With a wire conductor, the heavier the gauge, the which of the following is true about resistance?

• A. More resistance
• B. The same resistance
• C. It depends on material
• D. Less resistance

Answer: (D)

The resistance of a wire depends on its cross-sectional area: for the same material and length, increasing the cross-sectional area lowers resistance. Heavier gauge means a thicker wire, so its cross-sectional area is larger, and therefore its resistance is reduced. A quick reminder from R = ρL/A: if you keep material and length fixed and increase A, R goes down. For example, doubling the diameter makes area four times larger, so the resistance becomes one-fourth. So the wire with heavier gauge has less resistance. The other ideas would only apply if the area didn’t change (same resistance) or if a different material with higher resistivity were used (which isn’t the case here).