LEFT, RIGHT, MID in Google Sheets - Interactive Code Practice

Practice - 5 Tasks

1fill in blank

easy

Complete the formula to extract the first 3 characters from cell A1.

Google Sheets

=LEFT(A1, [1])

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

A2

B5

C4

D3

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using a number larger than the text length causes no error but extracts extra characters.

Confusing LEFT with RIGHT or MID functions.

The LEFT function extracts characters from the start of the text. Using 3 extracts the first 3 characters.

2fill in blank

medium

Complete the formula to extract the last 4 characters from cell B2.

Google Sheets

=RIGHT(B2, [1])

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

A3

B4

C5

D6

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using LEFT instead of RIGHT.

Using a wrong number of characters.

The RIGHT function extracts characters from the end of the text. Using 4 extracts the last 4 characters.

3fill in blank

hard

Fix the error in the formula to extract 5 characters from the middle of cell C3 starting at position 2.

Google Sheets

=MID(C3, [1], 5)

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

A2

B1

C3

D5

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using 1 instead of 2 for start position.

Confusing the order of arguments.

The MID function syntax is MID(text, start_position, number_of_characters). To start at position 2, use 2.

4fill in blank

hard

Fill both blanks to extract 4 characters from cell D4 starting at position 3.

Google Sheets

=MID(D4, [1], [2])

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

A3

B4

C5

D2

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Swapping start position and number of characters.

Using wrong numbers for either blank.

The MID function needs the start position and the number of characters. Start at 3 and extract 4 characters.

5fill in blank

hard

Fill all three blanks to extract the first 2 characters from cell E5, then the last 3 characters from cell F5, and finally 4 characters from cell G5 starting at position 2.

Google Sheets

=LEFT(E5, [1]) & RIGHT(F5, [2]) & MID(G5, [3], 4)

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

A2

B3

D4

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Mixing up numbers for LEFT and RIGHT.

Using wrong start position for MID.

LEFT(E5,2) extracts first 2 chars, RIGHT(F5,3) extracts last 3 chars, MID(G5,2,4) extracts 4 chars starting at position 2.

Practice

1. Which function would you use in Google Sheets to get the first 3 letters from the word "Banana"?

easy

A. RIGHT("Banana", 3)

B. LEFT("Banana", 3)

C. MID("Banana", 2, 3)

D. MID("Banana", 3, 3)

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the function purpose

   The LEFT function extracts characters from the start of the text.

2. Step 2: Apply the function to the word

   LEFT("Banana", 3) returns the first 3 letters: "Ban".

3. Final Answer:

   LEFT("Banana", 3) -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   LEFT = first letters [OK]

Hint: LEFT gets letters from start, RIGHT from end [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing LEFT with RIGHT function
• Using MID without correct start position
• Assuming MID always starts at 1

2. Which of these formulas correctly extracts the last 4 characters from the text "Spreadsheet"?

easy

A. RIGHT("Spreadsheet", 4)

B. LEFT("Spreadsheet", 4)

C. MID("Spreadsheet", 4, 4)

D. RIGHT("Spreadsheet", 5)

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify the function for last characters

   The RIGHT function extracts characters from the end of the text.

2. Step 2: Apply the function with correct number

   RIGHT("Spreadsheet", 4) returns the last 4 letters: "eet".

3. Final Answer:

   RIGHT("Spreadsheet", 4) -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   RIGHT = last letters [OK]

Hint: RIGHT extracts from end; count how many letters you want [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using LEFT instead of RIGHT for last letters
• Choosing wrong number of characters
• Confusing MID start position with length

3. What is the result of the formula =MID("Adventure", 3, 4) in Google Sheets?

medium

A. "Adve"

B. "entu"

C. "dven"

D. "vent"

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand MID parameters

   MID(text, start, length) extracts length characters starting at position start.

2. Step 2: Apply to "Adventure"

   Starting at position 3: A(1), d(2), v(3), e(4), n(5), t(6), u(7), r(8), e(9). Extract 4 letters: v, e, n, t.

3. Final Answer:

   "vent" -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   MID("Adventure",3,4) = "vent" [OK]

Hint: Count start position carefully, then take length letters [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Starting count at 0 instead of 1
• Mixing up start position and length
• Assuming MID extracts from start or end

4. The formula =MID("Calculator", 0, 3) is used in a cell. What is the correct fix to get the first 3 letters?

medium

A. =MID("Calculator", 1, 3)

B. =LEFT("Calculator", 4)

C. =RIGHT("Calculator", 3)

D. =MID("Calculator", 3, 3)

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify the error in MID start position

   MID start position must be 1 or more; 0 is invalid and causes error.

2. Step 2: Correct the start position to 1

   Changing to MID("Calculator", 1, 3) extracts first 3 letters: "Cal".

3. Final Answer:

   =MID("Calculator", 1, 3) -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   MID start must be ≥1 [OK]

Hint: MID start position must be 1 or more, never zero [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using 0 as start position in MID
• Using RIGHT or LEFT when MID is intended
• Changing length instead of start position

5. You have a list of product codes like "AB12345XYZ". You want to extract the middle 5 digits (positions 3 to 7). Which formula correctly extracts these digits?

hard

A. =RIGHT(A1, 5)

B. =LEFT(A1, 5)

C. =MID(A1, 3, 5)

D. =MID(A1, 5, 3)

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify the start position and length

   The digits start at position 3 and span 5 characters (positions 3,4,5,6,7).

2. Step 2: Use MID with correct parameters

   =MID(A1, 3, 5) extracts 5 characters starting at position 3, which are the digits.

3. Final Answer:

   =MID(A1, 3, 5) -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   MID extracts middle characters by start and length [OK]

Hint: MID(text, start, length) extracts middle part exactly [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using LEFT or RIGHT instead of MID for middle extraction
• Wrong start position or length values
• Assuming digits are always at start or end