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WHMIS: WHMIS pictograms

The red-bordered diamond pictograms described in words: flame, flame over circle, gas cylinder, corrosion, exploding bomb, skull and crossbones, health hazard, exclamation mark and the biohazard symbol, plus classes with no pictogram.

  • 17 questions
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WHMIS pictograms · Question 1Score 0/0

In the flame over circle pictogram, what does the circle represent?

Study reference: CCOHS OSH Answers: WHMIS fact sheets (revised 2026-05-28), Ch. 6 WHMIS – Pictograms — Pictograms by hazard class, classes without a pictogram

All 17 questions in this test

Every question and its answer choices. The correct answers and explanations appear when you take the test above.

  1. In the flame over circle pictogram, what does the circle represent?

    1. The sun
    2. A warning light
    3. Oxygen
    4. A drum

  2. A label shows a red diamond with a black flame inside. What type of hazard does it warn about?

    1. An oxidizing hazard
    2. A biological hazard
    3. A fire hazard
    4. A gas under pressure

  3. How does the biohazardous infectious materials pictogram differ from the other WHMIS pictograms?

    1. It has no symbol inside the border, only a red outline
    2. Its border is a black circle, not a red diamond
    3. It is always shown in green
    4. It is printed only on the SDS

  4. A pictogram shows a cylinder lying on its side. What hazard does it identify?

    1. Corrosive to metals
    2. Acute toxicity
    3. Flammable liquid
    4. Gas under pressure

  5. Which hazard does the skull and crossbones pictogram represent?

    1. Poisoning or death after short exposure
    2. Mild, reversible skin irritation
    3. Fire caused by friction or sparks
    4. Cancer after many years of exposure

  6. You see a pictogram of a dead tree and fish on an imported product's label. What is its status under WHMIS?

    1. It must be removed or covered before the product is used at work
    2. It means the product is biohazardous
    3. It is a GHS environmental pictogram that WHMIS does not require
    4. It is the WHMIS pictogram for corrosives

  7. An organic peroxide is classified as Type B. Which pictograms appear on its label?

    1. Only the flame over circle
    2. The corrosion and the exclamation mark
    3. Only the exploding bomb
    4. Both the flame and the exploding bomb

  8. What is the usual border of a WHMIS hazard pictogram?

    1. A green rectangle
    2. A red square set on one of its points
    3. A blue circle with a white edge
    4. A yellow triangle pointing up

  9. A pictogram shows a flame sitting on top of a circle. What kind of product carries it?

    1. A compressed gas
    2. A corrosive
    3. An oxidizer
    4. A flammable liquid

  10. A hazardous product's label has no pictogram. What does this mean?

    1. The label is illegal and must be removed
    2. Its class or category may not require one
    3. The product is exempt from SDS rules
    4. The product is not hazardous

  11. A skin corrosive is Category 1, while a skin irritant is Category 2. Which pictogram does the Category 2 product use?

    1. Skull and crossbones
    2. Health hazard
    3. Exclamation mark
    4. Corrosion

  12. A pictogram shows liquid dripping from containers onto a metal bar and onto a hand. What does it mean?

    1. The product is corrosive
    2. The product is under pressure
    3. The product is flammable
    4. The product is an oxidizer

  13. Besides the supplier label, where else will you find a product's pictogram information?

    1. On the delivery truck's licence plate
    2. On the worker's pay stub
    3. On the employer's business licence
    4. On the safety data sheet

  14. Which of these WHMIS hazard classes has no pictogram?

    1. Simple asphyxiants
    2. Acute toxicity, Category 1
    3. Oxidizing liquids
    4. Gases under pressure

  15. Which products carry the exploding bomb pictogram in WHMIS?

    1. Some self-reactives and organic peroxides
    2. Products that cause an allergic skin reaction
    3. All flammable liquids
    4. All compressed gases

  16. A pictogram shows the outline of a person's head and chest with a star-shaped burst on the chest. What does it warn about?

    1. Gas stored under pressure in a cylinder
    2. Mild skin irritation
    3. Serious health effects such as cancer
    4. Danger of explosion

  17. What does the exclamation mark pictogram usually indicate?

    1. Infectious organisms
    2. Less serious health effects, such as skin irritation
    3. The most toxic products in the workplace, such as poisons
    4. A risk of explosion when heated

WHMIS pictograms: key rules to remember

Our summary of what the official handbook says on this topic, in our own words. Read it before or after the practice questions above, then check the original chapter. Read the official chapter ↗

What is a pictogram?

  • A graphic image showing at a glance the type of hazard. Most have a red border shaped as a square set on one of its points (a diamond) with a black symbol inside. Symbol + border = pictogram. Pictograms are assigned to specific classes/categories.
  • Found on supplier labels and on SDSs (as the symbol or the name of the symbol, SDS Section 2).

Pictogram names and what they signal (CCOHS chart)

  • Exploding bomb: explosion or reactivity hazards (self-reactives and organic peroxides Types A and B).
  • Flame: fire hazards (flammable gases, aerosols Cat 1-2, flammable liquids Cat 1-3, flammable solids, pyrophorics, self-heating, water-reactives, self-reactives/organic peroxides Types B-F, chemicals under pressure Cat 1-2).
  • Flame over circle: oxidizing hazards (oxidizing gases, liquids, solids). The circle is an "o" for oxygen.
  • Gas cylinder: gases under pressure (all four categories), chemicals under pressure.
  • Corrosion: corrosive damage to metals, skin and eyes (symbol: liquid dripping from containers onto metal and onto a hand). Corrosive to metals Cat 1; skin corrosion Cat 1; serious eye damage Cat 1.
  • Skull and crossbones: death or toxicity with short exposure to small amounts; acute toxicity Cat 1-3 (oral, dermal, inhalation).
  • Health hazard: may cause or is suspected of causing serious health effects (symbol: silhouette of head and chest with a star-shaped burst on the chest). Respiratory sensitizer, germ cell mutagenicity, carcinogenicity, reproductive toxicity, STOT single (Cat 1-2) and repeated, aspiration hazard.
  • Exclamation mark: less serious health effects (acute toxicity Cat 4, skin irritation Cat 2, eye irritation Cat 2/2A, skin sensitizer, STOT single Cat 3) or damage to the ozone layer (GHS environmental, optional).
  • Environment (dead tree and fish): GHS environmental pictogram, not required in WHMIS but may appear.
  • Biohazardous infectious materials: organisms or toxins that can cause disease in people or animals. Symbol is three joined "c" shapes with a small circle in the middle; border is a black circle (not a red diamond).

Two pictograms on one class

  • Self-reactives and organic peroxides Type B: both flame and exploding bomb.
  • Chemicals under pressure Cat 1 and 2: both flame and gas cylinder.
  • Physical/health hazards not otherwise classified must use a GHS pictogram appropriate to the hazard.

Classes and categories with no pictogram

  • Aerosols Cat 3; flammable gases Cat 2; flammable liquids Cat 4; self-reactives and organic peroxides Type G; combustible dusts; simple asphyxiants; eye irritation Cat 2B; reproductive toxicity effects on or via lactation.
  • Label and SDS Section 2 still need signal word, hazard statements, other elements.

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