Q1:

Percentages

Medium

Arun's present age in years is 40%40\% of Barun's. In another few years, Arun's age will be half of Barun's. By what percentage will Barun's age increase during this period?

20
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 1

Q2:

Time & Work

Medium

A person can complete a job in 120120 days. He works alone on Day 11. On Day 22, he is joined by another person who also can complete the job in exactly 120120 days. On Day 33, they are joined by another person of equal efficiency. Like this, everyday a new person with the same efficiency joins the work. How many days are required to complete the job?

15
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 2

Q3:

Minima & Maxima

Medium

An elevator has a weight limit of 630630 kg. It is carrying a group of people of whom the heaviest weighs 5757 kg and the lightest weighs 5353 kg. What is the maximum possible number of people in the group?

11
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 3

Q4:

Time, Speed & Distance

Easy

A man leaves his home and walks at a speed of 1212 km per hour, reaching the railway station 1010 minutes after the train had departed. If instead he had walked at a speed of 1515 km per hour, he would have reached the station 1010 minutes before the train's departure. The distance (in km) from his home to the railway station is

20
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 4

Q5:

Percentages

Medium

Ravi invests 50%50\% of his monthly savings in fixed deposits. Thirty percent of the rest of his savings is invested in stocks and the rest goes into Ravi's savings bank account. If the total amount deposited by him in the bank (for savings account and fixed deposits) is Rs. 5950059500, then Ravi's total monthly savings (in Rs.) is

70000
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 5

Q6:

Profit & Loss

Medium

If a seller gives a discount of 15%15 \% on retail price, she still makes a profit of 2%2 \%. Which of the following ensures that she makes a profit of 20%20\%?

Answer options
Option 4
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 6

Q7:

Time, Speed & Distance

Hard

A man travels by a motor boat down a river to his office and back. With the speed of the river unchanged, if he doubles the speed of his motor boat, then his total travel time gets reduced by 75%75\%. The ratio of the original speed of the motor boat to the speed of the river is

Answer options
Option 2
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 7

Q8:

Ratio, Proportion & Variation

Medium

Suppose, C1,C2,C3,C4,C1, C2, C3, C4, and C5C5 are five companies. The profits made by C1,C2,C1, C2, and C3C3 are in the ratio 9:10:89: 10: 8 while the profits made by C2,C4,C2, C4, and C5C5 are in the ratio 18:19:2018:19:20. If C5C5 has made a profit of Rs 1919 crore more than C1C1, then the total profit (in Rs) made by all five companies is

Answer options
Option 1
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 8

Q9:

Percentages

Easy

The number of girls appearing for an admission test is twice the number of boys. If 30%30\% of the girls and 45%45\% of the boys get admission, the percentage of candidates who do not get admission is

Answer options
Option 4
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 9

Q10:

Ratio, Proportion & Variation

Easy

A stall sells popcorn and chips in packets of three sizes: large, super, and jumbo. The numbers of large, super, and jumbo packets in its stock are in the ratio 7:17:167: 17: 16 for popcorn and 6:15:146: 15: 14 for chips. If the total number of popcorn packets in its stock is the same as that of chips packets, then the numbers of jumbo popcorn packets and jumbo chips packets are in the ratio

Answer options
Option 1
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 10

Q11:

Profit & Loss

Easy

In a market, the price of medium quality mangoes is half that of good mangoes. A shopkeeper buys 80 kg80 \mathrm{~kg} good mangoes and 40 kg40 \mathrm{~kg} medium quality mangoes from the market and then sells all these at a common price which is 10%10 \% less than the price at which he bought the good ones. His overall profit is

Answer options
Option 2
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 11

Q12:

Profit & Loss

Medium

If Fatima sells 6060 identical toys at a 40%40\% discount on the printed price, then she makes 20%20\% profit. Ten of these toys are destroyed in a fire. While selling the rest, how much discount%\% should be given on the printed price so that she can make the same amount of profit?

Answer options
Option 4
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 12

Q13:

Ratio, Proportion & Variation

Hard

If aa and bb are integers of opposite signs such that (a+3)2:b2=9:1(a+3)^{2}: b^{2}=9: 1 and (a−1)2:(b−1)2=4:1(a-1)^{2}:(b-1)^{2}=4: 1, then the ratio a2:b2a^{2}: b^{2} is

Answer options
Option 4
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 13

Q14:

Mean, Median & Mode

Medium

A class consists of 2020 boys and 3030 girls. In the mid-semester examination, the average score of the girls was 55 higher than that of the boys. In the final exam, however, the average score of the girls dropped by 33 while the average score of the entire class increased by 22. The increase in the average score of the boys is

Answer options
Option 1
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 14

Q15:

Modulus

Easy

The area of the closed region bounded by the equation ∣x∣+∣y∣=2| x | + | y | = 2 in the two-dimensional plane is

Answer options
Option 3
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 15

Q16:

Triangles

Medium

From a triangle ABCABC with sides of lengths 4040 ft, 2525 ft and 3535 ft, a triangular portion GBCGBC is cut off where GG is the centroid of ABCABC. The area, in sq ft, of the remaining portion of triangle ABCABC is

Answer options
Option 2
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 16

Q17:

Triangles

Hard

Let ABCABC be a right-angled isosceles triangle with hypotenuse BCBC. Let BQCBQC be a semi-circle, away from AA, with diameter BCBC. Let BPCBPC be an arc of a circle centred at AA and lying between BCBC and BQCBQC. If ABAB has length 66 cm ,then the area, in sq. cm, of the region enclosed by BPCBPC and BQCBQC is:

Answer options
Option 2
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 17

Q18:

Solids

Medium

A solid metallic cube is melted to form five solid cubes whose volumes are in the ratio 1:1:8:27:271: 1 : 8: 27: 27. The percentage by which the sum of the surface areas of these five cubes exceeds the surface area of the original cube is nearest to :

Answer options
Option 2
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 18

Q19:

Solids

Hard

A ball of diameter 44 cm is kept on top of a hollow cylinder standing vertically. The height of the cylinder is 33 cm, while its volume is 9π9 \pi cm3^3. Then the vertical distance, in cm, of the topmost point of the ball from the base of the cylinder is

6
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 19

Q20:

Triangles

Medium

Let ABCA B C be a right-angled triangle with BCB C as the hypotenuse. Lengths of ABA B and AC are 15 km15 \mathrm{~km} and 20krn20 \mathrm{krn}, respectively. The minimum possible time, in minutes, required to reach the hypotenuse from A at a speed of 30 km30 \mathrm{~km} per hour is

24
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 20

Q21:

Logarithms

Medium

Suppose, log⁡3x=log⁡12y=a\log_3 x = \log_{12} y = a, where x,yx, y are positive numbers. If GG is the geometric mean of x and y, and log⁡6G\log_6 G is equal to

Answer options
Option 4
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 21

Q22:

Identities

Medium

If x+1=x2x + 1 = x^2 and x>0x > 0, then 2x42x^4 is

Answer options
Option 4
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 22

Q23:

Logarithms

Medium

The value of log⁡0.0085+log⁡381−7\log_{0.008} \sqrt{5} + \log_{\sqrt{3}} 81 - 7 is equal to

Answer options
Option 3
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 23

Q24:

Indices

Medium

If 92x−1−81x−1=19449^{2 x-1}-81^{x-1}=1944, then xx is

Answer options
Option 2
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 24

Q25:

Integral Solutions

Medium

The number of solutions (x,y,z)(x, y, z) to the equation x−y−z=25x - y - z = 25, where x,yx, y, and zz are positive integers such that x≤40,y≤12x \le 40, y \le 12, and z≤12z \le 12 is

Answer options
Option 2
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 25

Q26:

Inequalities

Medium

For how many integers nn, will the inequality (n−5)(n−10)−3(n−2)≤0(n - 5) (n - 10) - 3(n − 2) \leq 0 be satisfied?

11
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 26

Q27:

Polynomials

Easy

If f1(x)=x2+11x+nf_{1}(x)=x^{2}+11 x+n and f2(x)=xf_{2}(x)=x, then the largest positive integer nn for which the equation f1(x)=f2(x)f_{1}(x)=f_{2}(x) has two distinct real roots, is

24
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 27

Q28:

Minima & Maxima

Medium

If a,b,c,a, b, c, and dd are integers such that a+b+c+d=30a + b + c + d = 30, then the minimum possible value of (a−b)2+(a−c)2+(a−d)2(a - b)^2 + (a - c)^2 + (a - d)^2 is

2
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 28

Q29:

Permutation & Combination

Medium

Let AB,CD,EF,GH,AB, CD, EF, GH, and JKJK be five diameters of a circle with center at OO. In how many ways can three points be chosen out of A,B,C,D,E,F,G,H,J,K,A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, J, K, and OO so as to form a triangle?

160
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 29

Q30:

Modulus

Medium

The shortest distance of the point (12,1)\left(\frac{1}{2}, 1\right) from the curve y=∣x−1∣+∣x+1∣y=|x-1|+|x+1| is

Answer options
Option 1
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 30

Q31:

Progression & Series

Easy

If the square of the 77th term of an arithmetic progression with positive common difference equals the product of the 33rd and 1717th terms, then the ratio of the first term to the common difference is

Answer options
Option 1
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 31

Q32:

Permutation & Combination

Medium

In how many ways can 77 identical erasers be distributed among 44 kids in such a way that each kid gets at least one eraser but nobody gets more than 33 erasers?

Answer options
Option 1
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 32

Q33:

Functions

Medium

If f(x)=5x+23x−5f(x) = \frac{5x + 2}{3x - 5} and g(x)=x2−2x−1g(x) = x^2 - 2x - 1, then the value of g(f(f(3)))g(f(f(3))) is

Answer options
Option 1
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 33

Q34:

Progression & Series

Medium

Let a1,a2,……...a3na_{1}, a_{2}, \ldots \ldots . . . a_{3 n} be an arithmetic progression with a1=3a_{1}=3 and a2=7a_{2}=7. If a1+a2+….+a3n=1830a_{1}+a_{2}+\ldots .+a_{3 n}=1830, then what is the smallest positive integer mm such that m(a1+a2+….+an)>1830m\left(a_{1}+a_{2}+\ldots .+a_{n}\right)>1830 ?

Answer options
Option 2
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 34

CAT 2017 Quantitative Ability Past Year Question Paper

Every question from the CAT 2017 Quantitative Ability paper is here in full, with the correct answer and a step by step solution for each one. It is completely free, there is no login and no paywall, and you can read the whole paper online or download it to revise offline.

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CAT past year questions (PYQs) are the closest thing to the real exam, so working through them is the quickest way to learn the paper pattern, the marking scheme and the level of difficulty to expect on the day.