GATE Statistics General Aptitude Syllabus

What are homophones? Give an example.

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

What is an idiom in English?

An idiom is a fixed expression whose figurative meaning differs from the literal meanings of its individual words, e.g., 'kick the bucket' meaning 'to die'.

What does the idiom 'a blessing in disguise' mean?

It means something that seems bad or unfortunate at first but results in something good later.

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

It means something that happens very rarely.

In vocabulary, what is a prefix and a suffix? Give an example of each.

A prefix is added to the beginning of a word to change its meaning (e.g., 'un-' in 'unhappy'). A suffix is added to the end (e.g., '-ness' in 'happiness').

What is a phrase, and how does it differ from a clause?

A phrase is a group of related words that lacks a subject-verb pair and does not express a complete thought. A clause contains a subject and a predicate (verb) and may stand alone (independent) or not (dependent).

What is the difference between an independent and a dependent clause?

An independent clause expresses a complete thought and can stand alone as a sentence. A dependent (subordinate) clause cannot stand alone and relies on a main clause to complete its meaning.

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

The main idea is the central point or message the author conveys in a passage. Supporting details are facts, examples, or reasons that explain, develop, or back up the main idea.

What is the difference between a fact and an opinion in a reading passage?

A fact is a statement that can be objectively verified as true. An opinion expresses a personal belief, judgment, or feeling that cannot be proven true or false.

What does it mean to make an inference while reading?

An inference is a logical conclusion the reader draws from evidence in the text combined with reasoning, rather than from information stated directly.

What is narrative sequencing?

Narrative sequencing is arranging events of a story or text in their correct logical or chronological order, often signalled by transition words such as 'first', 'then', 'next', 'finally'.

What is data interpretation in the context of aptitude tests?

Data interpretation is the skill of reading, analysing, and drawing conclusions from data presented in tables, charts, or graphs to answer quantitative questions.

In a bar graph, what do the two axes typically represent, and what does the length of each bar show?

One axis represents categories and the other represents a numerical scale. The length (or height) of each bar is proportional to the value it represents, allowing comparison across categories.

What does a pie chart represent, and what does the whole circle equal?

A pie chart represents parts of a whole as sectors of a circle. The whole circle equals 100% (or $360^{\circ}$), and each sector's size is proportional to its share.

What is the formula to convert a percentage share into the central angle of a pie-chart sector?

$$\text{Angle} = \frac{\text{Component value}}{\text{Total value}} \times 360^{\circ}$$

If a category represents 25% of total data in a pie chart, what is its sector angle?

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

What kind of data is best shown by a line graph?

A line graph is best for showing trends or changes in a continuous variable over time, where points are connected to reveal increases, decreases, and patterns.

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

A histogram displays the frequency distribution of continuous (grouped) numerical data using adjacent bars with no gaps, where bar area or height shows frequency. A bar graph compares distinct categories and has gaps between bars.

How is percentage change between two data values calculated?

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

How do you compute the average (mean) of a data set?

$$\text{Mean} = \frac{\text{Sum of all values}}{\text{Number of values}}$$

What does a 2-dimensional plot (such as a scatter plot) display?

A 2-dimensional plot displays the relationship between two variables, one on the horizontal $x$-axis and one on the vertical $y$-axis, with each data point located by its $(x, y)$ coordinates.

What additional element does a 3-dimensional plot use beyond a 2-D plot?

A 3-D plot adds a third axis (the $z$-axis), so each point is located by three coordinates $(x, y, z)$, allowing the relationship among three variables to be represented.

In a scatter plot, what does a positive correlation between two variables look like?

The points tend to rise from lower-left to upper-right, indicating that as one variable increases, the other also increases.

On a map, what is a scale, and what does a representative fraction like 1:50000 mean?

A map scale relates distance on the map to actual distance on the ground. A scale of 1:50000 means 1 unit of length on the map equals 50000 of the same units in reality.

On a standard map, which directions do up, down, left, and right correspond to?

Up is North, down is South, right is East, and left is West (with intermediate directions NE, NW, SE, SW between them).

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

Columns typically represent different categories or variables (the headings), while rows represent individual records or observations; each cell holds the value for a specific row-column combination.

How do you find what fraction or percentage one table entry is of a row or column total?

Divide the entry by the relevant total and, for a percentage, multiply by 100: $$\text{Percentage} = \frac{\text{Entry}}{\text{Total}} \times 100\%$$

What is the difference between the active and the passive voice?

In the active voice the subject performs the action ('The cat chased the mouse'). In the passive voice the subject receives the action ('The mouse was chased by the cat').

What punctuation and structure define a complete sentence?

A complete sentence must contain at least one independent clause with a subject and a finite verb, express a complete thought, begin with a capital letter, and end with a terminal punctuation mark (., ?, or !).

When reading a passage to determine the author's tone, what is 'tone'?

Tone is the author's attitude toward the subject or audience as revealed through word choice and style, e.g., formal, humorous, critical, optimistic, or sarcastic.