Question

Consider the following two tables emp1 and emp2:

emp1
Id	Name
1	Amit
2	Punita

emp2
Id	Name
1	Punita
2	Anand

What is the output of the following query?
SELECT name from emp1 minus SELECT name from emp2;

• A. Punita
• B. Amit
• C. Anand
• D. Amit, Punita

Answer 1

The Correct Option is B

To solve the given query, we need to understand the SQL MINUS operator, which returns distinct rows from the first SELECT statement that aren't present in the results of the second SELECT statement.

Consider the data from both tables:

emp1
Id	Name
1	Amit
2	Punita

emp2
Id	Name
1	Punita
2	Anand

Now, let's break down the SQL query:

SELECT name from emp1 will produce:

• Amit
• Punita

SELECT name from emp2 will produce:

• Punita
• Anand

Applying the MINUS operator:

• Remove the names that appear in both lists.
• Punita is common in both, so it is removed.

This leaves:

• Amit

Thus, the output of the query SELECT name from emp1 minus SELECT name from emp2; is:

Amit

Answer 2

The output of the SQL query SELECT name FROM emp1 MINUS SELECT name FROM emp2 is amit.

Additional Context:

• MINUS Operation:
  • Returns distinct rows from first query not present in second
  • Performs set difference operation
  • Equivalent to EXCEPT in some SQL dialects
• Step-by-Step Execution:
  1. First query results: {'amit', 'punita'}
  2. Second query results: {'punita', 'anand'}
  3. MINUS removes all names appearing in second set
  4. Final result: {'amit'} (only unique to first set)
• Important Notes:
  • Case-sensitive comparison in most databases
  • Returns only distinct values (duplicates removed)
  • Column count and data types must match
• Alternative Syntax:
  • LEFT JOIN with NULL check
  • NOT EXISTS subquery

Correct Answer: (2) amit.