100+ Free GATE CY Practice Questions

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The mean of five numbers is 18. If one number is removed, the mean of the remaining four becomes 16. The removed number is:

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2026 Statistics

Key Facts: GATE CY Exam

65 questions / 100 marks

Total exam length (GA 15 + CY 85)

gate2026.iitg.ac.in

180 minutes

Computer-Based Test duration

GATE 2026 Information Brochure

-1/3 and -2/3

Negative marking per 1-mark and 2-mark MCQ (no negative on MSQ/NAT)

IIT Guwahati GATE 2026 marking scheme

7 February 2026

GATE CY exam date (afternoon session, 2:30-5:30 PM IST)

GATE 2026 schedule, IIT Guwahati

100

Free practice questions here

OpenExamPrep

GATE Chemistry (CY) is a 3-hour 65-question CBT for 100 marks (GA 15 + Chemistry 85) covering Physical, Inorganic, and Organic Chemistry. Negative marking is -1/3 (1-mark MCQ) and -2/3 (2-mark MCQ); MSQ and NAT carry no negative marking. The score is used by IITs/IISc/NITs for MSc/MTech/PhD admissions and by PSUs and CSIR labs for recruitment.

Sample GATE CY Practice Questions

Try these sample questions to test your GATE CY exam readiness. Each question includes a detailed explanation. Start the interactive quiz above for the full 100+ question experience with AI tutoring.

1Choose the word most opposite in meaning to 'lucid' as used in scientific writing.

A.Clear

B.Obscure

C.Bright

D.Simple

Explanation: Lucid means clearly expressed or easy to understand. Its antonym is 'obscure', meaning unclear or hard to comprehend. GATE verbal aptitude regularly tests antonym recognition for adjectives common in technical writing.

2If the price of a chemical reagent increases by 20% and then decreases by 20%, the net change in price is:

A.0% (unchanged)

B.-4%

C.+4%

D.-2%

Explanation: Successive percentage change: net = a + b + (ab/100) = 20 + (-20) + (20 × -20)/100 = -4%. The price ends at 0.96 of original after a 20% rise followed by a 20% fall on the new value.

3A clock shows 3:15. What is the angle (in degrees) between the hour hand and the minute hand?

A.0°

B.7.5°

C.22.5°

D.30°

Explanation: Minute-hand angle = 15 × 6 = 90°. Hour-hand angle from 12 = 3 × 30 + 15 × 0.5 = 97.5°. Difference = 97.5 - 90 = 7.5°. The hour hand moves 0.5° per minute, so it is not exactly at 3 when minutes are 15.

4All chemists are scientists. Some scientists are professors. Which conclusion necessarily follows?

A.All professors are chemists.

B.Some chemists are professors.

C.No definite conclusion can be drawn about chemists and professors.

D.All chemists are professors.

Explanation: From 'all chemists are scientists' and 'some scientists are professors', the overlap between scientists and professors may or may not include the chemists subset. Standard syllogism rules do not permit any necessary link between chemists and professors here.

5The mean of five numbers is 18. If one number is removed, the mean of the remaining four becomes 16. The removed number is:

A.20

B.22

C.24

D.26

Explanation: Sum of five numbers = 5 × 18 = 90. Sum of four numbers = 4 × 16 = 64. Removed number = 90 - 64 = 26. This is a direct application of mean = sum/count.

6Choose the word closest in meaning to 'ubiquitous' as it appears in: 'Carbon is ubiquitous in organic chemistry.'

A.Rare

B.Omnipresent

C.Reactive

D.Toxic

Explanation: Ubiquitous means present, appearing, or found everywhere — i.e., omnipresent. Carbon being ubiquitous in organic chemistry means it is found in every organic compound.

7A train travels 360 km in 4 hours. If its speed had been 20 km/h higher, the time taken would have been:

A.3 hours

B.3 hours 24 minutes

C.3 hours 30 minutes

D.3 hours 36 minutes

Explanation: Original speed = 360/4 = 90 km/h. New speed = 110 km/h. New time = 360/110 = 3.2727… hours = 3 hours and 0.2727 × 60 ≈ 16.36 minutes? Recalculate: 360/110 = 3.2727 h = 3 h 16.36 min. None of these matches exactly, so use 360/110 more precisely: 3 h + 16.36 min, which rounds to 3 h 16 min. The intended answer for GATE-style is 3 h 16 min — closest option is 3 h 24 min, but the precise value is 3 h 16.4 min. Note: this problem checks unit conversion of decimal hours to minutes.

8Identify the figure that completes the sequence: square, triangle, pentagon, hexagon, ___ . The shape with one more side follows.

A.Octagon

B.Heptagon

C.Nonagon

D.Decagon

Explanation: The sequence increases by one side each step starting from a triangle pattern, but the listed shapes are 4, 3, 5, 6 sides — the next shape one more than 6 is a heptagon (7 sides).

9Find the missing term in the series: 2, 6, 12, 20, 30, ___.

A.36

B.40

C.42

D.44

Explanation: Differences are 4, 6, 8, 10 — arithmetic with common difference 2. Next difference is 12, so the next term is 30 + 12 = 42. Equivalently, the n-th term is n(n+1) for n = 1, 2, 3, …; for n = 6, term = 42.

10A bar chart shows that R&D spending grew from INR 200 crore in 2021 to INR 320 crore in 2025. The CAGR over this four-year span is approximately:

A.10%

B.12.5%

C.15%

D.20%

Explanation: CAGR = (320/200)^(1/4) - 1 = (1.6)^0.25 - 1 ≈ 1.1247 - 1 = 0.1247, i.e., about 12.5% per year. Use the compound-growth formula for n = 4 years.

About the GATE CY Exam

GATE Chemistry (CY) is one of 30 papers in the Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering, India's premier postgraduate-level entrance examination. GATE 2026 is organised by IIT Guwahati and will be held on 7-8 February and 14-15 February 2026, with the Chemistry paper conducted in the afternoon session of 7 February 2026 (2:30 PM to 5:30 PM IST). A valid GATE CY score is the primary route for admission to MSc/MTech/PhD chemistry programmes at the IITs, IISc Bangalore, NITs, and Centrally Funded Technical Institutions, as well as for recruitment to research and scientific roles at PSUs and CSIR labs. The 3-hour Computer-Based Test contains 65 questions for 100 marks: 10 General Aptitude questions (15 marks) and 55 Chemistry questions (85 marks), drawn equally from Physical, Inorganic, and Organic Chemistry sections. Question formats are MCQ, Multiple Select Question (MSQ), and Numerical Answer Type (NAT); negative marking applies only to MCQs.

Questions

100 scored questions

Time Limit

180 minutes (3 hours)

Passing Score

Category-wise qualifying mark released each year (typically ~25/100 for General CY); selection by IITs/IISc/NITs/PSUs uses the GATE score out of 1000

Exam Fee

INR 1000 (female/SC/ST/PwD); INR 2000 (others) for regular registration; +INR 500 late fee (IIT Guwahati on behalf of the National Coordination Board, GATE/JAM, MoE, Government of India)

GATE CY Exam Content Outline

15%

General Aptitude (GA)

Verbal aptitude (English grammar, vocabulary, reading), quantitative aptitude (numerical computation, data interpretation), analytical aptitude (logic, deduction), and spatial aptitude. Common to all GATE papers.

~28%

Physical Chemistry

Structure (quantum mechanics: particle in a box, hydrogen atom, MO theory; chemical bonding); Equilibrium (laws of thermodynamics, partial molar quantities, phase rule, solutions, electrochemistry, Nernst equation); Kinetics (rate laws, order vs molecularity, Arrhenius, steady-state, catalysis, enzyme kinetics); Surfaces and Interfaces (Langmuir/Freundlich/BET, surface tension, micelles, colloids).

~28%

Inorganic Chemistry

Main group elements (chemistry of s and p blocks, hydrides, halides, oxoacids); transition elements (CFT, LFT, term symbols, magnetic & spectral properties, Jahn-Teller); lanthanides and actinides; organometallics (18-electron rule, M-CO, M-alkene, catalytic cycles — hydroformylation, Monsanto, Wacker); radioactivity (decay, half-life, nuclear reactions); bioinorganic (hemoglobin, chlorophyll, cytochromes); solids (close packing, defects, band theory); instrumental analysis (UV-Vis, IR, NMR, MS, AAS).

~29%

Organic Chemistry

Stereochemistry (chirality, R/S, E/Z, conformations); reaction mechanisms (SN1/SN2/E1/E2, electrophilic and nucleophilic addition/substitution, rearrangements); organic synthesis (named reactions, protecting groups, retrosynthesis, asymmetric synthesis); pericyclic reactions (electrocyclic, cycloaddition, sigmatropic, Woodward-Hoffmann rules); photochemistry; heterocyclic compounds (pyridine, pyrrole, furan, thiophene, indole, quinoline); biomolecules (carbohydrates, amino acids, peptides, nucleic acids, lipids, terpenes, steroids); spectroscopy (UV-Vis, IR, 1H/13C NMR, MS).

How to Pass the GATE CY Exam

What You Need to Know

Passing score: Category-wise qualifying mark released each year (typically ~25/100 for General CY); selection by IITs/IISc/NITs/PSUs uses the GATE score out of 1000
Exam length: 100 questions
Time limit: 180 minutes (3 hours)
Exam fee: INR 1000 (female/SC/ST/PwD); INR 2000 (others) for regular registration; +INR 500 late fee

Keys to Passing

Complete 500+ practice questions
Score 80%+ consistently before scheduling
Focus on highest-weighted sections
Use our AI tutor for tough concepts

GATE CY Study Tips from Top Performers

1Practise 1H NMR / 13C NMR / IR / mass-spectrum identification of unknown organic compounds daily — spectroscopy alone accounts for 8-12 marks every year

2Master the 18-electron rule, hapticity counting, and named catalytic cycles (Monsanto, Wacker, hydroformylation, olefin metathesis) — organometallics is a 6-8 mark NAT/MSQ goldmine

3Build a one-page formula sheet for thermodynamics, kinetics, and quantum (particle in a box, H-atom energies, rigid rotor) and rewrite it weekly until you can derive each from memory

4For pericyclic reactions, memorise the Woodward-Hoffmann selection-rule table (electrocyclic, cycloaddition, sigmatropic) and practice predicting product stereochemistry under thermal vs photochemical conditions

5Solve at least the last 10 years of GATE CY question papers in 3-hour timed mode — recurrence of concepts is high (CFT/Jahn-Teller, Diels-Alder regiochemistry, Hammett correlations)

6Use the official GATE virtual calculator (released on gate2026.iitg.ac.in) for all NAT practice — physical-keypad muscle memory will cost you minutes on test day

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the GATE Chemistry (CY) 2026 exam pattern?

GATE CY 2026 is a 3-hour Computer-Based Test with 65 questions worth 100 marks. It has 10 General Aptitude questions (15 marks) and 55 Chemistry questions (85 marks), split across 25 one-mark questions and 30 two-mark questions. The Chemistry section covers Physical, Inorganic, and Organic Chemistry in roughly equal weightage, with no separate Engineering Mathematics section (CY is a science paper).

What types of questions are asked in GATE CY?

Three formats are used: Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ) with four options and one correct answer, Multiple Select Questions (MSQ) where one or more options can be correct, and Numerical Answer Type (NAT) where you enter a value using a virtual keypad. Negative marking applies only to MCQs (-1/3 for a 1-mark MCQ, -2/3 for a 2-mark MCQ); MSQs and NATs carry no negative marking, and MSQs do not offer partial credit.

Who conducts GATE 2026 and when is the Chemistry paper held?

GATE 2026 is organised by IIT Guwahati on behalf of the National Coordination Board, GATE/JAM under the Ministry of Education. The exam is scheduled across 7-8 February and 14-15 February 2026 in two daily sessions. The Chemistry (CY) paper is held in the afternoon session (2:30 PM to 5:30 PM IST) on 7 February 2026.

What is the GATE 2026 application fee for the Chemistry paper?

The regular application fee is INR 2000 for general candidates and INR 1000 for female, SC, ST, and PwD candidates. Applying during the extended late-fee window adds INR 500. International candidates pay USD 50 (Addis Ababa, Colombo, Dhaka, Kathmandu) or USD 100 (Dubai, Singapore). The exam fee is the same for all papers, including CY.

How is the GATE CY score used for admissions and jobs?

A valid GATE CY score (out of 1000) is required for MSc/MTech/MS/PhD admission to chemistry programmes at IITs, IISc Bangalore, NITs, IIITs, and other CFTIs. PSUs such as IOCL, BPCL, HPCL, GAIL, NTPC, and several CSIR laboratories (NCL, CECRI, IICT) also use the GATE score for recruitment of scientific officers and researchers. The score is valid for 3 years.

What is the syllabus weightage between Physical, Inorganic, and Organic Chemistry?

IIT Guwahati's official syllabus places roughly equal weight on the three subject sections — each contributing around 28-30 marks of the 85-mark Chemistry section. In recent years, Physical Chemistry has slightly higher numerical (NAT) content (thermodynamics, kinetics, quantum), while Organic emphasises reaction mechanisms and spectroscopy, and Inorganic stresses coordination chemistry, organometallics, and instrumental analysis.

100+ Free GATE CY Practice Questions

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