Given the basic ER and relational models, which of the following is INCORRECT? A) An attribute of an entity can have more than one value B) An attribute of an entity can be composite C) In a row of a relational table, an attribute can have more than one value D) In a row of a relational table, an attribute can have exactly one value or a NULL value

Official answer: C) In a row of a relational table, an attribute can have more than one value. Explanation: Let us evaluate the statements: 1. (A) In the ER model, an entity can have multivalued attributes (e.g., multiple phone numbers). This statement is correct. 2. (B) In the ER model, attributes can be composite (e.g., `Address` composed of `Street`, `City`, `Pincode`). This statement is correct. 3. (C) In the relational model, relations are in first normal form (1NF) where each attribute in a tuple must hold an atomic (single) value, not a set or collection of values. Thus, an attribute cannot have more than one value in a row. This statement is INCORRECT. 4. (D) In a relational table row, an attribute can hold a single atomic value or a `NULL` value. This statement is correct. Therefore, the incorrect statement is C.

A) An attribute of an entity can have more than one value

B) An attribute of an entity can be composite

D) In a row of a relational table, an attribute can have exactly one value or a NULL value

ER Model

GATE CSE 2012 · Q14

MCQ1 markEasy

Time00:00

Given the basic ER and relational models, which of the following is INCORRECT?

Select one answerSingle correct

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Solution

Step-by-step verified solution

Official answer: C) In a row of a relational table, an attribute can have more than one value

ER Model

Let us evaluate the statements:

(A) In the ER model, an entity can have multivalued attributes (e.g., multiple phone numbers). This statement is correct.
(B) In the ER model, attributes can be composite (e.g., Address composed of Street, City, Pincode). This statement is correct.
(C) In the relational model, relations are in first normal form (1NF) where each attribute in a tuple must hold an atomic (single) value, not a set or collection of values. Thus, an attribute cannot have more than one value in a row. This statement is INCORRECT.
(D) In a relational table row, an attribute can hold a single atomic value or a NULL value. This statement is correct.

Therefore, the incorrect statement is C.

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This ER Model previous year question is Q14 of the GATE CSE 2012 paper. Find more GATE CSE PYQs on ER Model in Databases, or browse all GATE CSE PYQs.

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ER Model in GATE CSE

ER Model has 8 GATE CSE PYQs across 8 papers from 2012 to 2026. 7 of them are 1-mark MCQs like this one, and it is the only one in GATE CSE 2012.

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Independent practice explanation verified by the GateAI team. GATE is conducted by the IITs; question text follows the official paper.