Which component is defined as a tapped resistor?

• A. Tapped resistor
• B. Potentiometer
• C. Rheostat
• D. Resistor

Answer: (D)

A tapped resistor is a resistor that has a point along its length from which you can take a portion of the resistance. The device designed to provide that kind of tapping is the potentiometer. A potentiometer is a three-terminal adjustable resistor; the third terminal (the wiper) taps into the resistive element, letting you pick off a fraction of the total resistance and, when used as a voltage divider, produce a variable output voltage. The fixed resistor has no tap, and a rheostat is a two-terminal variable resistor, not typically described as providing a fractional tap along the element. A plain resistor is just a fixed value with no tapping. So the component defined as a tapped resistor is the potentiometer.