CAT English Syllabus 2025 (VARC): Topics, Weightage, Important Questions

CAT English Syllabus 2025 (VARC): Topics, Weightage, Important Questions

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Team Careers360Updated on 05 Aug 2025, 04:30 PM IST

The CAT English syllabus for the CAT exam is designed in the form of a Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension (VARC) section. The CAT English syllabus for the VARC section of the CAT exam is spread across the crucial concepts of English grammar along with the ability to read large passages or pieces of information to answer the questions based on them. It tests the candidates on the grounds of their knowledge and command of the English language. VARC of the CAT English syllabus include topics like Idioms and Phrases, Synonyms and Antonyms, Logical Deductions, Paragraph Completion and other topics. The CAT English syllabus mentioned here is prepared based on the pattern of CAT previous year's question papers.

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This Story also Contains

  1. English Weightage in CAT 2025
  2. CAT English Syllabus Important Topics
  3. Weightage of Different Areas of English Syllabus
CAT English Syllabus 2025 (VARC): Topics, Weightage, Important Questions
CAT English Syllabus for MBA with Weightage, Important Topics

English Weightage in CAT 2025

The VARC section of the CAT exam contains the most questions and therefore holds the largest weightage among the three sections. The VARC sections are also considered to be the highest-scoring ones because of the reading passages. The total number of questions in the VARC section is 24. The detailed weightage and marks for the VARC section in the CAT exam are given below.

ParticularsDetails

CAT Exam Section

Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension

Total VARC Questions

24

Total Marks

72

Marking Scheme

  • 3 marks for every correct answer.
  • -1 mark for every incorrect answer.

Time

40 minutes

CAT English Syllabus Important Topics

Completing the English CAT syllabus can often seem like too much to study. Therefore, candidates need to get the important topics to study for the VARC section of the CAT exam. These important topics are the ones from which most of the questions are formulated in the VARC section. The list of the important topics from the CAT English syllabus for the VARC section of the CAT exam is provided in the table below.

CAT Exam Section

CAT English Syllabus Important Topics

Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension

  • Reading Comprehension
  • Synonyms and Antonyms
  • Word Usage and Contextual Meaning
  • Analogies
  • Idioms and Phrases
  • Grammar-based Questions (Parts of Speech, Tenses, Subject-Verb Agreement, etc.)
  • Para jumbles
  • Strengthening and Weakening Arguments
  • Assumptions, Inferences, and Conclusions
  • Logical Deductions
  • Cause and Effect Reasoning
  • Paragraph Completion
  • Summary
  • Reading and Comprehending Different Text Forms
  • Contextual Understanding

Weightage of Different Areas of English Syllabus

The entire CAT English syllabus can be divided into the following four parts:

  1. Reading Comprehension
  2. VA- Para Jumbles
  3. VA- Odd Sentence
  4. VA- Summary
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The weightage of each of these areas of the CAT English syllabus in the CAT exam is given in the table below.

Areas of CAT English Syllabus

Weightage

Reading Comprehension

66.7%

VA- Para Jumbles

12.5%

VA- Odd Sentence

8.3%

VA- Summary

12.5%

Also See:

CAT 2025: VARC, DILR, and Quant MCQs & Weightages
Comprehensive CAT prep guide with focused practice on Verbal Ability, Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning, and Quantitative Aptitude.
Download Now

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Q: What is the English section of the CAT exam?
A:

The English section of the CAT exam is Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension (VARC). It consists of 24 questions with a total mark of 72. The VARC section consists of questions across topics like vocabulary, grammatical knowledge, sentence building, and reading ability.

Q: How many questions are there in the English section of the CAT exam?
A:

The total number of questions in the VARC section of the CAT exam is 24. Each question carries 3 marks. The total marks of the VARC section are 72 out of the 198 total marks of the CAT exam.

Q: Is CAT English difficult?
A:

The difficulty level of English in the CAT exam can be considered between moderate to difficult. The difficulty level remains high as it is the topmost management entrance examination in the country. Apart from that it is also a scoring opportunity for the candidates as it contains the most number of questions among all the sections.

Q: What is the sectional cutoff for English in CAT?
A:

The sectional cutoff for English in CAT remains between 70 to 80 for most of the IIMs. It may vary for reserved categories. Clearing the sectional cutoff for English is mandatory for every candidate to be eligible for applying to the IIMs.

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Questions related to CAT

On Question asked by student community

Have a question related to CAT ?

Hello,

To get admitted to the Institute of Management Studies (IMS), BHU, for an MBA in 2026, you must clear the CAT entrance exam. For that you need to fill out the application form of the CAT in August 2026, which you can get on the Official CAT website

I hope it will clear your query!!

Hello

You can get all the papers on the Careers360 website. To access the paper and download it for practice, just visit here:

https://design.careers360.com/articles/nift-cat-2024-question-paper-with-solutions

Hope it will help you!!

Hello dear candidate,

Yes, you have a very good chance of getting a BPT seat with 488 out of 600 and TS EAMCET rank of 14,000 under the ST category.

As the cut off of BPT for ST category students are generally between 25,000 to 45,000 ranks, depending upon the college and you have TS EAMCET rank of 14,000.

Thank you.

If you got 802 marks in Telangana Intermediate and belong to the ST category, you have a fair chance to get admission in a BPT course in 2025, but it depends on the college and cut-off. Most BPT colleges in Telangana ask for 12th marks in Physics, Chemistry, and Biology, and some also use the TS EAMCET rank for admission. The cut-off for ST students is usually lower than for general students, but it changes every year. It is better to check the previous year’s cut-offs of the colleges you want to apply to.

Hello, Getting shortlisted for IIM Lucknow or IIT Bombay (SJMSOM) with your profile is challenging, primarily due to your 58% in Class 10th, which significantly impacts the composite score calculation for both institutes. While your 98 percentile CAT score is excellent, and your 24 months of work experience, B.Com (Hons) background (providing academic diversity, especially for IIM-L), and KVS National player status are valuable additions, top IIMs and IITs heavily weigh consistent academic performance. Your 74% in 12th is also on the lower side. IIM Lucknow places substantial weight on 10th and 12th marks, making a call quite difficult despite your strengths. You likely have a relatively better, though still uncertain, chance at IIT Bombay, as their weighting might be slightly less penalizing for past academics compared to IIM-L, and your high CAT score is a major factor. However, the low 10th score remains a significant hurdle for both prestigious institutions.

I hope you found this information helpful and for study related queries you can ask in careers360 app, Have a great day and!