Which HTTP methods are commonly used in REST APIs?

• A. CONNECT, TRACE, PATCH
• B. GET, POST, PUT, DELETE
• C. OPTIONS, MERGE, LINK
• D. HEAD, REPLACE, DELETE

Answer: (B)

The choice indicating GET, POST, PUT, and DELETE as commonly used HTTP methods in REST APIs is indeed the correct one due to their fundamental roles in the REST architecture.

GET is utilized for fetching data from a server without modifying it, making it a primary method for retrieving resources. POST is employed for creating new resources on the server, allowing clients to submit data for processing. PUT is specifically used for updating existing resources or creating a resource if it does not exist, thus enabling full resource replacement. DELETE serves to remove resources from the server, effectively allowing clients to manage resource lifecycles.

These methods align well with the principles of RESTful architecture, which emphasizes stateless communication and resource manipulation through standard HTTP methods. They are widely adopted due to their clear semantics, making it easier for developers to implement and understand interactions with RESTful services.

The other options list HTTP methods that are either less common in standard RESTful APIs or are not typically recognized as action verbs in this context. For example, methods like CONNECT, TRACE, and MERGE do not play a central role in the operational paradigms of most REST APIs, focusing instead on debugging, tunneling, or other specialized functions. This makes them less relevant compared to the foundational CRUD operations encaps