Question

Which of the following is class II lever?
(A) Pliers
(B) A beam balance
(C) A nutcracker
(D) A knife

Answer 1

Hint: A class II lever is a type of lever in which the load is in between the fulcrum and the effort. Identify each simple machine in the option, and investigate which one has a characteristic of a class II lever.

Complete step by step answer:
Generally, a lever is a simple machine which can allow us to lift heavier loads with much smaller effort.
There are three classes of lever, one is called First class lever or class I lever, the second is Second class lever or class II lever and the third is Third class lever or Class III lever.
Class II (or second class lever) lever. This is a type of lever machine in which its load is in between the fulcrum and the effort. This means that the effort is applied on one end while the support or fulcrum is applied on the other end. Examples of such types of simple machines are wheelbarrows, bottle openers and nut crackers.
Hence, from above definition, we can conclude that the class II lever in the option is the nutcracker.
Thus, the correct option is C.

Note:
Alternatively, since there’s only one answer in the options, without identifying which one is a class II lever, we may identify which one is not. First, we identify that pliers and beam balance are first class levers. Levers have their fulcrum in between their load and effort. And the knife is a third class lever which is a lever with the effort between load and fulcrum. Hence, we are left with option C, nutcrackers.