Smart-Answer Quill

• Type: Magical Device, Cheating Implement
• Owners: Various (implied to be commercially available to students)
• Maker: Unknown

The specific physical appearance of a Smart-Answer Quill is not described in the novels. It is a type of magical quill enchanted to perform a specific, illicit function during examinations. It is likely designed to be indistinguishable from a standard quill to a casual observer, requiring a magical inspection to reveal its true nature.

A Smart-Answer Quill is a heavily enchanted writing instrument designed to automatically provide the correct answers to questions on a written test or exam. The charm used to create such a quill is powerful enough to be considered a serious form of cheating by academic bodies like the Wizarding Examinations Authority. The usage of these quills, along with other cheating devices such as Detachable Cribbing Cuffs and Self-Correcting Ink, is strictly forbidden during exams at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, including the Ordinary Wizarding Level (O.W.L.) and Nastily Exhausting Wizarding Test (N.E.W.T.) examinations. Examiners are trained to detect and confiscate them.

The specific origin and inventor of the Smart-Answer Quill are unknown. It is mentioned as a known and available cheating device by the time Harry Potter takes his O.W.L. exams, suggesting it is a relatively modern invention within the wizarding world.

The Smart-Answer Quill is mentioned in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix during Harry Potter's Charms O.W.L. The elderly examiner, Professor Tofty, inspects Harry's quill before the exam begins. After confirming it is a standard Self-Spelling Quill, he comments on its limitations and explicitly forbids the use of “Auto-Answer Quills,” another name for the Smart-Answer Quill. This interaction serves to build the tension and formal atmosphere of the O.W.L.s, demonstrating the seriousness with which the Ministry of Magic and the Wizarding Examinations Authority view academic integrity. It also expands the lore of the wizarding world by showing how magic is applied to problems like academic dishonesty.

There is no additional information regarding the Smart-Answer Quill from J.K. Rowling's interviews or supplementary materials on Pottermore/Wizarding World.