Which type of substance is most accurately measured using a graduated cylinder in the laboratory?

• A. Powder
• B. Gas
• C. Liquid
• D. Solid

Answer: (C)

Verified step by step guidance

1. Understand the purpose of a graduated cylinder: it is a laboratory instrument designed to measure the volume of a substance accurately.
2. Recall that graduated cylinders are marked with volume graduations, making them ideal for measuring liquids, which take the shape of their container and have a definite volume.
3. Consider powders and solids: these have fixed shapes and volumes, but their volume is not easily measured by pouring into a graduated cylinder because they do not flow like liquids.
4. Consider gases: they expand to fill their container, so their volume is not measured directly with a graduated cylinder but rather with specialized equipment like gas syringes or gas collection tubes.
5. Conclude that liquids are the most accurately measured substances using a graduated cylinder because they conform to the container shape and have a definite volume that can be read from the graduations.