GATE Marine Engineering General Aptitude Syllabus

State the basic rule of subject-verb agreement.

A singular subject takes a singular verb, and a plural subject takes a plural verb (e.g., "The engine runs," "The engines run").

In subject-verb agreement, which subject controls the verb when two subjects are joined by "or"/"nor"?

The verb agrees with the subject nearest to it (the proximity rule), e.g., "Neither the captain nor the sailors were ready."

What verb form do collective nouns and "each/every/everyone" take in standard agreement?

They take a singular verb (e.g., "Each of the parts is checked," "The crew is ready").

What is an adverb, and what four things can it modify?

An adverb modifies a verb, an adjective, another adverb, or a whole sentence, typically indicating manner, place, time, frequency, or degree (e.g., quickly, here, soon, often, very).

Distinguish a pronoun from a noun, and name three pronoun types.

A noun names a person, place, thing, or idea; a pronoun replaces a noun. Types include personal (he, they), possessive (his, theirs), relative (who, which), reflexive (himself), and demonstrative (this, those).

What is an interjection? Give an example.

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

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).

Define homophones and give an example set.

Homophones are words that sound the same but differ in spelling and meaning, e.g., "their," "there," and "they're"; "to," "too," and "two."

What is an idiom, and why can it not be understood 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").

What does the idiom "to be in the same boat" mean?

To be in the same difficult situation or facing the same problem as others.

What does the idiom "a piece of cake" mean?

Something very easy to do.

What is the difference between a phrase and a clause?

A phrase is a group of related words lacking a subject-verb pair; a clause contains a subject and a finite verb (and may be independent or dependent).

In reading comprehension, what is the difference between the main idea and a supporting detail?

The main idea is the central point or overall message of a passage; supporting details are the facts, examples, or reasons that explain or back up that main idea.

In comprehension, what does it mean to infer information?

To draw a logical conclusion not directly stated in the text, using evidence in the passage combined with reasoning.

What is narrative sequencing in a reading task?

Arranging events, sentences, or paragraphs in their correct logical or chronological order to form a coherent story or argument.

Which textual clues help in narrative sequencing of jumbled sentences?

Time/transition words (first, then, finally), pronoun references, repeated keywords, cause-effect links, and the opening sentence (usually independent of others).

What is data interpretation in the context of aptitude tests?

The process of reading, analysing, and drawing conclusions from data presented in tables, charts, or graphs to answer quantitative questions.

What does a bar graph represent, and when is it best used?

A bar graph uses rectangular bars whose lengths are proportional to the values they represent; it is best for comparing discrete categories or quantities.

What does a pie chart represent, and how are its slices calculated?

A pie chart shows parts of a whole as sectors of a circle. Each slice's angle is $\text{angle} = \frac{\text{component value}}{\text{total}} \times 360^{\circ}$, and the whole circle represents $100\%$.

In a pie chart, if a category is 25% of the total, what central angle does its slice subtend?

$0.25 \times 360^{\circ} = 90^{\circ}$.

What is a line graph best suited to display?

A line graph displays data points connected by line segments and is best for showing trends or changes in a quantity over time (a continuous variable).

What is the formula for percentage change between an old value and a new value?

$\text{Percentage change} = \frac{\text{New value} - \text{Old value}}{\text{Old value}} \times 100\%$.

How is the arithmetic mean (average) of a data set calculated?

$\bar{x} = \frac{\sum_{i=1}^{n} x_i}{n}$, the sum of all values divided by the number of values.

In a data set, what are the median and the mode?

The median is the middle value when data are arranged in order; the mode is the value that occurs most frequently.

What is a histogram, and how does it differ from a bar graph?

A histogram displays the frequency distribution of continuous data using adjacent bars over intervals (class widths); a bar graph compares discrete categories with separated bars.

In a 2-dimensional Cartesian plot, what do the x-axis and y-axis represent?

The x-axis (horizontal, abscissa) represents the independent variable and the y-axis (vertical, ordinate) represents the dependent variable; a point is written as $(x, y)$.

What additional element distinguishes a 3-dimensional plot from a 2-dimensional plot?

A 3-D plot adds a third axis (z-axis) perpendicular to the x-y plane, locating points as $(x, y, z)$ to represent a third variable or spatial dimension.

What is a scatter plot used to show?

A scatter plot displays individual data points for two variables to reveal the relationship, correlation, or trend between them (positive, negative, or no correlation).

What is the key advantage of presenting data in a table?

A table organises exact numerical values in labelled rows and columns, allowing precise reading and direct cross-comparison of multiple variables, though it shows trends less visually than a graph.

On a map, what does the scale indicate, and how is it used?

The scale shows the ratio of map distance to actual ground distance (e.g., $1:50000$, meaning $1$ unit on the map equals $50000$ units on the ground); it converts measured map distances into real distances.