Which of the following best describes the function of a wildcard in the WHERE clause?

Question

Options

• AAn exact match is not possible in a CREATE statement.
• BAn exact match is necessary in a statement.
• CAn exact match is not possible in a SELECT statement.
• DAn exact match is necessary in a CREATE statement.

• A
  2% (1)
• B
  6% (3)
• C
  90% (44)
• D
  2% (1)

Explanation

Option C is correct because wildcards (% and _ in SQL) are used with the LIKE operator in the WHERE clause of SELECT statements precisely when an exact match isn't possible or known - for example, WHERE last_name LIKE 'Sm%' retrieves any name starting with "Sm" without knowing the full value.

Why the distractors are wrong:

• A & D both mention CREATE statements, which are DDL commands used to define database objects (tables, indexes, etc.) - wildcards in a WHERE clause have no relationship to CREATE.
• B states an exact match is necessary, which is the opposite of the truth - wildcards exist specifically to handle imprecise, partial-match scenarios.

Memory tip: Associate wildcards with SELECT + LIKE = "I don't know exactly". Whenever you're searching (SELECT) but can only describe part of the value, that's your cue to use a wildcard. CREATE never searches data, so it never needs one.

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