GATE Biomedical Engineering General Aptitude Syllabus

General Aptitude syllabus — full chapter and topic list

Expand any chapter to see its topics and sub-topics. This is the whole examinable outline for General Aptitude in GATE Biomedical Engineering, not a summary of it.

1. 1

   Verbal Aptitude

   3 topics

   • Basic English grammar
     • Tenses
     • Articles
     • Adjectives
     • Prepositions
     • Conjunctions
     • Verb-noun agreement
     • Other parts of speech
   • Basic vocabulary
     • Words
     • Idioms
     • Phrases in context
   • Reading and comprehension
     • Narrative sequencing
2. 2

   Quantitative Aptitude

   3 topics

   • Data interpretation
     • Data graphs (bar graphs, pie charts, and other graphs representing the data)
     • 2- and 3-dimensional plots
     • Maps and tables
   • Numerical computation and estimation
     • Ratios
     • Percentages
     • Powers
     • Exponents and logarithms
     • Permutations and combinations
     • Series
   • Mensuration and geometry
     • Elementary statistics and probability
3. 3

   Analytical Aptitude

   1 topic

   • Logic
     • Deduction and induction
     • Analogy
     • Numerical relations and reasoning
4. 4

   Spatial Aptitude

   2 topics

   • Transformation of shapes
     • Translation
     • Rotation
     • Scaling
     • Mirroring
     • Assembling and grouping
   • Paper folding, cutting, and patterns in 2 and 3 dimensions

General Aptitude flashcards for GATE Biomedical Engineering

22 of 50 cards from the General Aptitude deck — real questions with worked answers.

1. What is a verb in English grammar, and what does it express?

   A verb is a word that expresses an action (run, write), an occurrence (happen), or a state of being (is, seem). It is the core of the predicate and is essential to every complete sentence.

2. Name the eight traditional parts of speech in English.

   Noun, pronoun, verb, adjective, adverb, preposition, conjunction, and interjection.

3. What are the three basic tenses in English, and what time does each refer to?

   Past (action already completed), present (action happening now or habitually), and future (action yet to happen).

4. What are the four aspects of each tense in English?

   Simple (plain action), continuous/progressive (ongoing action, be + -ing), perfect (completed relative to a point, have + past participle), and perfect continuous (have been + -ing).

5. Form the present perfect continuous tense of 'work' for the subject 'she'.

   She has been working. (subject + has/have been + verb-ing)

6. What is the difference between the simple past and the present perfect tense?

   Simple past ('I visited Delhi') refers to a finished action at a definite past time. Present perfect ('I have visited Delhi') links a past action to the present, with the time unspecified or relevant now.

7. What are the definite and indefinite articles in English?

   The definite article is 'the'. The indefinite articles are 'a' and 'an'.

8. State the rule for choosing between the articles 'a' and 'an'.

   Use 'a' before a word beginning with a consonant sound (a book, a university) and 'an' before a word beginning with a vowel sound (an apple, an hour). The choice depends on sound, not spelling.

9. When is the definite article 'the' used rather than 'a/an'?

   'The' is used for specific or previously mentioned nouns, unique things (the sun), superlatives (the best), and ordinals (the first), whereas 'a/an' introduces a non-specific, singular countable noun.

10. What is an adjective, and what does it modify?

    An adjective is a word that describes or modifies a noun or pronoun, giving information about its quality, quantity, size, or state (e.g., tall, blue, three, happy).

11. What is the normal order of cumulative adjectives before a noun in English?

    Opinion, size, age, shape, colour, origin, material, purpose, then the noun (e.g., 'a lovely small old round brown Italian wooden serving table').

12. How are the comparative and superlative degrees of regular short adjectives formed?

    Comparative adds '-er' (taller) and superlative adds '-est' (tallest); for longer adjectives use 'more' (more beautiful) and 'most' (most beautiful).

13. What is a preposition, and what does it show?

    A preposition is a word placed before a noun or pronoun to show its relationship (position, direction, time, or manner) to another word, e.g., in, on, at, under, between, before.

14. Distinguish the prepositions 'in', 'on', and 'at' when used for time.

    'In' is used for longer periods (in 2024, in May, in the morning), 'on' for days and dates (on Monday, on 5th June), and 'at' for precise times (at 6 o'clock, at noon).

15. What is a conjunction, and what are its two main types?

    A conjunction joins words, phrases, or clauses. The two main types are coordinating conjunctions (joining equal elements: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so — FANBOYS) and subordinating conjunctions (joining a dependent clause to a main clause: because, although, if, while).

16. What are correlative conjunctions? Give two examples.

    Correlative conjunctions are pairs that work together to join balanced elements, such as 'either...or', 'neither...nor', 'both...and', and 'not only...but also'.

17. State the rule of subject-verb agreement for number.

    A singular subject takes a singular verb and a plural subject takes a plural verb (e.g., 'The dog runs' vs. 'The dogs run'). The verb must agree with its subject in number and person.

18. In subject-verb agreement, what verb form do two singular subjects joined by 'and' versus by 'or' take?

    Subjects joined by 'and' are plural and take a plural verb ('Tom and Jerry are here'). Subjects joined by 'or'/'nor' take a verb that agrees with the nearer subject ('Neither the boys nor the girl is ready').

19. What is an adverb, and which words can it modify?

    An adverb modifies a verb, an adjective, or another adverb, telling how, when, where, or to what degree (e.g., quickly, very, here, often).

20. What is the difference between a pronoun and a noun?

    A noun names a person, place, thing, or idea; a pronoun (he, she, it, they, who) replaces a noun to avoid repetition. The noun a pronoun refers to is called its antecedent.

21. What is an interjection? Give an example.

    An interjection is a word or phrase expressing sudden emotion or exclamation, grammatically independent of the rest of the sentence, e.g., 'Wow!', 'Oh!', 'Alas!'.

22. Define an idiom and explain why its meaning cannot be deduced literally.

    An idiom is a fixed expression whose figurative meaning differs from the literal meanings of its individual words (e.g., 'kick the bucket' means to die). Its meaning is conventional and must be learned as a whole.

See more General Aptitude flashcards →

Planning General Aptitude for GATE Biomedical Engineering

General Aptitude (GATE Biomedical Engineering) FAQ