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100+ Free NY Regents Life Science: Biology Practice Questions

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2026 Statistics

Key Facts: NY Regents Life Science: Biology Exam

45-55

total questions on current Life Science: Biology forms

NYSED Educator Guide and 2026 Directions for Administering

9-11

question clusters built around assessment storylines

NYSED Educator Guide

3 hours

standard testing time for Life Science: Biology

NYSED 2026 Directions for Administering

60% / 40%

approximate multiple-choice and constructed-response split

NYSED Educator Guide

65

Regents passing scale score

NYSED How Are Regents Examinations Scored?

3

required Life Science: Biology Investigations

NYSED Investigations memos

June 2026

last administration of the Regents Examination in Living Environment

NYSED 2026 Directions for Administering

For current Regents biology readiness, students should prepare for Life Science: Biology. The exam is 3 hours, includes 9-11 clusters and 45-55 questions, and is about 60% multiple-choice and 40% constructed response. It is aligned to NYSP12SLS claims in structure and function, matter and energy, ecology, inheritance and variation, evolution, Earth's systems, and engineering applications. Students must meet the 1,200-minute laboratory requirement and successfully complete the three required Life Science: Biology Investigations for admission; investigation scores are not included in the final Regents score.

Sample NY Regents Life Science: Biology Practice Questions

Try these sample questions to test your NY Regents Life Science: Biology exam readiness. Each question includes a detailed explanation. Start the interactive quiz above for the full 100+ question experience with AI tutoring.

1A change in a DNA sequence causes one amino acid in a membrane receptor to be replaced. Which result would most directly show a structure-and-function relationship?
A.The cell divides more slowly because the receptor is a carbohydrate
B.The receptor changes shape and no longer binds its signal molecule effectively
C.The nucleus moves out of the cell because DNA is now outside the chromosome
D.The organism immediately produces a new species with the changed receptor
Explanation: Proteins function because their amino acid sequences fold into specific shapes. A mutation that changes an amino acid can alter a receptor's shape and reduce binding to its signal molecule.
2After a person begins running, breathing rate and heart rate both increase. Which statement best explains why these systems respond together?
A.The respiratory system makes blood cells, and the circulatory system stores oxygen
B.The two systems interact to deliver more oxygen to cells and remove more carbon dioxide
C.The digestive system stops all cell activity during exercise
D.The nervous system replaces the need for oxygen during exercise
Explanation: During exercise, muscle cells need more oxygen for cellular respiration and produce more carbon dioxide. The respiratory and circulatory systems interact to exchange and transport these gases.
3A person's blood glucose rises after a meal. In response, the pancreas releases insulin, and cells take in more glucose. Which statement best describes this process?
A.It is positive feedback because the response increases blood glucose further
B.It is negative feedback because the response moves blood glucose back toward a set range
C.It is diffusion because insulin is a gas moving from high to low concentration
D.It is natural selection because only insulin-producing cells survive
Explanation: Negative feedback helps maintain homeostasis by reversing a change from the normal range. Insulin lowers elevated blood glucose by increasing glucose uptake into cells.
4Red blood cells placed in pure water swell and may burst. Which explanation best accounts for this observation?
A.Water moves into the cells by osmosis because the cell interior has a higher solute concentration than the surrounding water
B.Salt leaves the cells by active transport until the membrane dissolves
C.Oxygen moves into the cells and pushes the membrane outward
D.The cells perform photosynthesis and produce extra water inside
Explanation: Osmosis is the movement of water across a selectively permeable membrane toward the side with higher solute concentration. Pure water is hypotonic to the cell interior, so water enters the cells and can cause swelling.
5Which statement best explains why enzymes are important in living cells?
A.They provide genetic information for all inherited traits
B.They speed up specific chemical reactions without being used up
C.They make reactions impossible at body temperature
D.They replace the need for reactants in metabolism
Explanation: Enzymes are biological catalysts that lower activation energy and increase reaction rates. Their active sites are specific, so they usually act on particular substrates.
6A nerve cell has long branching extensions, while a red blood cell is small and flexible. What is the best biological reason for these different structures?
A.Cells with different structures are always from different species
B.Cell structures are specialized for different functions in the organism
C.All cells have identical functions but random shapes
D.The red blood cell controls the nerve cell's DNA
Explanation: Specialized cells have structures that help them perform specific jobs. Nerve cell extensions help transmit signals, while red blood cell shape helps transport gases through narrow vessels.
7A student collects these data after volunteers place one hand in cool water: skin temperature drops from 32 C to 24 C in 2 minutes, then returns to 31 C after the hand is removed. Which conclusion is best supported?
A.The body has no response to changes in skin temperature
B.Feedback responses can help restore conditions toward the original range
C.The water permanently changed each volunteer's DNA sequence
D.Skin temperature can only be controlled by photosynthesis
Explanation: The return toward the original temperature after the stimulus is removed is evidence of regulation. Regents-style questions often ask students to connect data trends to homeostasis and feedback.
8Which process produces genetically identical body cells for growth and repair?
A.Meiosis
B.Mitosis
C.Fertilization
D.Natural selection
Explanation: Mitosis produces two genetically identical daughter cells for growth, repair, and replacement of body cells. Meiosis produces gametes with half the chromosome number.
9Almost every body cell in a person contains the same DNA, yet muscle cells and skin cells have different functions. Which explanation best accounts for this difference?
A.Different cell types usually activate different sets of genes
B.Muscle cells contain DNA but skin cells contain only RNA
C.All genes are active at the same level in every cell type
D.Skin cells get their genes from bacteria, while muscle cells do not
Explanation: Cell differentiation depends largely on differences in gene expression. Cells with the same genome can produce different proteins because different genes are turned on or off.
10A person touches a hot pan and quickly pulls the hand away before consciously thinking about it. Which systems are most directly involved in this fast response?
A.Digestive and reproductive systems
B.Nervous and muscular systems
C.Respiratory and excretory systems only
D.Skeletal and endocrine systems only
Explanation: Sensory neurons detect the heat stimulus, the nervous system processes the signal, and muscles contract to move the hand away. This rapid response helps protect tissues from damage.

About the NY Regents Life Science: Biology Exam

The Regents Examination in Life Science: Biology is New York's current high school biology Regents examination aligned to the New York State P-12 Science Learning Standards. It uses clustered storylines, multiple real-world stimuli, multiple-choice questions, and constructed-response questions to assess three-dimensional biology reasoning. The legacy Living Environment exam ended with its June 18, 2026 administration.

Assessment

The Regents Examination in Life Science: Biology is a written test organized into 9-11 question clusters following assessment storylines. Total questions vary by administration from 45-55, with approximately 60% multiple-choice and 40% constructed-response questions. The legacy Living Environment exam had its final administration on June 18, 2026.

Time Limit

3 hours under standard NYSED Regents administration directions.

Passing Score

Scale score of 65 is the Regents passing standard. For Life Science: Biology, NYSED uses administration-specific raw-score-to-scale-score conversion charts and reports performance levels 1-5.

Exam Fee

No direct NYSED student registration fee published for enrolled students; Regents are school-administered New York State assessments. (New York State Education Department (NYSED), Office of State Assessment)

NY Regents Life Science: Biology Exam Content Outline

9-20%

Structure and Function

Cells, body systems, feedback mechanisms, homeostasis, DNA-protein relationships, system interactions, and structure-function modeling.

9-16%

Matter and Energy in Organisms and Ecosystems

Photosynthesis, respiration, food molecules, matter cycling, energy transfer, ecosystem models, and quantitative reasoning.

14-27%

Interdependent Relationships in Ecosystems

Carrying capacity, biodiversity, ecosystem stability, disturbances, ecological relationships, human impacts, group behaviors, and solution design.

14-27%

Inheritance and Variation of Traits

DNA, chromosomes, gene expression, mitosis, meiosis, reproduction, development, mutations, statistics, probability, and heritable variation.

14-24%

Natural Selection and Evolution

Common ancestry, fossil and molecular evidence, natural selection, adaptation, population change, speciation, and evolutionary data.

2-9%

Earth's Systems

Carbon cycling, climate connections, photosynthesis and atmospheric oxygen, and interactions between life and Earth systems.

2-11%

Engineering, Technology, and Applications of Science

Scientific problems, criteria, constraints, models, data, trade-offs, and evaluating biological solutions.

How to Pass the NY Regents Life Science: Biology Exam

What You Need to Know

  • Passing score: Scale score of 65 is the Regents passing standard. For Life Science: Biology, NYSED uses administration-specific raw-score-to-scale-score conversion charts and reports performance levels 1-5.
  • Assessment: The Regents Examination in Life Science: Biology is a written test organized into 9-11 question clusters following assessment storylines. Total questions vary by administration from 45-55, with approximately 60% multiple-choice and 40% constructed-response questions. The legacy Living Environment exam had its final administration on June 18, 2026.
  • Time limit: 3 hours under standard NYSED Regents administration directions.
  • Exam fee: No direct NYSED student registration fee published for enrolled students; Regents are school-administered New York State assessments.

Keys to Passing

  • Work through all 100 available questions
  • Review every answer and explanation
  • Track weak areas and revisit them
  • Use our AI tutor for tough concepts

NY Regents Life Science: Biology Study Tips from Top Performers

1Practice clustered reading: identify the phenomenon, then connect every table, graph, diagram, or passage back to the same biological explanation.
2Review the required Investigations conceptually: homeostasis and feedback, lactose tolerance and gene expression, and ecosystem solution design.
3Use evidence language in every explanation: claim, data pattern, biological mechanism, and conclusion.
4Spend extra review time on ecology, inheritance and variation, and evolution because each has one of the largest official blueprint ranges.
5Know the difference between matter cycling and energy flow; Regents biology questions often test that distinction with food webs or carbon models.
6When a question includes a graph or data table, describe the trend before looking at answer choices.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the current official NY Regents biology exam called?

NYSED's current exam page uses the title Regents Examination in Life Science: Biology. The legacy Regents Examination in Living Environment had its final administration on June 18, 2026.

How many questions are on the Life Science: Biology Regents?

NYSED states that the current Life Science: Biology exam has 9-11 question clusters and 45-55 total questions. The exact number can vary by administration.

How long is the exam?

Students are permitted three hours to complete the Regents Examination in Life Science: Biology under NYSED standard administration directions.

What score is passing?

NYSED Regents exams use scale scores rather than raw percent correct. A scale score of 65 is the Regents passing standard, and Life Science: Biology conversion charts also identify performance levels.

Are there required labs or investigations?

Yes. Students must meet the 1,200-minute laboratory requirement with satisfactory reports and successfully complete the three required Life Science: Biology Investigations. Successful completion of the Investigations is defined locally; investigation results are not reported to the State or included in the Regents score.

Can students use a calculator?

Yes. Each student must have a four-function or scientific calculator for Life Science: Biology. Graphing calculators are not permitted.

Does this practice set copy released Regents questions?

No. These are original multiple-choice practice questions aligned to NYSED topics and readiness skills, not copied from released or secure Regents items.