Explanation
    When you are studying literature, the work you are studying is the primary source. When you are studying history and culture, a piece of literature (or other artform) from that time, place, and culture might be used as a primary source too.

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  • 10. 

    Primary Sources are

    • First-hand

    • Scholarly

    • Not interpreted by anyone

    • From the event, phenomenon, or time-period being studied

    Correct Answer(s)
    A. First-hand
    A. Not interpreted by anyone
    A. From the event, phenomenon, or time-period being studied
    Explanation
    All the options are correct, except for scholarly. Primary sources are not divided into scholarly versus non-scholarly, because they are used as evidence of how something happened, just as fingerprints are evidence at a crime scene regardless of the expertise or reputation of the person who left them!

    Rate this question:

Quiz Review Timeline (Updated): Mar 22, 2023 +

Our quizzes are rigorously reviewed, monitored and continuously updated by our expert board to maintain accuracy, relevance, and timeliness.

  • Current Version
  • Mar 22, 2023
    Quiz Edited by
    ProProfs Editorial Team
  • Mar 04, 2011
    Quiz Created by
    Sarahmorehouse
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