GATE Practice Questions on VHDL Basics
Q1. VHDL is mainly used for:
(A) Writing operating system programs
(B) Modeling and simulating digital systems
(C) Database management
(D) Document formatting
Answer: (B)
👉 VHDL is a hardware description language used to model, simulate, and synthesize
digital systems.
Q2. Which of the following statements about VHDL is true?
(A) VHDL supports only sequential execution of statements.
(B) VHDL cannot describe timing information.
(C) VHDL is strongly typed and supports hierarchy.
(D) VHDL is proprietary and tied to one vendor.
Answer: (C)
👉 VHDL is strongly typed and allows hierarchical design. It supports both sequential and
concurrent statements, timing, and is a public IEEE standard.
Q3.The first version of VHDL (Version 7.2) was developed in:
(A) 1981
(B) 1983
(C) 1985
(D) 1987
Answer: (C) 1985
👉 VHDL development started in 1983, and Version 7.2 was released to the public in 1985.
Later, IEEE standardized it in 1987.
Q4.Which IEEE standard defines the VHDL language?
(A) IEEE 754
(B) IEEE 1076
(C) IEEE 802.11
(D) IEEE 1364
Answer: (B) IEEE 1076
👉 IEEE 1076-1987 is the standard for VHDL. IEEE 1364 is for Verilog, IEEE 754 for
floating-point, IEEE 802.11 for Wi-Fi.
Q5. Consider the entity:
ENTITY AND_GATE IS
PORT(A, B: IN BIT; Y: OUT BIT);
END AND_GATE;
What does this code represent?
(A) Internal working of AND gate
(B) Interface (inputs/outputs) of AND gate
(C) Testbench for AND gate
(D) Timing model of AND gate
Answer: (B)
👉 An entity only describes the interface (inputs and outputs) of the circuit, not its internal
working.
Q6. Which modeling style in VHDL uses Boolean equations and concurrent
assignments?
(A) Structural
(B) Behavioral
(C) Dataflow
(D) Mixed
Answer: (C) Dataflow
👉 Dataflow style expresses output as equations (Y <= A AND B;).
Q7. Which of the following correctly represents the Full Adder SUM output in
Dataflow modeling?
(A) SUM <= (A and B) or CIN;
(B) SUM <= A xor B xor CIN;
(C) SUM <= A or B or CIN;
(D) SUM <= A and B and CIN;
Answer: (B)
👉 Full Adder sum = A ⊕ B ⊕ CIN.
Q8. In 1988, the U.S. Department of Defense mandated that all digital ASIC
suppliers must deliver:
(A) Only datasheets in text format
(B) Test results in MATLAB
(C) VHDL descriptions of ASICs and testbenches
(D) Gate-level schematics in Verilog
Answer: (C)
👉 Since Sept 1988, DoD required VHDL descriptions (behavioral + structural) and
testbenches for ASIC suppliers (Military Standard 454).
GATE MCQs on VHDL & Modeling
1. VHDL Basics
Q1. VHDL stands for:
(A) Very High Scale Integrated Language
(B) Very High Speed Integrated Circuits Hardware Description Language
(C) Very High Standard Integrated Language
(D) Verified Hardware Design Language
Answer: (B)
Q2. Which programming language influenced the design of VHDL most?
(A) Pascal
(B) Ada
(C) C
(D) Assembly
Answer: (B) Ada
2. Capabilities of VHDL
Q3. Which of the following is NOT a capability of VHDL?
(A) Hierarchical modeling
(B) Technology independence
(C) Describing transistor-level circuits directly
(D) Writing testbenches in same language
Answer: (C)
Q4. VHDL allows modeling of a digital system at which of the following levels?
(A) Algorithmic
(B) Gate-level
(C) System-level
(D) All of the above
Answer: (D)
Basic Terminology
Q1. In VHDL, an Entity specifies:
(A) The internal behavior of a circuit
(B) The simulation semantics
(C) The external view of a circuit with input/output ports
(D) The configuration declaration
Answer: (C)
Q2. The combination of Entity + Architecture in VHDL represents:
(A) Only the block diagram
(B) Only the functionality
(C) A complete design unit
(D) A package declaration
Answer: (C)
Q4. Architecture Modeling Styles
Q7. Which style of modeling in VHDL uses concurrent signal assignment?
(A) Structural
(B) Dataflow
(C) Behavioral
(D) Mixed
Answer: (B)
Q5. The behavioral style of modeling in VHDL is closest to:
(A) Circuit diagrams
(B) Algorithmic/step-by-step programming
(C) Netlist connections
(D) Timing diagrams
Answer: (B)
Q6. In structural modeling, port map is used for:
(A) Mapping entities to architectures
(B) Connecting signals to component ports
(C) Specifying timing delays
(D) Writing behavioral code
Answer: (B)
Q7. A mixed style architecture of a full adder can contain:
(A) Only structural components
(B) Only behavioral processes
(C) Both structural, behavioral, and dataflow elements
(D) Only testbench code
Answer: (C)
Example Circuits
Q1. In the dataflow model of a half adder:
SUM <= A xor B after 8 ns;
CARRY <= A and B after 4 ns;
What does the “after” clause specify?
(A) Number of gate levels
(B) Simulation delay time
(C) Hardware propagation delay
(D) Both B and C
Answer: (D)
Q2. In a behavioral model of a decoder, variables (:=) differ from signals (<=) because:
(A) Variables have global scope
(B) Variables update immediately, signals after a delay
(C) Variables can be declared outside process
(D) Signals cannot be used inside process
Answer: (B)
Q3. A 1-bit full adder modeled in mixed style uses:
(A) Only one style of modeling
(B) Multiple styles (structural, behavioral, dataflow) in one architecture
(C) Only testbench description
(D) Only entity declaration
Answer: (B)
Q4. In VHDL, which statement is correct?
(A) A process never terminates, it only suspends.
(B) A signal can be declared inside a process.
(C) Sensitivity list is optional in concurrent statements.
(D) Variables and signals behave the same.
Answer: (A)
