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31 Functions PYQ (Solutions)

Master Functions for CAT 2026 with practice questions and detailed explanations

CAT 2025

Functions (and Graphs) are an algebra topic involving definitions of ( f(x) ), compositions, inverses, and graph-based interpretation. In CAT QA, functions appear moderately often.

  • CAT 2017 included a few function/graph questions under algebra (e.g., functional inequalities).
  • CAT 2018 had several function-related questions (within its ~9 algebra questions).
  • CAT 2020 featured 1–3 questions per slot from “Functions and Graphs” (Slot 1 had 2, Slot 3 had 3).
  • CAT 2021 included roughly 1 function question per slot.
  • CAT 2023–2024 continued to include function/graph questions—typically around 1 question in some slots.

Expected Weightage:
Almost every CAT paper includes 1–2 questions on functions. These may test:

  • Understanding of function definitions
  • Composition and inverses
  • Graph interpretation
  • Maxima/minima from graphs

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Weightage Over Past Years

YearQ.NODifficulty Level
20244Hard
20231Hard
20224Hard
20214Hard
20206Medium
20194Hard
20184Hard
20174Hard

CAT 2024 Functions questions

Question 1

Slot-1

Let x,yx, y, and zz be real numbers satisfying 4(x2+y2+z2)=a4(xyz)=3+a\begin{aligned} & 4\left(x^2+y^2+z^2\right)=a \\ & 4(x-y-z)=3+a \end{aligned} Then aa equals

3
1 $\frac{1}{3}$
1
4

Question 2

Slot-1

Consider two sets A={2,3,5,7,11,13}A=\{2,3,5,7,11,13\} and B={1,8,27}B=\{1,8,27\} . Let ff be a function from AA to BB such that for every element bb in BB , there is at least one element aa in AA such that f(a)=bf(a)=b . Then, the total number of such functions ff is

540
537
665
667

Question 3

Slot-2

A function ff maps the set of natural numbers to whole numbers, such that f(xy)=f(x)f(y)+f(x)+f(y)f(x y)=f(x) f(y)+f(x)+f(y) for all x,yx, y and f(p)=1f(p)=1 for every prime number pp . Then, the value of f(160000)f(160000) is

1023
4095
2047
8191

Question 4

Slot-3

For any non-zero real number xx , let f(x)+2f(1x)=3xf(x)+2 f\left(\frac{1}{x}\right)=3 x . Then, the sum of all possible values of xx for which f(x)=3f(x)=3 , is

2
-3
-2
3

CAT 2023 Functions questions

Question 1

Slot-3

Suppose f(x,y)f(x, y) is a real-valued function such that f(3x+2y,2x5y)=19xf(3 x+2 y, 2 x-5 y)=19 x , for all real numbers xx and yy . The value of xx for which f(x,2x)=27f(x, 2 x)=27 , is

CAT 2022 Functions questions

Question 1

Slot-1

Let 0ax1000 \leq a \leq x \leq 100 and f(x)=xa+x100+xa50f(x)=|x-a|+|x-100|+|x-a-50| . Then the maximum value of f(x)f(x) becomes 100 when aa is equal to

100
25
0
50

Question 2

Slot-2

Suppose for all integers xx, there are two functions ff and gg such that f(x)+f(x1)1=0f(x) + f(x-1) - 1 = 0 and g(x)=x2g(x) = x^2. If f(x2x)=5f\left(x^2 - x\right) = 5, then the value of the sum f(g(5))+g(f(5))f(g(5)) + g(f(5)) is

Question 3

Slot-3

Find the minimum value of ,x26x+103x,,\dfrac{x^2 - 6x + 10}{3 - x}, for x<3x < 3

$\frac{1}{2}$
$-\frac{1}{2}$
$2$
$-2$

Question 4

Slot-3

Let rr be a real number and f(x)={2xr if xrr if x<rf(x)=\left\{\begin{array}{cl}2 x-r & \text { if } x \geq r \\ r & \text { if } x\lt r\end{array}\right. . Then, the equation f(x)=f(f(x))f(x)=f(f(x)) holds for all real values of xx where

$x \leq r$
$x \geq r$
$x \gt r$
$x \neq r$

CAT 2021 Functions questions

Question 1

Slot-1

If x₀ = 1, x₁ = 2, and xn+2=1+xn+1xnx_{n+2} = \frac{1 + x_{n+1}}{x_n}, n=0,1,2,3,n = 0, 1, 2, 3, \ldots, then x2021x_{2021} is equal to?

4
3
1
2

Question 2

Slot-1

f(x) = x2+2x15x27x18\frac{x^{2}+2 x-15}{x^{2}-7 x-18} is negative if and only if

-5 < x < -2 or 3 < x < 9
-2 < x < 3 or x > 9
x < -5 or 3 < x < 9
x < -5 or -2 < x < 3

Question 3

Slot-2

For all real values of x, the range of the function f(x) = x2+2x+42x2+4x+9\frac{x^{2} + 2x + 4}{2x^{2} + 4x + 9} is

[ $\frac{3}{7}$ , $\frac{8}{9}$ )
[ $\frac{4}{9}$ , $\frac{8}{9}$ ]
[ $\frac{3}{7}$ , $\frac{4}{9}$ )
( $\frac{3}{7}$ , $\frac{1}{2}$ )

Question 4

Slot-3

If f(x)=x27xf(x)=x^{2}-7 x and g(x)=x+3g(x)=x+3 , then the minimum value of f(g(x))3xf(g(x))-3 x is

\( -20 \)
\( -15 \)
\( -12 \)
\( -16 \)

CAT 2020 Functions questions

Question 1

Slot-1

The number of real-valued solutions of the equation 2x+2x=2(x2)22^x + 2^{-x} = 2 - (x - 2)^2 is

infinite
0
1
2

Question 2

Slot-1

If f(5 + x) = f(5 - x) for every real x and f(x) = 0 has four distinct real roots, then the sum of the roots is

0
40
10
20

Question 3

Slot-2

For real xx, the maximum possible value of x1+x4\frac{x}{\sqrt{1 + x^{4}}} is

1
$\frac{1}{2}$
$\frac{1}{\sqrt{2}}$
$\frac{1}{\sqrt{3}}$

Question 4

Slot-3

Let kk be a constant. The equations kx+y=3kx + y = 3 and 4x+ky=44x + ky = 4 have a unique solution if and only if

$|k| = 2$
$k \neq 2$
$|k| \neq 2$
$k = 2$

Question 5

Slot-3

If f(x+y) = f(x)f(y) and f(5) = 4, then f(10) - f(-10) is equal to

3
0
14.0625
15.9375

Question 6

Slot-3

If x₁ = -1 and xₘ = xₘ₊₁ + (m + 1) for every positive integer m, then x₁₀₀ equals

-5050
-5051
-5150
-5151

CAT 2019 Functions questions

Question 1

Slot-1

The number of the real roots of the equation 2cos(x(x + 1)) = 2 x + 2 -x is

0
Infinite
1
2

Question 2

Slot-1

Consider a function f(x+y)=f(x)×f(y)f(x+y) = f(x) \times f(y) where xx, yy are positive integers, and f(1)=2f(1) = 2. If f(a+1)+f(a+2)+...+f(a+n)=16(2n1)f(a+1) + f(a+2) + \text{...} + f(a+n) = 16 (2^n - 1) then aa is equal to.

Question 3

Slot-1

For any positive integer n, let f(n) = n(n + 1) if n is even, and f(n) = n + 3 if n is odd. If m is a positive integer such that 8f(m + 1) - f(m) = 2, then m equals [TITA]

Question 4

Slot-2

Let f be a function such that f(mn) = f(m) f(n) for every positive integers m and n. If f(1), f(2) and f(3) are positive integers, f(1) < f(2), and f(24) = 54, then f(18) equals [TITA]

CAT 2018 Functions questions

Question 1

Slot-1

Let f(x)=min{2x2, 525x}f(x) = \min\{2x^2,\ 52 - 5x\} where xx is a positive real number. Then maximum possible value of f(x)f(x)?

Question 2

Slot-1

If f(x + 2) = f(x) + f(x + 1) for all positive integers x, and f(11) = 91, f(15) = 617, then f(10) equals. [TITA]

Question 3

Slot-1

Let f(x)=min{2x2, 52 - 5x}, where x is any positive real number. Then the maximum possible value of f(x) is [TITA]

Question 4

Slot-2

Let f(x)=max{5x,522x2}f(x) = \max\{5x, 52 - 2x^2\}, where xx is any positive real number. Then the minimum possible value of f(x)f(x) is (TITA).

CAT 2017 Functions questions

Question 1

Slot-1

If f(x)=5x+23x5f(x) = \dfrac{5x + 2}{3x - 5} and g(x)=x22x1g(x) = x^2 - 2x - 1, then the value of g(f(f(3)))g(f(f(3))) is:

2
$\dfrac{1}{3}$
6
$\dfrac{2}{3}$

Question 2

Slot-2

If f(ab) = f(a)f(b) for all positive integers a and b, then the largest possible value of f(1) is [TITA]

Question 3

Slot-2

Let f(x) = 2x – 5 and g(x) = 7 – 2x. Then |f(x) + g(x)| = |f(x)| + |g(x)| if and only if

$\frac{5}{2}$ < x < $\frac{7}{2}$
x ≤ $\frac{5}{2}$ or x ≥ $\frac{7}{2}$
x < $\frac{5}{2}$ or x ≥ $\frac{7}{2}$
$\frac{5}{2}$ ≤ x ≤ $\frac{7}{2}$

Question 4

Slot-2

Let f(x)=x2f(x) = x^2 and g(x)=2xg(x) = 2x, for all real xx. Then the value of f(f(g(x))+g(f(x)))f(f(g(x)) + g(f(x))) at x=1x = 1 is

16
18
36
40

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