# Algebra Practice Questions for CAT with Solutions

Approximately 10-12 questions on Algebra are featuring in CAT in recent years. Most of these questions are from the following areas:To give CAT asirants a hands on experience on the variety of Algebra questions which frequently appear in CAT, we have listed around 60 questions practice on important topics from Algebra.
All these algebra questions are with detailed explanations.

Question 1:
For the given pair (x, y) of positive integers, such that 4x-17y=1 and x<1000 how many integer values of y satisfy the given conditions?
[1] 56
[2] 57
[3] 58
[4] 59

Question 2:
One year payment to the servant is Rs. 90 plus one turban. The servant leaves after 9 months and receives Rs. 65 and turban. Then find the price of the turban
[1] Rs.10
[2] Rs.15
[3] Rs.7.5
[4] Cannot be determined

Question 3:
In CAT 2007 there were 75 questions. Each correct answer was rewarded by 4 marks and each wrong answer was penalized by 1 mark. In how many different combination of correct and wrong answer is a score of 50 possible?
[1] 14
[2] 15
[3] 16
[4] None of these

Question 4:
How many integer solutions exist for the equation 8x – 5y = 221 such that $x \times y < 0$
[1] 4
[2] 5
[3] 6
[4] 8

Question 5:
How many integer solutions exists for the equation 11x + 15y = -1 such that both x and y are less than 100?
[1] 15
[2] 16
[3] 17
[4] 18

Question 6:
The number of ordered pairs of natural numbers (a, b) satisfying the equation 2a + 3b = 100 is:
[1] 13
[2] 14
[3] 15
[4] 16

Question 7:
For how many positive integral values of N, less than 40 does the equation 3a – Nb = 5, have no integer solution
[1] 13
[2] 14
[3] 15
[4] 12

Question 8:
What are the number of integral solutions of the equation 7x + 3y = 123 for x,y > 0
[1] 3
[2] 5
[3] 12
[4] Infinite

Question 9:
The cost of 3 hamburgers, 5 milk shakes, and 1 order of fries at a certain fast food restaurant is $23.50. At the same restaurant, the cost of 5 hamburgers, 9 milk shakes, and 1 order of fries is $\ 39.50$. What is the cost of 2 hamburgers, 2 milk shakes, and 2 orders of fries at this restaurant? [1] 10 [2] 15 [3] 7.5 [4] Cannot be determined Please login to see the explanation Question 10: How many integer solutions are there for the equation: |x| + |y| =7? [1] 24 [2] 26 [3] 14 [4] None of these Please login to see the explanation Question 11: A shop stores x kg of rice. The first customer buys half this amount plus half a kg of rice. The second customer buys half the remaining amount plus half a kg of rice. Then the third customer also buys half the remaining amount plus half a kg of rice. Thereafter, no rice is left in the shop. Which of the following best describes the value of x? [1] 2 ≤ x ≤ 6 [2] 5 ≤ x ≤ 8 [3] 9 ≤ x ≤ 12 [4] 11 ≤ x ≤ 14 Please login to see the explanation Question 12: If p and Q are integers such that $\frac{7}{10}<\frac{p}{q}<\frac{11}{15}$ , find the smallest possible value of q. [1] 13 [2] 60 [3] 30 [4] 7 Please login to see the explanation Question 13: Given the system of equations $\left\{ {\begin{array}{*{20}{c}}{2x + y + 2z = 4}\\{x + 2y + 3z = - 1}\\{3x + 2y + z = 9}\end{array}} \right.$, find the value of x+y+z. [1] -1 [2] 3.5 [3] 2 [4] 1 Please login to see the explanation Question 14: If x and y are positive integers and x+y+xy=54, find x+y [1] 12 [2] 14 [3] 15 [4] 16 Please login to see the explanation Question 15: How many pairs of integers (x, y) exist such that x2 + 4y2 < 100? [1] 95 [2] 90 [3] 147 [4] 180 Please login to see the explanation Question 16: A test has 20 questions, with 4 marks for a correct answer, –1 mark for a wrong answer, and no marks for an unattempted question. A group of friends took the test. If all of them scored exactly 15 marks, but each of them attempted a different number of questions, what is the maximum number of people who could be in the group? [1] 3 [2] 4 [3] 5 [4] more than 5 Please login to see the explanation Question 17: How many integers x with |x|< 100 can be expressed as $x = \frac{{4 - {y^3}}}{4}$ for some positive integer y? [1] 0 [2] 3 [3] 6 [4] 4 Please login to see the explanation Question 18: The number of roots common between the two equations x3+3x2+4x+5=0 and x3+2x2+7x+3=0 is: [1] 0 [2] 1 [3] 2 [4] 3 Please login to see the explanation Question 19: Let u= ${({\log _2}x)^2} - 6{\log _2}x + 12$ where x is a real number. Then the equation xu=256, has: [1] no solution for x [2] exactly one solution for x [3] exactly two distinct solutions for x [4] exactly three distinct solutions for x Please login to see the explanation Question 20: Let a, b, and c be positive real numbers. Determine the largest total number of real roots that the following three polynomials may have among them: ax2 + bx + c, bx2 + cx + a, and cx2 + ax + b. [1] 4 [2] 5 [3] 6 [4] 0 Please login to see the explanation Question 21: Given that three roots of f(x) = x4+ax2+bx+c are 2, -3, and 5, what is the value of a+b+c? [1] -79 [2] 79 [3] -80 [4] 80 Please login to see the explanation Question 22: If both a and b belong to the set (1, 2, 3, 4), then the number of equations of the form ax2+bx+1=0 having real roots is [1] 10 [2] 7 [3] 6 [4] 12 Please login to see the explanation Question 23: Rakesh and Manish solve an equation. In solving Rakesh commits a mistake in constant term and finds the root 8 and 2. Manish commits a mistake in the coefficient of x and finds the roots -9 and -1. Find the correct roots. [1] 9,1 [2] -9,1 [3] -8,-2 [4] None of these Please login to see the explanation Question 24: The number of quadratic equations which are unchanged by squaring their roots is [1] 2 [2] 4 [3] 6 [4] None of these. Please login to see the explanation Question 25: If the roots of px2+qx+2=0 are reciprocals of each other, then [1] p = 0 [2] p = -2 [3] p= +2 [4] p = √2 Please login to see the explanation Question 26: If x =2+22/3+21/3, then the value of x3-6x2+6x is: [1] 2 [2] -2 [3] 0 [4] 4 Please login to see the explanation Question 27: If the roots of the equation x2-2ax+a2+a-3=0 are real and less than 3, then [1] a < 2 [2] 2 < a < 3 [3] 3 < a < 4 [4] a > 4 Please login to see the explanation Question 28: Find the value of $\sqrt {2 + \sqrt {2 + \sqrt {2 + \sqrt {2 + .....} } } }$ [1] -1 [2] 1 [3] 2 [4] $\frac{{\sqrt 2 + 1}}{2}$ Please login to see the explanation Question 29: If a, b and c are the roots of the equation x3 – 3x2 + x + 1 = 0 find the value of $\frac{1}{a} + \frac{1}{b} + \frac{1}{c}$ [1] 1 [2] -1 [3] 1/3 [4] -1/3 Please login to see the explanation Question 30: If p, q and r are the roots of the equation 2z3 + 4z2 -3z -1 =0, find the value of (1 - p) × (1 - q) × (1 - r) [1] -2 [2] 0 [3] 2 [4] None of these Please login to see the explanation Question 31: If$\alpha, \beta$and$\gamma$are the roots of the equation$x^{3}-7 x+3=0$what is the value of$\alpha^{4}+\beta^{4}+\gamma^{4}$? [1] 0 [2] 199 [3] 49 [4] 98 Please login to see the explanation Question 32: For what values of p does the equation 4x2 + 4px + 4 –3p = 0 have two distinct real roots? [1] p < -4 or p > 1 [2] -1 < p < 4 [3] p < -1 or p > 4 [4] –4 < p < 1 Please login to see the explanation Question 33: If x2 + 4x + n > 13 for all real number x, then which of the following conditions is necessarily true? [1] n > 17 [2] n = 20 [3] n > -17 [4] n < 11 Please login to see the explanation Question 34: If (x + 1)×(x – 2)×(x + 3)×(x – 4)×(x + 5)…(x – 100) = a0 + a1x + a2x2… + a100x100 then the value of a99 is equal to: [1] 50 [2] 0 [3] -50 [4] -100 Please login to see the explanation Question 35: If a, b, and c are the solutions of the equation x3 – 3x2 – 4x + 5 = 0, find the value of $\frac{1}{{ab}} + \frac{1}{{bc}} + \frac{1}{{ca}}$ [1] 3/5 [2] -3/5 [3] -4/5 [4] 4/5 Please login to see the explanation Question 36: If a, b, and g are the roots of the equation x3 – 4x2 + 3x + 5 = 0, find (a + 1)(b + 1)(g + 1) [1] -3 [2] 0 [3] 3 [4] 1 Please login to see the explanation Question 37: Let A = (x – 1)4 + 3(x – 1)3 + 6(x – 1)2 + 5(x – 1) + 1. Then the value of A is: [1] (x – 2)4 [2] x4 [3] (x + 1)4 [4] None of these Please login to see the explanation Question 38: Find the remainder when 3x5 + 2x4 – 3x3 – x2 + 2x + 2 is divided by x2 – 1. [1] 3 [2] 2x – 2 [3] 2x + 3 [4] 2x – 1 Please login to see the explanation Question 39: A quadratic function f(x) attains a maximum of 3 at x = 1. The value of the function at x = 0 is 1. What is the value of f (x) at x = 10? [1] -105 [2] -119 [3] -159 [4] -110 Please login to see the explanation Question 40: $x + \frac{1}{x} = 3$ then, what is the value of ${x^5} + \frac{1}{{x{}^5}}.$ [1] 123 [2] 144 [3] 159 [4] 186 Please login to see the explanation Question 41: If $\sqrt {x + \sqrt {x + \sqrt {x + ....} } } = 10.$What is the value of x? [1] 80 [2] 90 [3] 100 [4] 110 Please login to see the explanation Question 42: If$\alpha$and$\beta$are the roots of the quadratic equation$x^{2}-x-6,$then find the value of$\alpha^{4}+\beta^{4} ?$[1] 1 [2] 55 [3] 97 [4] none of these Please login to see the explanation Question 43: Find the value of $\sqrt {4 - \sqrt {4 + \sqrt {4 - \sqrt {4 + ...} } } }$ [1] $\frac{{\sqrt {13} - 1}}{2}$ [2] $\frac{{\sqrt {13} + 1}}{2}$ [3] $\frac{{\sqrt {11} + 1}}{2}$ [4] $\frac{{\sqrt {15} - 1}}{2}$ Please login to see the explanation Question 44: If the roots of the equation x3ax2 + bx c =0 are three consecutive integers, then what is the smallest possible value of b? [1] -1/√3 [2] -1 [3] 0 [4] 1/√3 Please login to see the explanation Question 45: Three consecutive positive integers are raised to the first, second and third powers respectively and then added. The sum so obtained is a perfect square whose square root equals the total of the three original integers. Which of the following best describes the minimum, say m, of these three integers? [1] 1 ≤ m ≤ 3 [2] 4 ≤ m ≤ 6 [3] 7 ≤ m ≤ 9 [4] 10 ≤ m ≤ 12 Please login to see the explanation Question 46: The price of Darjeeling tea (in rupees per kilogram) is 100 + 0.10 n, on the nth day of 2007 (n = 1, 2, ..., 100), and then remains constant. On the other hand, the price of Ooty tea (in rupees per kilogram) is 89 + 0.15n, on the nth day of 2007 (n = 1, 2, ..., 365). On which date in 2007 will the prices of these two varieties of tea be equal? [1] May 21 [2] April 11 [3] May 20 [4] April 10 Please login to see the explanation Question 47: The polynomial f(x)=x2-12x+c has two real roots, one of which is the square of the other. Find the sum of all possible value of c. [1] -37 [2] -12 [3] 25 [4] 91 Please login to see the explanation Question 48: Two sides of a triangle have lengths 10 and 20. How many integers can take the value of the third side length: [1] 18 [2] 19 [3] 20 [4] 21 Please login to see the explanation Question 49: Which of the following is a solution to: $6{\left( {x + \frac{1}{x}} \right)^2} - 35\left( {x + \frac{1}{x}} \right) + 50 = 0$ [1] 1 [2] 1/3 [3] 4 [4] 6 Please login to see the explanation Question 50: Find x if $\frac{5}{{3 + \frac{5}{{3 + \frac{5}{{3 + ...}}}}}} = x.$  [1] $\frac{{ - 3 + \sqrt {29} }}{2}$ [2] $\frac{{3 + \sqrt {29} }}{2}$ [3] $\frac{{ - 1 + \sqrt 5 }}{2}$ [4] $\frac{{1 + \sqrt 5 }}{2}$ Please login to see the explanation Question 51: If$a, b, c$are the roots of$x^{3}-x^{2}-1=0,$what's the value of$\frac{a}{b c}+\frac{b}{c a}+\frac{c}{a b}\$ ?
[1] -1
[2] 1
[3] 2
[4] -2

Question 52:
The sum of the integers in the solution set of |x2-5x|<6 is:
[1] 10
[2] 15
[3] 20
[4] 0

Question 53:
Find abc if a+b+c = 0 and a3+ b3+ c3=216
[1] 48
[2] 72
[3] 24
[4] 216

Question 54:
Solve for x: $\sqrt {x + \sqrt {x + \sqrt x + ....} } = \frac{3}{2}$
[1] Empty Set
[2] 3/2
[3] 3/4
[4] 3/16

Question 55:
Solve for x $\sqrt {\frac{3}{2} + \sqrt {\frac{3}{2} + \sqrt {\frac{3}{2}} + ....} } = x$
[1] $\frac{{1 \pm \sqrt 7 }}{2}$
[2] $\frac{{1 + \sqrt 7 }}{2}$
[3] $\frac{{\sqrt 7 }}{2}$
[4] $\frac{3}{2}$

Question 56:
What is/are the value(s) of x if $\sqrt {{x^2} + \sqrt {{x^2} + \sqrt {{x^2} + ...} } } = 9$
[1] 6√2
[2] 3√10
[3] ±3√10
[4] ±6√2

Question 57:
For x ≠ 1 and x ≠ -1, simplify the following expression: $\frac{{{\rm{(}}{{\rm{x}}^{\rm{3}}} + 1)({{\rm{x}}^3} - 1)}}{{({{\rm{x}}^2} - 1)}}$
[1] x4 + x2 + 1
[2] x4 + x3 + x + 1
[3] x6 – 1
[4] x6 + 1

Question 58:
If √x + √y = 6 and xy = 4 then for: x>0, y>0 give the value of x+y
[1] 2
[2] 28
[3] 32
[4] 34

Question 59:
Find a for which a<b and $\sqrt {1 + \sqrt {21 + 12\sqrt 3 } } = \sqrt a + \sqrt b$
[1] 1
[2] 3
[3] 4
[4] None of these

Question 60:
One root of the following given equation $2{x^5} - 14{x^4} + 31{x^3} - 64{x^2} + 19x + 130 = 0$ is
[1] 1
[2] 3
[3] 5
[4] 7

Question 61:
The equation $x + \frac{2}{{1 - x}} = 1 + \frac{2}{{1 - x}},$ has
[1] No real root
[2] One real root
[3] Two equal roots
[4] Infinite roots

Question 62:
If $x = \sqrt {7 + 4\sqrt 3 } ,$ then $x + \frac{1}{x} =$
[1] 4
[2] 6
[3] 3
[4] 2

Question 63:
If A.M. of the roots of a quadratic equation is 8/5 and A.M. of their reciprocals is 8/7, then the equation is
[1] 5x2-16x+7=0
[2] 7x2-16x+5=0
[3] 7x2-16x+8=0
[4] 3x2-12x+7=0