GATE Mathematics General Aptitude Syllabus

What is the difference between a noun and a pronoun?

A noun names a person, place, thing, or idea (e.g. 'John', 'city'); a pronoun is a word used in place of a noun to avoid repetition (e.g. 'he', 'it', 'they').

What is an interjection? Give an example.

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

What is the difference between a synonym and an antonym?

A synonym is a word with a meaning similar to another word (happy/joyful); an antonym is a word with the opposite meaning (happy/sad).

What are homophones? Give an example.

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

What is the meaning of the idiom 'to bite the bullet'?

To force oneself to face and endure a difficult or unpleasant situation with courage.

What does the idiom 'once in a blue moon' mean?

It means very rarely or hardly ever.

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

Something that is very easy to do.

What does the idiom 'to let the cat out of the bag' mean?

To reveal a secret, often unintentionally.

What is the difference between an idiom and a phrase?

A phrase is a group of words acting as a unit whose meaning is usually literal; an idiom is a fixed expression whose meaning cannot be deduced from the literal meanings of its individual words.

What does it mean to interpret a word or phrase 'in context'?

It means determining its intended meaning based on the surrounding words and overall situation, since many words have multiple meanings resolved only by context.

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

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

What is an inference in reading comprehension?

An inference is a logical conclusion drawn from evidence and reasoning in the text rather than from information stated explicitly.

What is narrative sequencing in verbal aptitude?

It is the task of arranging a set of jumbled sentences or events into a logical, coherent order to form a meaningful passage or story.

What clues help determine the correct order in narrative/sentence sequencing?

Connecting words and transitions (however, therefore, firstly), pronoun references, chronological/time markers, cause-and-effect links, and identifying the opening sentence that introduces the topic.

What is data interpretation in the context of aptitude tests?

It is the process of analyzing data presented in tables, charts, or graphs to draw conclusions, make comparisons, and answer quantitative questions.

What is a bar graph best used for?

A bar graph uses rectangular bars of lengths proportional to the values they represent and is best for comparing discrete categories or quantities side by side.

What does a pie chart represent, and what is the total angle of all its sectors?

A pie chart represents parts of a whole as sectors of a circle, where each sector's angle is proportional to its share. The total of all sector angles is $360^\circ$.

In a pie chart, what formula converts a category's percentage share into its sector angle?

$$\text{Angle} = \frac{\text{Percentage}}{100} \times 360^\circ$$

If a category occupies a sector of $90^\circ$ in a pie chart, what percentage of the total does it represent?

$\frac{90}{360} \times 100 = 25\%$.

What is a line graph most useful for displaying?

A line graph displays data points connected by line segments and is most useful for showing trends or changes in a quantity over time.

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

A histogram displays the frequency distribution of continuous numerical data using adjacent bars over intervals (with no gaps), whereas a bar graph compares discrete categories using separated bars.

How do you compute the percentage change between an old value and a new value?

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

In data interpretation, how is the average (arithmetic mean) of $n$ data values computed?

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

What is a scatter plot, and what does it help reveal?

A scatter plot displays individual data points using two coordinates ($x$, $y$) on a plane, helping reveal the correlation or relationship between two variables.

What does a 2-dimensional plot represent compared to a 3-dimensional plot?

A 2D plot shows the relationship between two variables on two axes ($x$, $y$); a 3D plot adds a third axis ($z$) to represent the relationship among three variables, often as a surface or set of points in space.

On a map, what is a scale, and what does a scale of $1:50000$ mean?

A scale is the ratio of a distance on the map to the corresponding actual distance on the ground. A scale of $1:50000$ means $1$ unit on the map equals $50000$ of the same units in reality.

In a data table, what are rows and columns generally used to organize?

Rows typically list individual records or categories, and columns list attributes or variables; reading the intersection of a row and column gives a specific data value.

If quantity $A$ is $200$ and quantity $B$ is $250$, by what percentage is $B$ greater than $A$?

$\frac{250 - 200}{200} \times 100 = 25\%$.

What is the ratio, and how would you express the ratio of $20$ to $60$ in simplest form?

A ratio compares two quantities of the same kind by division. $20:60$ simplifies to $1:3$ by dividing both terms by $20$.

What does a stacked bar graph show that a simple bar graph does not?

A stacked bar graph divides each bar into segments representing sub-categories, showing both the total for each category and the contribution of each component to that total.