GATE Electrical 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 Electrical 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 Electrical Engineering

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

1. In English grammar, what is the difference between a clause and a phrase?

   A clause contains a subject and a predicate (a verb) and can express a complete thought (independent) or not (dependent). A phrase is a group of related words that lacks a subject-verb pair and functions as a single part of speech.

2. What are the four main types of sentence structure in English?

   Simple (one independent clause), compound (two or more independent clauses joined by a coordinating conjunction), complex (one independent + one or more dependent clauses), and compound-complex (two or more independent clauses + at least one dependent clause).

3. Name the three basic verb tenses and their four aspects in English.

   Tenses: past, present, future. Aspects: simple, continuous (progressive), perfect, and perfect continuous, giving 12 tense-aspect combinations.

4. How is the present perfect tense formed and when is it used?

   Formed with has/have + past participle (e.g., 'She has finished'). Used for actions completed at an unspecified past time with present relevance, or actions continuing up to now.

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

   Simple past refers to a completed action at a specific finished time ('I saw it yesterday'). Present perfect links a past action to the present with no specific time ('I have seen it').

6. How is the past perfect tense used in narrative sequencing?

   The past perfect (had + past participle) shows that one past action occurred before another past action, establishing the earlier event in a sequence (e.g., 'The train had left before we arrived').

7. What are the definite and indefinite articles in English, and when is each used?

   Definite article 'the' refers to a specific/known noun. Indefinite articles 'a' and 'an' refer to a non-specific singular countable noun: 'a' before a consonant sound, 'an' before a vowel sound.

8. Why is it 'an hour' but 'a university'?

   Article choice depends on sound, not spelling. 'Hour' begins with a vowel sound (silent h), so 'an'; 'university' begins with a consonant 'y' sound (/juː/), so 'a'.

9. What is an adjective and what are the three degrees of comparison?

   An adjective modifies or describes a noun/pronoun. The three degrees are positive (tall), comparative (taller / more beautiful), and superlative (tallest / most beautiful).

10. What is the standard order of cumulative adjectives before a noun?

    Opinion, size, age, shape, colour, origin, material, purpose — e.g., 'a lovely small old round brown Italian wooden serving spoon'.

11. What is a preposition, and give the three main categories it expresses.

    A preposition shows the relationship of a noun/pronoun to another word. Main categories: place/position (in, on, at), time (before, after, during), and direction/movement (to, into, towards).

12. What is the difference between the prepositions 'in', 'on', and 'at' for time?

    'At' is used for precise times (at 5 pm), 'on' for days and dates (on Monday), and 'in' for longer periods such as months, years, and seasons (in July, in 2026).

13. What is a conjunction, and what are its three main types?

    A conjunction joins words, phrases, or clauses. Types: coordinating (FANBOYS: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so), subordinating (because, although, since), and correlative (either...or, neither...nor, not only...but also).

14. What does the mnemonic FANBOYS stand for?

    The seven coordinating conjunctions: For, And, Nor, But, Or, Yet, So.

15. State the rule of subject-verb (verb-noun) agreement.

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

16. In subject-verb agreement, which verb form follows two singular subjects joined by 'and' versus by 'or'?

    Subjects joined by 'and' usually take a plural verb ('Tom and Jane are here'). With 'or'/'nor', the verb agrees with the nearer subject ('Neither the boys nor the girl is here').

17. In subject-verb agreement, do collective nouns and indefinite pronouns like 'everyone' take singular or plural verbs?

    Collective nouns (team, committee) typically take a singular verb when acting as a unit. Indefinite pronouns such as everyone, someone, each, either, neither take a singular verb.

18. Name the eight parts of speech in English.

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

19. What is an adverb, and what kinds of questions does it answer?

    An adverb modifies a verb, adjective, or another adverb. It answers how (manner), when (time), where (place), how often (frequency), and to what degree (e.g., quickly, soon, here, often, very).

20. What is the difference between a gerund and a participle?

    Both are formed from verbs. A gerund is an -ing form used as a noun ('Swimming is fun'). A present participle is an -ing form used as an adjective or in continuous tenses ('the swimming pool', 'She is swimming').

21. What is the difference between a synonym and an antonym?

    A synonym is a word with the same or nearly the same meaning as another (big/large). An antonym is a word with the opposite meaning (big/small).

22. What are homophones, homonyms, and homographs?

    Homophones sound alike but differ in meaning/spelling (their/there). Homonyms share spelling and sound but differ in meaning (bat the animal vs bat for cricket). Homographs share spelling but may differ in sound and meaning (lead the metal vs lead to guide).

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