Q1:

Mixture & Alligation

Medium

Two alcohol solutions, AA and BB, are mixed in the proportion 1:31:3 by volume. The volume of the mixture is then doubled by adding solution AA such that the resulting mixture has 72%72 \% alcohol. If solution AA has 60%60 \% alcohol, then the percentage of alcohol in solution BB is

Answer options
Option 2
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 1

Q2:

Time, Speed & Distance

Medium

Anil, Sunil, and Ravi run along a circular path of length 3 km3 \mathrm{~km}, starting from the same point at the same time, and going in the clockwise direction. If they run at speeds of 15 km/hr,10 km/hr15 \mathrm{~km} / \mathrm{hr}, 10 \mathrm{~km} / \mathrm{hr}, and 8 km/hr8 \mathrm{~km} / \mathrm{hr}, respectively, how much distance in km will Ravi have run when Anil and Sunil meet again for the first time at the starting point?

Answer options
Option 3
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 2

Q3:

Modulus

Medium

The area, in sq. units, enclosed by the lines x=2x = 2, y=∣x−2∣+4y = |x - 2| + 4, the X−X-axis and the Y−Y-axis is equal to

Answer options
Option 1
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 3

Q4:

Time, Speed & Distance

Medium

AA and BB are two railway stations 90 km90 \mathrm{~km} apart. A train leaves AA at 9:009:00 am, heading towards BB at a speed of 40 km/hr40 \mathrm{~km} / \mathrm{hr}. Another train leaves BB at 10:3010:30 am, heading towards AA at a speed of 20 km/hr20 \mathrm{~km} / \mathrm{hr}. The trains meet each other at

Answer options
Option 3
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 4

Q5:

Percentages

Medium

In the final examination, Bishnu scored 52%52 \% and Asha scored 64%64 \%. The marks obtained by Bishnu is 2323 less, and that by Asha is 3434 more than the marks obtained by Ramesh. The marks obtained by Geeta, who scored 84%84 \%, is

Answer options
Option 1
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 5

Q6:

Logarithms

Hard

If log⁡a30=A\log_a 30 = A, log⁡a(5/3)=−B\log_a(5/3) = - B and log⁡2a=1/3\log_2 a = 1 /3, then log⁡3a\log_3 a equals

Answer options
Option 2
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 6

Q7:

Quadrilaterals

Medium

In a trapezium ABCD,AB\mathrm{ABCD}, \mathrm{AB} is parallel to DC,BC\mathrm{DC}, \mathrm{BC} is perpendicular to DC and ∠BAD=45∘\angle \mathrm{BAD}=45^{\circ}. If DC=5 cm,BC=4 cm\mathrm{DC}=5 \mathrm{~cm}, \mathrm{BC}=4 \mathrm{~cm}, the area of the trapezium in sq cm is

28
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 7

Q8:

Functions

Easy

If f(x+y)=f(x)f(y)f(x + y) = f (x) f (y) and f(5)=4f(5) = 4, then f(10)−f(−10)f (10) - f (-10) is equal to

Answer options
Option 4
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 8

Q9:

Logarithms

Medium

2×4×8×16(log⁡24)2(log⁡48)3(log⁡816)4\small \dfrac{2\times4\times8\times16}{(\log_2 4)^2 (\log_4 8)^3 (\log_8 16)^4} is equal to

24
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 9

Q10:

Integral Solutions

Easy

Let N,xN, x and yy be positive integers such that N=x+y,N = x + y, 2<x<102 < x < 10 and 14<y<2314 < y < 23. If N>25N > 25, then how many distinct values are possible for N?N?

6
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 10

Q11:

Profit & Loss

Hard

A man buys 3535 kg of sugar and sets a marked price in order to make a 20%20\% profit. He sells 55 kg at this price, and 1515 kg at a 10%10\% discount. Accidentally, 33 kg of sugar is wasted. He sells the remaining sugar by raising the marked price by pp percent so as to make an overall profit of 15%15\%. Then pp is nearest to

Answer options
Option 1
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 11

Q12:

Time, Speed & Distance

Medium

Vimla starts for office every day at 99 am and reaches exactly on time if she drives at her usual speed of 40 km/hr40 \mathrm{~km} / \mathrm{hr}. She is late by 66 minutes if she drives at 35 km/hr35 \mathrm{~km} / \mathrm{hr}. One day, she covers two-thirds of her distance to office in onethirds of her usual time to reach office, and then stops for 88 minutes. The speed, in km/hr, at which she should drive the remaining distance to reach office exactly on time is

Answer options
Option 2
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 12

Q13:

Permutation & Combination

Easy

How many integers in the set (100,101,102,…,999)(100,101,102, \ldots, 999) have at least one digit repeated?

252
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 13

Q14:

Mean, Median & Mode

Medium

A batsman played n+2n + 2 innings and got out on all occasions. His average score in these n+2n + 2 innings was 29 runs and he scored 38 and 15 runs in the last two innings. The batsman scored less than 38 runs in each of the first nn innings. In these nn innings, his average score was 30 runs and lowest score was xx runs. The smallest possible value of xx is

Answer options
Option 2
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 14

Q15:

Linear Equation

Easy

Let kk be a constant. The equations kx+y=3kx + y = 3 and 4x+ky=44x + ky = 4 have a unique solution if and only if

Answer options
Option 4
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 15

Q16:

Mean, Median & Mode

Easy

Dick is thrice as old as Tom and Harry is twice as old as Dick. If Dick's age is 11 year less than the average age of all three, then Harry's age, in years, is

18
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 16

Q17:

Circles

Medium

The vertices of a triangle are (0,0)(0,0), and (4,0)(4,0) and (3,9)(3,9). The area of the circle passing through these three points is

Answer options
Option 3
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 17

Q18:

Simple & Compound Interest

Medium

A person invested a certain amount of money at 10%10\% annual interest, compounded half-yearly. After one and a half years, the interest and principal together became Rs 1852218522. The amount, in rupees, that the person had invested is

16000
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 18

Q19:

Indices

Medium

If a,b,ca, b, c are non-zero and 14a=36b=84c14^a = 36^b = 84^c, then 6b(1c−1a)6b \left( \frac{1}{c} - \frac{1}{a} \right) is equal to

3
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 19

Q20:

Quadrilaterals

Medium

The points (2,1)(2, 1) and (−3,−4)(-3, -4) are opposite vertices of a parallelogram. If the other two vertices lie on the line x+9y+c=0x + 9y + c = 0, then cc is

Answer options
Option 1
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 20

Q21:

Inequalities

Medium

Let mm and nn be natural numbers such that nn is even and 0.2<m20,nm,n11<0.50.2<\frac{\mathrm{m}}{20}, \frac{\mathrm{n}}{\mathrm{m}}, \frac{\mathrm{n}}{11}<0.5. Then m−2nm-2n equals

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

Q22:

Progression & Series

Medium

If x1=−1x_1 = -1 and xm=xm+1+(m+1)x_m = x_{m+1} + (m + 1) for every positive integer m,m, then x100x_{100} equals

Answer options
Option 3
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 22

Q23:

Divisibility Rules

Medium

How many of the integers 1,2,...,1201, 2, ..., 120, are divisible by none of 2,52, 5 and 77?

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

Q24:

Time & Work

Medium

A contractor agreed to construct a 66 km road in 200200 days. He employed 140140 persons for the work. After 6060 days, he realized that only 1.51.5 km road has been completed. How many additional people would he need to employ in order to finish the work exactly on time?

40
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 24

Q25:

Factorisation

Medium

How many pairs (a,b)(a, b) of positive integers are there such that a≤ba \le b and ab=ab = 420174^{2017}?

Answer options
Option 3
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 25

Q26:

Polynomials

Medium

Let mm and nn be positive integers, If x2+mx+2n=0x^2 + mx + 2n = 0 and x2+2nx+m=0x^2 + 2nx + m = 0 have real roots, then the smallest possible value of m+nm + n is

Answer options
Option 4
Correct Answer
Explanation for CAT QA question 26

CAT 2020 Quantitative Ability Past Year Question Paper

Every question from the CAT 2020 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.