GCAT Numerical Series Patterns 5

Question 1

What is the next number: 3, 5, 9, 17, 33, ?

Accepted Answer

65

Answer

Each term after the first is found by doubling the previous term and subtracting 1: 33 × 2 − 1 = 65.

Question 2

Find the missing number: 81, 27, 9, 3, ?

Accepted Answer

1

Answer

Each term is divided by 3, so 3 ÷ 3 = 1.

Question 3

Complete the sequence: 6, 11, 16, 21, 26, ?

Accepted Answer

31

Answer

Each term increases by 5, so 26 + 5 = 31.

Question 4

What comes next: 2, 6, 12, 20, 30, ?

Accepted Answer

42

Answer

The differences are 4, 6, 8, 10, 12 — increasing by 2 each time, so 30 + 12 = 42.

Question 5

Find the next value: 144, 121, 100, 81, 64, ?

Accepted Answer

49

Answer

These are perfect squares in descending order (12², 11², 10², 9², 8²), so the next is 7² = 49.

GCAT - General Cognitive Ability Test Practice Test