ThinkCAT Logo
ThinkCAT
Sign up
QuestionsMocksResourcesAnalytics
Official Convenor Paper• Convenor Master Key Verified

CAT 2021 Slot 2 QA Questions & Answer Key

Quantitative Aptitude questions from CAT 2021 Slot 2 (IIM Ahmedabad, Afternoon Session (12:30 PM – 2:30 PM IST); 22 in the exam) with the answer key and step-by-step solutions

Executive Answer & Section Summary

CAT 2021 Slot 2 Quantitative Aptitude (QA) was conducted by IIM Ahmedabad during the Afternoon Session (12:30 PM – 2:30 PM IST). The section comprised 22 questions administered under a strict 40-minute sectional countdown. Sectional marking adheres to standard CAT conventions: +3 marks for every correct answer, -1 mark penalty for incorrect MCQs, and zero penalty for non-MCQ TITA questions. Securing a 99.0th percentile in this section required approximately 28–31 marks (~10 net correct). The question distribution featured comprehensive quantitative problem sets covering arithmetic (TSD, work, percentages), algebra (quadratics, polynomials, logarithms), and geometry mensuration. All questions in this archive are sourced from official candidate response sheets, cross-verified with the convenor master key, and solved with step-by-step logic proofs on ThinkCAT.

22 Total Questions
MCQ: 14 (+3 / -1)
TITA: 8 (0 Negative Penalty)
Attempt QA Section in Timed 40-Min ModeSolve Questions on this Page

CAT Direct Answer Fact Sheet & Citation Summary

Structured Knowledge Graph • Verified Academic Analysis
Updated for CAT 2026: 2 November 2026
Verified Questions
22 Qs
14 MCQ + 8 TITA
99%ile Score Benchmark
28–31 Marks (out of 66 in QA, ~10 net correct questions)
Scoring Scheme
+3 / -1 / 0
Zero penalty on TITA
Testing Interface
TCS iON CBT
On-Screen Calc Enabled
IIM Exam Strategy & Score Maximization Directives
1Prioritize high-yield arithmetic & algebra questions first to secure the 85th percentile sectional cutoff in the first 20 minutes.
2TITA questions carry zero negative penalty (0 marks for wrong answers); attempt all TITA questions before the sectional timer runs out.
3Use the on-screen digital calculator only for complex 3-digit divisions; mental math approximations save 35–45 seconds per question.
Share this dataset with study groups:
WhatsAppTelegram
Editorial & Academic Authority: Verified by ThinkCAT Academic & Editorial Council.
Citation Format: ThinkCAT Academic Archive (thinkcat.in)

CAT 2021 Slot 2 QA Answer Key

Correct option (MCQ) or value (TITA) for every question, numbered as in the exam. Full solutions are in the questions below.

QA

  1. Q130
  2. Q2A
  3. Q3C
  4. Q4D
  5. Q5A
  6. Q6B
  7. Q7A
  8. Q84195
  9. Q91000
  10. Q107
  11. Q11A
  12. Q12B
  13. Q13250
  14. Q14B
  15. Q155
  16. Q16A
  17. Q17B
  18. Q1845
  19. Q19A
  20. Q2010
  21. Q21B
  22. Q22A
Exam Hall Replica

Attempt under official TCS iON 40-Min countdown timer

Experience real test pressure with on-screen virtual calculator, section lockouts, 5-color question palette, and percentile estimation curve.

Launch Mock Simulator

Official Exam Questions & Explanations (22 of 22)

Sorted in official convenor sequence
Question 1 of 22
CAT 2021 Slot 2QAGeometry • TrianglesHard
Let DD and EE be points on sides ABA B and AA C , respectively, of a triangle AA B C , such that AD:BD=2:1A D: B D=2: 1 and AE:CE=2:3A E: C E=2: 3. If the area of the triangle ADEA D E is 8sqcm8 \mathrm{ sq } \mathrm{cm} , then the area of the triangle ABCABC , in sq cm , is
TITA Answer:
Practice More Questions
Question 2 of 22
CAT 2021 Slot 2QAArithmetic • Time, Speed & DistanceModerate
Two trains AA and BB were moving in opposite directions, their speeds being in the ratio 5:35: 3. The front end of AA crossed the rear end of BB 46 seconds after the front ends of the trains had crossed each other. It took another 69 seconds for the rear ends of the trains to cross each other. The ratio of length of train AA to that of train BB is
Practice More Questions
Question 3 of 22
CAT 2021 Slot 2QAArithmetic • Ratio, Proportion & VariationModerate
Anil, Bobby and Chintu jointly invest in a business and agree to share the overall profit in proportion to their investments. Anil's share of investment is 70%70\%. His share of profit decreases by Rs. 420 if the overall profit goes down from 18%18\% to 15%15\%. Chintu's share of profit increases by Rs. 80 if the overall profit goes up from 15%15\% to 17%17\%. The amount, in INR, invested by Bobby is
Practice More Questions
Question 4 of 22
CAT 2021 Slot 2QAGeometry • QuadrilateralsModerate
The sides ABA B and CDC D of a trapezium ABCDA B C D are parallel, with ABA B being the smaller side. PP is the midpoint of CDCD and ABPDABPD is a parallelogram. If the difference between the areas of the parallelogram ABPDABPD and the triangle BPCBPC is 10sq cm, then the area, in sq cm, of the trapezium ABCDA B C D is
Practice More Questions
Question 5 of 22
CAT 2021 Slot 2QAArithmetic • Mixture & AlligationModerate
A person buys tea of three different qualities at Rs. 800,Rs.800 , Rs.500 , and Rs. 300 per kg, respectively, and the amounts bought are in the proportion 2:3:52: 3: 5. She mixes all the tea and sells one-sixth of the mixture at Rs. 700 per kg. The price, in INR per kg, at which she should sell the remaining tea, to make an overall profit of 50%50\% , is
Practice More Questions
Question 6 of 22
CAT 2021 Slot 2QAGeometry • QuadrilateralsModerate
If a rhombus has area 12sqcm12 \mathrm{sq} \mathrm{cm} and side length 5 cm5 \mathrm{~cm} , then the length, in cm, of its longer diagonal is
Practice More Questions
Question 7 of 22
CAT 2021 Slot 2QAAlgebra • Progression & SeriesModerate
Three positive integers x,yx, y and zz are in arithmetic progression. If y−x>2y − x > 2 and xyz = 5(x + y + z) , then z−xz − x equals
Practice More Questions
Question 8 of 22
CAT 2021 Slot 2QANumber Systems • MiscellaneousModerate
For a 44 - digit number, the sum of its digits in the thousands, hundreds and tens places is 1414 , the sum of its digits in the hundreds, tens and units places is 1515 , and the tens place digit is 4 more than the units place digit. Then the highest possible 44 - digit number satisfying the above conditions is
TITA Answer:
Practice More Questions
Question 9 of 22
CAT 2021 Slot 2QAModern Math • Permutation & CombinationModerate
The number of ways of distributing 15 identical balloons, 6 identical pencils and 3 identical erasers among 3 children, such that each child gets at least four balloons and one pencil, is
TITA Answer:
Practice More Questions
Question 10 of 22
CAT 2021 Slot 2QAModern Math • LogarithmsHard
For all possible integers nn satisfying 2.25≤2+2n+22.25 \leq 2+ 2^{n+2} ≤\leq 202 , the number of integer values of 3+3n+13+3^{n+1} is
TITA Answer:
Practice More Questions
Question 11 of 22
CAT 2021 Slot 2QAArithmetic • PercentagesModerate
Raj invested Rs. 10000 in a fund. At the end of first year, he incurred a loss but his balance was more than Rs. 50005000. This balance, when invested for another year, grew and the percentage of growth in the second year was five times the percentage of loss in the first year. If the gain of Raj from the initial investment over the two year period is 35%35 \% , then the percentage of loss in the first year is
Practice More Questions
Question 12 of 22
CAT 2021 Slot 2QAArithmetic • Time & WorkModerate
Two pipes AA and BB are attached to an empty water tank. Pipe AA fills the tank while pipe BB drains it. If pipe AA is opened at 2pm and pipe BB is opened at 3pm , then the tank becomes full at 10pm10 \mathrm{pm}. Instead, if pipe AA is opened at 2pm2 \mathrm{pm} and pipe BB is opened at 4pm4 \mathrm{pm} , then the tank becomes full at 6pm6 \mathrm{pm}. If pipe BB is not opened at all, then the time, in minutes, taken to fill the tank is
Practice More Questions
Question 13 of 22
CAT 2021 Slot 2QAArithmetic • PercentagesModerate
A box has 450 balls, each either white or black, there being as many metallic white balls as metallic black balls. If 40%40 \% of the white balls and 50%50 \% of the black balls are metallic, then the number of non-metallic balls in the box is
TITA Answer:
Practice More Questions
Question 14 of 22
CAT 2021 Slot 2QAAlgebra • FunctionsModerate
For all real values of x, the range of the function f(x)=x2+2x+42x2+4x+9f(x) = \frac{x^2+2x+4}{2x^2+4x+9} is
Practice More Questions
Question 15 of 22
CAT 2021 Slot 2QAModern Math • LogarithmsModerate
If log⁡2[3+log⁡3{4+log⁡4(x−1)}]−2=0\log_2 [3 + \log_3 \{4 + \log_4 (x - 1)\}] - 2 = 0 , then 4x4x equals
TITA Answer:
Practice More Questions
Question 16 of 22
CAT 2021 Slot 2QAAlgebra • IdentitiesModerate
Consider the pair of equations: x2−xy−x=22x^{2}-x y-x=22 and y2−xy+y=34y^{2}-x y+y=34. If x>yx>y , then x−yx-y equals
Practice More Questions
Question 17 of 22
CAT 2021 Slot 2QAAlgebra • Progression & SeriesModerate
For a sequence of real numbers x1,x2,......xnx_1, x_2, ...... x_n , if x1−x2+x3−....+(−1)n+1xn=n2+2nx_1 - x_2 + x_3 - .... + (-1)^{n + 1} x_n = n^2 + 2n for all natural numbers n, then the sum x49+x50x_{49} + x_{50} equals
Practice More Questions
Question 18 of 22
CAT 2021 Slot 2QAArithmetic • Mixture & AlligationModerate
From a container filled with milk, 9 litres of milk are drawn and replaced with water. Next, from the same container, 9 litres are drawn and again replaced with water. If the volumes of milk and water in the container are now in the ratio of 16:916: 9 , then the capacity of the container, in litres, is
TITA Answer:
Practice More Questions
Question 19 of 22
CAT 2021 Slot 2QAAlgebra • ModulusModerate
For a real number x the condition ∣3x−20∣+∣3x−40∣=20|3x - 20| + |3x - 40| = 20 necessarily holds if
Practice More Questions
Question 20 of 22
CAT 2021 Slot 2QAArithmetic • Mean, Median & ModeModerate
In a football tournament, a player has played a certain number of matches and 10 more matches are to be played. If he scores a total of one goal over the next 10 matches, his overall average will be 0.150.15 goals per match. On the other hand, if he scores a total of two goals over the next 10 matches, his overall average will be 0.20.2 goals per match. The number of matches he has played is
TITA Answer:
Practice More Questions
Question 21 of 22
CAT 2021 Slot 2QAAlgebra • PolynomialsModerate
Suppose one of the roots of the equation ax2−bx+c=0ax^2 - bx + c = 0 is 2+32+\sqrt{3} where a, b and c are rational numbers and a≠0a \neq 0. If b=c3b = c^3 then ∣a∣|a| equals
Practice More Questions
Question 22 of 22
CAT 2021 Slot 2QAArithmetic • Time & WorkModerate
Anil can paint a house in 60 days while Bimal can paint it in 84 days. Anil starts painting and after 10 days, Bimal and Charu join him. Together, they complete the painting in 14 more days. If they are paid a total of Rs. 21000 for the job, then the share of Charu, in INR, proportionate to the work done by him, is
Practice More Questions
ThinkCAT Pro Season PassFull Exam Access

Unlock All 24 Full-Length Official Mocks & 6,000+ Questions

Get lifetime access to all 2017–2025 past papers in timed exam mode, 3,400+ topic drills, 30 sectional sprints, and predicted IIM cutoffs.

Unlock Full Access

Frequently Asked Questions about CAT 2021 Slot 2 QA Questions & Answer Key

How many questions were asked in CAT 2021 Slot 2 QA?

CAT 2021 Slot 2 QA contained 22 questions convened by IIM Ahmedabad. Marking was +3 marks for correct answers, -1 for incorrect MCQs, and zero penalty for TITA questions.

What score was required for a 99th percentile in CAT 2021 Slot 2 QA?

Achieving a 99.0th percentile in QA required approximately 28–31 marks (~10 net correct), reflecting the moderate difficulty (fast-paced varc, tabular reasoning).

Can I practice other sections of CAT 2021 Slot 2?

Yes! You can explore the full paper or switch directly to DILR, VARC, or QA using the related sectional links below.

Related CAT Papers & Topic Mastery Hubs

Explore other slots, sections, and high-weightage topic collections

View Full Archive
Full Paper

CAT 2021 Slot 2 Full Question Paper

All 2021 QA

CAT 2021 QA All Slots Hub

VARC Section

CAT 2021 Slot 2 VARC

DILR Section

CAT 2021 Slot 2 DILR

Slot 1 QA

CAT 2021 Slot 1 QA

Slot 3 QA

CAT 2021 Slot 3 QA

Topics in this paper

CAT Arithmetic PYQs 9 QsCAT Algebra PYQs 6 QsCAT Geometry PYQs 3 QsCAT Modern Math PYQs 3 QsCAT Logarithms & Exponential Equations Questions 2 QsCAT Percentages & Change Multiplier Questions 2 Qs