PROBABILITY

Contents
Topic Page No.

Theory 01 - 05

Exercise - 1 06 - 13

Exercise - 2 14 - 16

Exercise - 3 17 - 23

Exercise - 4 24 - 25

Answer Key 26 - 27

Syllabus
Addition and multiplication rules of probability, conditional probability,
independence of events, computation of probability of events using permuta-
tions and combinations.

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 PROBABILITY

KEY CONCEPTS
THINGS TO REMEMBER :

RESULT - 1

(i) SAMPLE - SPACE : The set of all possible outcomes of an experiment is called the

SAMPLE-SPACE (S)

(ii) EVENT : A sub set of sample-space is called an EVENT.

(iii) COMPLEMENT OF AN EVENT A : The set of all out comes which are in S but not in

A is called the COMPLEMENT OF THE EVENT A DENOTED A OR A C .

(iv) COMPOUND EVENT : If A & B are two given events then A Ç B is called COMPOUND

EVENT and is denoted by A Ç B or AB or A & B.

(v) MUTUALLY EXCLUSIVE EVENTS : Two events are said to be MUTUALLY EXCLU

SIVE (or disjoint or incompatible ) if the occurence of one precludes (rules out) the
simultaneous occurence of the other .If A & B are two mutually exclusive events then

P (A & B) = 0.

(vi) EQUALLY LIKELY EVENTS : Events are said to be EQUALLY LIKELY when each

event is as likely to occur as any other event.

(vii) EXHAUSTIVE EVENTS : Events A,B,C........L are said to be EXHAUSTIVE EVENTS

if no event outside this set can result as an outcome of an experiment. For example,

if A & B are two events defined on a sample space S, then A & B are exhaustive Þ

A È B = S Þ P (A È B) = 1.

(viii) CLASSICAL DEF. OF PROBABILITY : If n represents the total number of equally

likely, mutually exclusive and exhaustive outcomes of an experiment and m of them
are favourable to the happening of the event A, then the probability of happening of
the event A is given by P (A) = m/n.

Note : (1) 0 £ P (A) £ 1 (2) P (A) + P ( A ) = 1, where A = Not A .

x
(3) If x cases are favourable to A & y cases are favouable to A then P (A) =
(x + y)
y
and P( A ) = We say that ODDS IN FAVOUR OF A are x : y & odds
(x + y)
against A are y : x

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PROBLEMS ON EQUALLY lIKELY, MUTUALLY EXCLUSIVE AND EXHAUSTIVE EVENTS.

Experiment Events E/L M/E Exhaustive

1. Throwing of a die A: throwing an odd face {1, 3, 5} No Yes No

B : throwing a composite {4,.6}

2. A ball is drawn from E 1 : getting a W ball

an urn containing 2W, E 2 : getting a R ball No Yes Yes

3R and 4G balls E 3 : getting a G ball

3. Throwing a pair of A : throwing a doublet

dice {11, 22, 33, 44, 55, 66}

B : throwing a total of 10 or more Yes No No

{ 46, 64, 55, 56, 65, 66 }

4. From a well shuffled E 1 : getting a heart

pack of cards a card is E 2 : getting a space Yes Yes Yes

drawn E 3 : getting a diamond

E 4 : getting a club

5. From a well shuffled A = getting a heart

pack of cards a card is B = getting a face card No No No

drawn
RESULT - 2
AUB = A + B = A or B denotes occurence of at least A or B. For 2 events A & B : (See fig.1)
(i) P (A È B) = P (A) + P (B) - P (A Ç B) =
U
P (A. B ) + P ( A .B) + P ( A.B) = 1 - P ( A . B )
(ii) Opposite of “ atleast A or B ” is NEITHER B ÇA
A ÇB A ÇB
A NOR B i.e. A + B = 1 - (A or B) = A Ç B

Note that P (A+B) + P ( A Ç B ) = 1. AÇB

(iii) If A & B are mutually exclusive then P(A È B) = P(A) + P(B).
(iv) For any two events A & B, P (exactly one of A , B occurs )

= P (A Ç B ) + P (B Ç A ) = P ( A ) + P (B) – 2P ( A Ç B)
= P (A È B) – P (A Ç B) = P ( A C È B C ) – P (A C Ç B C )
(v) If A & B are any two events P (A Ç B) = P (A) .P (B / A ) = P ( B). P ( A / B ), Where P
(B / A ) means conditional probability of B given A & P( A / B ) means conditional
probability of A given B. (This can be easily seen from the figure).

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 (vi) DE MORGAN’S LAW : - If A & B are two subsets of a universal set U , then
(a) (A È B) C = A C Ç B C & (b) ( A Ç B) C = A C È B C
(vii) A È (B Ç C) = ( A È B) Ç ( A È C) & A Ç (B È C) = ( A Ç B) È ( A Ç C)
RESULT - 3
For any three events A, B and C we have (See Fig.2 )
(i) P (A) or B or C) = P(B)
+ P (C) – P (A Ç B) – P (B Ç C) –
A U
P (C Ç A) + P ( A Ç B Ç C) B
BÇ AÇ C
(ii) P ( at least two of A,B,C occur) = AÇ BÇ C
AÇBÇ C

P (B Ç C) + P ( C Ç A) + AÇ BÇ C

P ( A Ç B) – 2P ( A Ç B Ç C)
(iii) P ( exactly two of A, B, C occur) = AÇ CÇ B CÇ A Ç B

P (B Ç C) + P ( C Ç A) + AÇ BÇ C
P (A Ç B) – 3 P ( A Ç B Ç C) CÇ AÇB
C

Fig.2
(iv) P (exactly one of A, B, C occurs ) =
P (A) + P (B) + P (C) – 2P (B Ç C) – 2P (C Ç A) – 2P (A Ç B) + 3P (A Ç B Ç C)
NOTE : If three events A, B and C are pair wise mutually exclusive then they must be mutually exclusive. i.e.
P (A Ç B) = P (B Ç C) = P ( C Ç A) = 0 Þ P (A Ç B Ç C) = 0. However the converse of this is not true.
RESULT - 4
INDEPENDENT EVENTS : Two events A & B are said to be independent if occurence or non
occurence of one does not effect the probability of the occurence or non occurence of other.
(i) If the occurence of one event affects the probability of the occurence of the other event then
the events are said to be DEPENDENT or CONTINGENT. For two independent events
A and B : P ( A Ç B) = P (A) . P(B). Often this is taken as the definition of independent events.
(ii) Three events A, B & C are independent if & only if all the following conditions hold ;
P (A Ç B) = P (A) . P(B) ; P (B Ç C) = P (B) . P (C)
P (C Ç A) = P (C) . P (A) & P (A Ç B Ç C) = P (A) . P(B) . P (C)
i.e. they must be pairwise as well as mutually independent .
Similarly for n events A 1 , A 2 , A 3 ,....... A n to be independent, the number of these
conditions is equal to nc 2 + nc 3 + .......+ n
c n = 2 n – n – 1.
(iii) The probability of getting exactly r success in n idenpendent trials is given by
P (r) = nC r p r q n–r where : p = probability of sucess in a single trial.
q = probability of failure in a single trial. note : p + q = 1.
Note : Independent events are not in general mutually exclusive & vice versa. Mutually
exclusiveness can be used when the events are taken from the same experiment
& independence can be used when the events are taken from different experiments.

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RESULT – 5 : TOTAL PROBABILITY THEOREM AND BAYE’S THEOREM :
(i) Total probability theorem : If an event A can occur only with one of the n mutually
exclusive and exhaustive events B 1, B 2......B n then

n
P(A) = å P(Bi ).P(A / Bi )
i= 1

(ii) Baye’s Theorem : If an event A can occur only with one of the n mutually exclusive and
exhaustive events B 1, B 2......B n then,
P(Bi ).P( A / Bi )
P(B i / A ) = n
å P(Bi ).P( A / Bi )
i=1
PROOF :
The events A occurs with one of the n mutually exclusive & exhaustive events B 1, B 2,
B 3......B n
A = AB 1 + AB 2 + AB 3 + ..............+ AB n
n
P (A) = P (AB 1) + P (AB 2) +........+ P(AB n) = å P( ABi )
i=1

NOTE : A º event what we have ; B i º event what we want ;

B 1, B 2, B 3......B n are alternative evnet .
Now , P (AB i ) = P (A) . P (B i /A ) = P (B i ) . P (A /B i )
P(B i ).P( A / Bi ) P(B i ).P( A / Bi )
P (B i / A ) = = n
P( A ) B n- 1
å P( AB i ) B3
i =i B2
P(Bi ). P( A / Bi ) A
P (Bi / A ) = B1
Bn
å P(Bi ). P( A / Bi )

RESULT – 6 Fig.3
If p 1 and p 2 are the probabilties of speaking the truth of two independent witnesses A and B then
p1 p 2
P ( their combined statement is true) = p p + (1 - p )(1 - p )
1 2 1 2

In this case it has been assumed that we have no knowledge of the event except the
statement made by A and B. However if p is the probabilty of the happening of the event
before their statement then
p p1 p 2
P ( their combined statement is true ) = p p p + (1 - p)(1 - p )(1 - p )
1 2 1 2

Here it has been assumed that the statement given by all the independent witnesses can
be given in two ways only, so that if all the witnesses tell falsehoods they agree in telling
the same falsehood.

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 If this is not the case and c is the chance of their coincidence testimony then the
Pr. that the statement is true = P p 1 p 2
Pr. that the statement is false = ( 1 – p) . c (1– p 1 )(1– p 2 )
However chance of coincidence testimony is taken only if the joint statement is not
contradicted by any witness.

ONLY IN C.B.S.E
RESULT - 7
(i) A PROBABILITY DISTRIBUTION spells out how a total probability of 1 is distributed
over several values of a random variable.
(ii) Mean of any probability distribution of a random variable is given by :
å pi x i
m= = å pi x i ( Since å p = 1 )
å pi i

(iii) Variance of a random variable is given by, s 2 = å ( x i - m )2 . p i

s 2 = å pi x 2 i - m 2 ( Note that SD = +
s2 )
(iv) The probability distrubution for binomial variate ‘ X ‘ is given by ; P (X = r )= nC r p r q n–
r
where all symbols have the same meaning as given in results 4.
P(r + 1) n - r p
The recurrence formula = . , is very helpful for quickly computing P (1), P
P(r ) r +1 q
(2)
P (3) etc. if P (0) is known.
(v) Mean of BPD = np ; variance of BPD = npq.
(vi) If p represents a persons chance of success in any venture and ‘M’ the sum of money
which he will receive in case of success, then his expectations or probable value =
pM. expectations = pM
RESULT – 8 : GEMOMETRICAL APPICATIONS :
The following statements are axiomatic :
(i) If a point is taken at random on a given staright line AB, the chance that it falls on a
particular segment PQ of the line is PQ/AB.
(ii) If a point is taken at random on the area S which inclues an area s , the chance that
the point falls on s is s /S.

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 PART - I : OBJECTIVE QUESTIONS

* Marked Questions are having more than one correct option.

Section (A) : Problems based on Classical definition of Probability (PRCD)

A-1*. In throwing a die let A be the event ‘coming up of an odd number’, B be the event ‘com ing up of an even
number’, C be the event ‘coming up of a number ³ 4’ and D be the event ‘coming up of a number < 3’, then
(A) A and B are mutually exclusive and exhautive
(B) A and C are mutually exclusive and exhautive
(C) A, C and D form an exhautive system
(D) B, C and D form an exhautive system
A-2. In drawing of a card from a well shuffled ordinary deck of playing cards the events ‘card drawn is spade’
and ‘card drawn is an ace’ are
(A) mutually exclusive (B) equally likely
(C) forming an exhaustive system (D) none of these
A-3. A 9 digit number using the digits 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 & 9 is written randomly without repetetion. The
probability that the number will be divisible by 9 is:
(A) 1/9 (B) 1/2 (C) 1 (D) 9!/99

100
A-4. An integer x is chosen from the first 100 positive integers. The probability that, x + > 50 is:
x

1 11 1
(A) (B) (C) (D) none
10 20 2
A-5. Two dies are rolled simultaneously. The probability that the sum of the two numbers on the top faces will
be atleast 10 is:
(A) 1/6 (B) 1/12 (C) 1/18 (D) none

A-6. 2n boys are randomly divided into two subgroups containing n boys each. The probability that the two
tallest boys are in different groups is

n n -1 2n - 1
(A) (B) (C) (D) none of these
2n - 1 2n - 1 4n 2
A-7. The chance that a 13 card combination from a pack of 52 playing cards is dealt to a player in a game of
bridge, in which 9 cards are of the same suit, is

4 . 13C 9 . 39
C4 4! . 13C 9 . 39
C4 13
C9 . 39
C4
(A) 52 (B) 52 (C) 52 (D) none of these
C13 C13 C13

A-8. Out of 13 applicants for a job, there are 5 women and 8 men. It is desired to select 2 persons for the job.
The probability that at least one of the selected persons will be a woman is
(A) 25/39 (B) 14/39 (C) 5/13 (D) 10/13

A-9. A & B having equal skill, are playing a game of best of 5 points. After A has won two points & B has won
one point, the probability that A will win the game is:
(A) 1/2 (B) 2/3 (C) 3/4 (D) none

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Section (B) : Problems based on venn diagram & set theory (PRVD)

B-1. If A and B are any event of an experiment, then AC – B =

(A) (A Ç B) C (B) AC – (A Ç B) (C) (A È B) C (D) A – B

B-2. A die is thrown. Let A be the event ‘an odd number turns up’ and B be the event ‘a number divisible by 3
turns up’. Write which of the following are true.
(i) B Ì A (ii) B – A Ì A (iii) B – A Ì AC (iv) A – B = A Ç BC
(A) (i) and (ii) (B) (i), (iii) (C) (ii) and (iii) (D) (iii) and (iv)

B-3. An experiment results in four possible out comes S1, S2, S3 & S4 with probabilities p 1, p2, p3 & p4 respectively.
Which one of the following probability assignment is possbile.
[ Assume S1 S2 S3 S4 are pair wise exclusive]
(A) p1 = 0.25, p 2 = 0.35, p 3 = 0.10, p 4 = 0.05
(B) p1 = 0.40, p 2 = - 0.20, p3 = 0.60, p4 = 0.20
(C) p1 = 0.30, p 2 = 0.60, p 3 = 0.10, p 4 = 0.10
(D) p1 = 0.20, p 2 = 0.30, p 3 = 0.40, p 4 = 0.10

B-4*. If M & N are any two events, then which one of the following represents the probability of the occurance of
exactly one of them ?
(A) P (M) + P (N) - 2 P (M Ç N) (B) P (M) + P (N) - P (M Ç N)

( ) ( )
(C) P M + P N - 2 P M Ç N ( ) ( )
(D) P M Ç N + P M Ç N ( )
B-5*. Let 0 < P(A) < 1, 0 < P(B) < 1 & P(A È B) = P(A) + P(B) - P(A). P(B), then:
(A) P(B/A) = P(B) - P(A) (B) P(AC È BC) = P(AC) + P(BC)
(C) P((A È B) ) = P(A ). P(B )
C C C
(D) P(A/B) = P(A)

B-6*. If M & N are independent events such that 0 < P(M) < 1 & 0 < P(N) < 1, then:

(A) M & N are mutually exclusive (B) M & N are independent

(C) M & N are independent (

(D) P (M N) + P M N = 1 )
Section (C) : Problems based on Conditional Probability & Dependent & Independent event (PRCP/PRDI)

C-1. In throwing a pair of dice, the events ‘coming up of 6 on Ist die’ and ‘a total of 7 on both the dies’ are
(A) mutually exclusive (B) forming an exhaustive system
(C) independent (D) dependent

C-2. A fair die is tossed. If the number is odd, find the probability that it is prime is

2 1 1
(A) (B) (C) 1 (D)
3 2 3

C-3. A pair of dice is thrown. If total of numbers turned up on both the dies is 8, then the probability that the
number then up on the second die is 5’ is

5 1 1 2
(A) (B) (C) (D)
36 6 5 5

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Section (D) : Problem based on total Probability & Baye's Theorem (PRBA/PRTP)

D-1. A card is drawn from a well shuffled ordinary deck of 52-playing cards. The card drawn is found to be a
spade. Then the probability that the card is an ace, is

1 1 1
(A) (B) (C) (D) none of these
13 52 4
D-2. Odds in favour of A’s speaking the truth are 1 : 2 and odds against B’s speaking the truth are 1 : 3. A die
is thrown. Both A and B assert that on the die 4 has turned up. Then the probability of the truth of their
assertion is

1 1 11 15
(A) (B) (C) (D)
30 24 360 17

Section (E) : Problem based on Testimony/Geometry (PRTT/PRGE)

E-1. Odds in favour of A’s speaking the truth are 1 : 2 and odds against B’s speaking the truth are 1 : 3. A die
is thrown. Both A and B assert that on the die 4 has turned up. Then the probability of the truth of their
assertion is

1 1 11 15
(A) (B) (C) (D)
30 24 360 17

Section (F) : Problem Based on Binomial/Distribution/Expectation/Mean & Variance (PRBT/PRPD)

F-1. In a series of 3 independent trials the probability of exactly 2 success is 12 times as large as the probability
of 3 successes. The probability of a success in each trial is:
(A) 1/5 (B) 2/5 (C) 3/5 (D) 4/5

F-2. A bag contains 2 white & 4 black balls. A ball is drawn 5 times, each being replaced before another is
drawn. The probability that atleast 4 of the balls drawn are white is:
(A) 4/81 (B) 10/243 (C) 11/243 (D) none

F-3. From an urn containing 3 red & 2 white balls, a man is to draw 2 balls at random without replacement,
being promised 20 paise for each red ball he draws & 10 paise for each white one. His expectation is:
(A) 24 paise (B) 30 paise (C) 32 paise (D) 35 paise

F-4. A & B throw with one dice for a stake of Rs. 99/- which is to be won by the player who first throws 4. If A
has the first throw then their respective expectations of rupees are:
(A) 50 & 49 (B) 54 & 45 (C) 45 & 54 (D) none

F-5. A fair coin is tossed 99 times. If X is the number of times heads occur, then P (X = r) is maximum when r
is
(A) 49 (B) 50 (C) 51 (D) none of these

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 PART - II : SUBJECTIVE QUESTIONS

Section (A) : Problems based on Classical definition of Probability (PRCD)

A-1. Write the sample space of the following experiment

(i) ‘Three coins are tossed'
(ii) ‘Selection of two children from a group of 3 boys and 2 girls without replacement’.

A-2. There are three events A, B, C, one of which must, and only one can, happen; the odds are 8 to 3 against A, 5
to 2 against B : find the odds against C.

A-3. Two balls are drawn in succession from a box containing 4 red, 3 white and 5 blue balls. Find the probabil-
ity of the event ‘one ball is red and other ball is white’.

A-.4 The digits 1, 2, 3, ........., 9 are arranged in a random order, find the probability that 1, 2, 3 will appear as
neighbours in the order mentioned

A-5. If 6 boys and 6 girls sit in a row randomly, find the probability that all the 6 girls sit together

A-6. Three persons A, B and C speak at a function along with 5 other persons. If the persons speak at random, find
the probability that A speaks before B and B speaks before C

A-7. A divisor of 1200 is selected at random. Find the probability that it is even.

A-8. (i) In a two child family, one child is a boy. What is the probability that the other child is a girl?
(ii) If the older child is a boy, then probability that the second child is a girl is

A-9. (i) A rectangle is randomly selected from the grid of equally spaced squares as shown.

Find the probability that the rectangle is a square.

(ii) Letter of the word ‘VECTOR’ are arranged in the grid as shown

Find the chance that no row remains empty.

A-10. In throwing a pair of dice, find whether the two events

(i) E1 : ‘coming up of an odd number on first die’ and E2 : ‘coming up of a total of 8’.
(ii) E1 : ‘coming up of 4 on first die’ and E2 : ‘coming up of 5 on the second die’.
are mutually exclusive or not

A-11. (i) In throwing of a pair of dice, find the probability of the event : total is ‘not 8’ and ‘not 11’.
(ii) In throwing a pair of dies find the probability of the event ‘Getting an odd number on the first die
and a total 8’.

A-12. A bag contains 6 white, 7 red and 5 blue balls. Three balls are drawn at random. Find the probability of the
event ‘balls drawn are, one of each colour’.

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Section (B) : Problems based on venn diagram & set theory (PRVD)

B-1. If P(A) = 0.4, P(B) = 0.48 and P(A Ç B) = 0.16, then find the value of each of the following :
(i) P(A È B) (ii) P(A / B) (iii) P(A¢ Ç B¢)

B-2. A card is drawn from a well shuffled ordinary deck of 52 playing cards. Find the probability that the card
drawn is :
(i) A king or a queen (ii) A king or a spade

Section (C) : Problems based on Conditional Probability & Dependent & Independent event (PRCP/PRDI)

C-1. The odds against a certain event are 5 to 2, and the odds in favor of another event independent of the former are
6 to 5 : find the chance that one at least of the events will happen.

C-2. A, B, C in order draws a card from a pack of cards, replacing them after each draw, on condition that the first
who draws a spade shall win a prize : find their respective chances.

Section (D) : Problem based on total Probability & Baye's Theorem (PRBA/PRTP)

D-1. There are 5 brilliant students in class XI and 8 brilliant students in class XII. Each class has 50 students.
The odds in favour of choosing the class XI are 2 : 3. One of the classes is chosen randomly and then
a student is randomly selected. Find the probability of selecting a brilliant student.
D-2. Box – I contains 5 red and 2 blue balls while box – II contains 2 red and 6 blue balls. A fair coin is tossed.
If it turns up head, a ball is drawn from box–I, else a ball is drawn from box–II. Find the probability of each
of the following :
(i) A red ball is drawn (ii) Ball drawn is from box–I if it is blue
D-3. Two cards are drawn successively from a well-shuffled ordinary deck of 52-playing cards without replacement
and is noted that the second card is a king. Find the probability of the event ‘first card is also a king’.

Section (E) : Problem based on Testimony/Geometry (PRTT/PRGE)

E-1. A speaks the truth 2 out of 3 times, and B 4 times out of 5; they agree in the assertion that from a bag
containing 6 balls of different colours a red ball has been drawn : find the probability that the statement is
true.
E-2. A parallelogram is inscribed inside a circle of radius 10 cm. One side of parallelogram being 12 cms. Find
the probability that a point inside the circle also lies inside the parallelogram.

Section (F) : Problem Based on Binomial/Distribution/Expectation/Mean & Variance (PRBT/PRPD)

F-1. If on an average 1 vessel in every 10 is wrecked, find the chance that out of 5 vessels expected 4 at least will
arrive safely.
F-2. There are 9 coins in a bag, 5 of which are Rupee and the rest are unknown coins of equal value; find what they
must be if the probable value of a draw is 60 paise.
F-3. A had in his pocket a Rupee and four 10 paise coins ; taking out two coins at random he promises to give them
to B and C. What is the worth of C’s expectation?
F-4. A box contains 2 red and 3 blue balls. Two balls are drawn successively. If getting ‘a red ball on first draw
and a blue ball on second draw’ is considered a success, then write the probability distribution of suc-
cesses. It is given that the above experiment is performed 3-times, with replacement
F-5. A coin is tossed 5-times. Find the mean and variance of the probability distribution of appearance of heads
on the tosses.

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 PART - III : MISCELLANEOUS OBJECTIVE QUESTIONS

(MATCH THE COLUMN)

1. Column – I Column – II

(A) If the probability that units digit in square of an even integer is 4 (p) 1

is p, then the value of 5p is

1
(B) If A and B are independent events and P(A Ç B) = , (q) 2
6

2
P( A ) = , then 6P(B/A) =
3

(C) Among 2 children, a child may equally be a boy or a girl (r) 3

if the probability that exactly one of them is a boy is p,
then 6p =
(D) A boy has 20% chance of hitting at a target. Let p denote (s) 4
the probability of hitting the target for the first time at the nth
trial. If p satisfies the inequality 625p2 – 175p + 12 < 0, then
value of n is

2. Column – I Column – II
(A) A pair of dice is thrown. If total of numbers turned up (p) 5/16
on both the dies is 8, then the probability that the
number then up on the second die is 5’ is
(B) A box contains 4 white and 3 black balls. Two balls are (q) 1/3

drawn successively and is found that second ball is

white, then the probability that Ist ball is also white is

1
(C) A biased coin with probability p, 0 < p < 1 of heads is (r)
2

tossed until a head appears for the first time. If the

probability that the number of tosses required is even is 2/5,

then p equals

1
(D) A coin whose faces are marked 3 and 5 is tossed 4 times : what (s)
5

is the probability that the sum of the numbers thrown being less,

than 15?

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 (COMPREHENSION)

Comprehension #1

If A and B are two events, then probability that atleast one of them is selected is
P(A È B) = P(A) + P(B) – P(A Ç B). For three events A, B, C the probability that atleast one of them is seleted
is P(A È B È C) = P(A) + P(B) + P(C) – P(A Ç B) – P(B Ç C) – P(C Ç A) + P(A Ç B Ç C).

3. Probability that none of the three events (A, B, C) occurs

(A) P ( A È B È C ) – P(A) – P(B) – P(C) + P(A Ç B) + P(B Ç C) + P(C Ç A)

(B) P(A È B È C) – P(A) – P(B) – P(C) + P(A Ç B) + P(B Ç C) + P(C Ç A) – P(A Ç B Ç C)

(C) P( A ) + P(B) + P(C) – P(A Ç B) – P(B Ç C) – P(C Ç A) + P(A Ç B Ç C)

(D) none of these

4. Probability that exactly two events occurs

(A) P(A) + P(B) + P(C) – P(A È B) – P(B È C) – P(C È A)
(B) 2(P(A) + P(B) + P(C)) – P(A È B) – P(B È C) – P(C È A)
(C) P(A Ç B) + P(B Ç C) + P(C Ç A) – 3 × P(A Ç B Ç C)

(D) P( A Ç B ) + P(B Ç C) + P( C Ç A)

5. Probability that atmost two events happen

(A) P(A Ç B) + P(B Ç C) + P(C Ç A) – 3 × P(A Ç B Ç C)
(B) P(A) + P(B) + P(C) – P(A Ç B) – P(B Ç C) – P(C Ç A)

(C) P( A ) + P(B ) + P( C )

(D) P(A) + P(B) + P(C) – P(A Ç B) – P(B Ç C) – P(C Ç A) + P(A È B È C)C

Comprehension#2

Consider the experiment of distribution of balls among urns. Suppose we are given M urns, numbered 1 to M,
among which we are to distribute n balls (n < M). Let P(A) denote the probability that each of the urns numbered
1 to n will contain exactly one ball. Then answer the following questions.
6. If the balls are different and any number of balls can go to any urns, then P(A) is equal to

M! n! n! 1
(A) M (B) n (C) M (D)
n M Pn Mn
7. If the balls are identical and any number of balls can go to any urns, then P(A) equals

1 1 1 1
(A) n (B) M+n -1 (C) M+n -1 (D) M+ n -1
M CM-1 Cn-1 PM-1
8. If the balls are identical but atmost one ball can be put in any box, then P(A) is equal to

1 n! n! 1
(A) M (B) n (C) M (D) M
Pn CM Cn Cn

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 (ASSERTION/REASON)

9. Statement 1 : If P is chosen at random in the closed interval [0, 5], then the probability that the equation
1 3
x2 + px + (P + 2) = 0 has real not is .
4 5
Statement 2 : If discriminant ³ 0 then roots of the quadratic equation are always real.
(A) Statement-1 is True, Statement-2 is True; Statement-2 is a correct explanation for Statement-1.
(B) Statement-1 is True, Statement-2 is True; Statement-2 is NOT a correct explanation for Statement-1
(C) Statement-1 is True, Statement-2 is False
(D) Statement-1 is False, Statement-2 is True

10. STATEMENT-1 : Since sample space of the experiment 'A coin is tossed if it turns up head, a die is thrown'
is {(H, 1), (H, 2), (H, 3), (H, 4), (H, 5), (H, 6), T}.

3
\ Prob. of the event {(H, 1), (H, 2), (H, 5)} is .
7
STATEMENT-2 : If all the sample points in the sample space of an experiment are pair wise mutually
exclusive, equally likely and exhaustive, then probability of an event E is defined as

number of sample po int s favourable to the event E

P(E) =
Total number of sample po int s in the sample space

(A) Statement-1 is True, Statement-2 is True; Statement-2 is a correct explanation for Statement-1.
(B) Statement-1 is True, Statement-2 is True; Statement-2 is NOT a correct explanation for Statement-1
(C) Statement-1 is True, Statement-2 is False
(D) Statement-1 is False, Statement-2 is True

11. STATEMENT-1 : If A and B are two independent events such that P(A) ¹ 0, P(B) ¹ 0, then A and B can not be
mutually exclusive.
STATEMENT-2 : For independent events A and B, we have P(A/B) = P(A) which is not so for mutually
exclusive events.
(A) Statement-1 is True, Statement-2 is True; Statement-2 is a correct explanation for Statement-1.
(B) Statement-1 is True, Statement-2 is True; Statement-2 is NOT a correct explanation for Statement-1
(C) Statement-1 is True, Statement-2 is False
(D) Statement-1 is False, Statement-2 is True

1+ 4P 1- P 1- 2P
12. Statement 1 : If , , are probabilities of three pair-wise mutually exclusive events, then the
4 4 4
é 1 1ù
possible values of P belong to the set ê - , ú .
ë 4 2û
Statement 2 : If three events are pair wire mutually exclusive and exhaustive then sum of there probability is
equal to 1.
(A) Statement-1 is True, Statement-2 is True; Statement-2 is a correct explanation for Statement-1.
(B) Statement-1 is True, Statement-2 is True; Statement-2 is NOT a correct explanation for Statement-1
(C) Statement-1 is True, Statement-2 is False
(D) Statement-1 is False, Statement-2 is True

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 PART - I : OBJECTIVE QUESTIONS
1. A local post office is to send M telegrams which are distributed at random over N communication channels,
(N > M). Each telegram is sent over any channel with equal probability. Chance that not more than one
telegram will be sent over each channel is:
N N N N
CM . M ! CM . N ! CM . M ! CM . N !
(A) (B) (C) 1 - (D) 1 -
NM MN MN NM
2. A bag contains 7 tickets marked with the numbers 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 respectively. A ticket is drawn &
replaced. Then the chance that after 4 drawings the sum of the numbers drawn is 8 is:
(A) 165/2401 (B) 149/2401 (C) 3/49 (D) none
3. A car is parket by an owner amongst 25 cars in a row, not at either end. On his return he finds that exactly
15 placed are still occupied. The probability that both the neighboring places are empty is
91 15 15
(A) (B) (C) (D) none of these
276 184 92
4. Two whole numbers are randomly selected & multiplied. If the probability that the units place in their
product is "Even" is p & the probability that the units place in their product is "Odd" is q, then p/q is:
(A) 4 (B) 3 (C) 2 (D) 1
5. A card is drawn from a pack, the card is replaced & the pack shuffled. If this is done 6 times, the probability
that the cards drawn are 2 hearts, 2 diamonds & 2 black cards is:
(A) 90/1024 (B) 45/1024 (C) 1/1024 (D) none
6. A has 3 tickets in a lottery containing 3 prizes and 9 blanks; B has 2 tickets in a lottery containing 2 prizes and
6 blanks : compare their chances of success.
(A) 952 to 715 (B) 950/952 (C) 952/710 (D) None of these
7. In a purse there are 10 coins, all 5 paise except one which is a rupee. In another purse there are 10 coins
all 5 paise. 9 coins are taken out from the former purse & put into the latter & then 9 coins are taken out
from the latter & put into the former. Then the chance that the rupee is still in the first purse is:
(A) 9/19 (B) 10/19 (C) 4/9 (D) none
8. Suppose that of all used cars of a particular year, 30% have bad brakes. You are considering buying a
used car of that year. You take the car to a mechanic to have the brakes checked. The chance that the
mechanic will give you wrong report is 20%. Assuming that the car you take to the mechanic is selected
" at random" from the population of cars of that year. The chance that the car's brakes are good given that
the mechanic says its brakes are good is-
28 24 31
(A) (B) (C) (D) None of these
31 31 28
9. A bag contains (n + 1) coins. It is known that one of these coins has a head on both sides, whereas the
other coins are normal. One of these coins is selected at random & tossed. If the probability that the toss
results in head, is 7/12, then the value of n is.
(A) 5 (B) 6 (C) 4 (D) 3

1 5 1
10. If P (A Ç B) = , P (A È B) = and P(A) = , then which one of the following is correct?
3 6 2
(A) P(A) = P (B) (B) A and B are mutually exclusing events
(C) A and B are independent events (D) P(A) > P(B)
11. 2/3 of the students in a class are boys & the rest girls. It is known that probability of a girl getting a first
rd

class is 0.25 & that of a boy is 0.28. The probability that a student chosen at random will get a first class is:
(A) 0.26 (B) 0.265 (C) 0.27 (D) 0.275

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12. There are 4 urns. The first urn contains 1 white & 1 black ball, the second urn contains 2 white & 3 black balls, the
third urn contains 3 white & 5 black balls & the fourth urn contains 4 white & 7 black balls. The selection of each urn
i2 +1
is not equally likely. The probability of selecting i th urn is
34
(i = 1, 2, 3, 4). If we randomly select one of the urns & draw a ball, then the probability of ball being white is :
569 27 8
(A) (B) (C) (D) none of these
1496 56 73
13. Two whole numbers are randomly selected & multiplied. The probability that the unit's place in their
product is 0 or 5 is:
(A) 1/3 (B) 16/25 (C) 9/25 (D) none
14. The contents of urn I and II are as follows,
Urn I: 4 white and 5 black balls
Urn II: 3 white and 6 black balls
One urn is chosen at random and a ball is drawn and its colour is noted and replaced back to the urn.
Again a ball is drawn from the same urn, colour is noted and replaced. The process is repeated 4 times
and as a result one ball of white colour and 3 of black colour are noted. Find the probability the chosen urn
was I.
125 64 25 79
(A) (B) (C) (D)
287 127 287 192
15. A letter is known to have come either from "KRISHNAGIRI" or "DHARMAPURI". On the post mark only the
two consecutive letters "RI" are visible. Then the chance that it came from Krishnagiri is:
(A) 3/5 (B) 2/3 (C) 9/14 (D) none
16. Three six faced dice are tossed together, then the probability that exactly two of the three numbers are
equal to
165 177 512 90
(A) (B) (C) (D)
216 216 216 216
17. A die is weighted so that the probability of different faces to turn up is as given

Number 1 2 3 4 5 6
Probability 0.2 0.1 0.1 0.3 0.1 0.2
If P(A/B) = p 1 and P(B/C) = p 2 and P(C/A) = p 3 then the values of p 1, p 2, p 3 respectively are -
Take the events A, B & C as A = {1, 2, 3}, B = {2, 3, 5} and C = {2, 4, 6}
2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 1 1
(A) , , (B) , , (C) , , (D) , ,
3 3 4 3 3 6 4 3 6 3 6 4
18. Mean and variance of a Binomial variate are in the ratio of 3 : 2. The most probable number of happening
of the variable in 10 trials of the experiment is
(A) 2 (B) 3 (C) 4 (D) 5
19. The sides of a rectangle are chosen at random, each less than 10 cm, all such lengths being equally
likely. The chance that the diagonal of the rectangle is less than 10 cm is
(A) 1/10 (B) 1/20 (C) p/4 (D) p/8
Multiple choice
20. A student appears for tests I, II & III. The student is successful if he passes either in tests I & II or tests I
& III. The probabilities of the student passing in the tests I, II & III are p, q &
1/2 respectively. If the probability that the student is successful is 1/2, then:
(A) p = 1, q = 0 (B) p = 2/3, q = 1/2
(C) p = 3/5, q = 2/3 (D) there are infinitely many values of p & q.
21. A student has to mathc thre hisotircal events i.e. Dandi March, Quit India Movement and Mahatma Gnadhi's
assasination with the years 1948, 1930 and 1942 and each event happens in different years. The student
has no knowledge of the correct answers and decides to match the events and years randomly. Let Ei : (o
£ i £ 3) denote the event that the student gets exactly i correct answer, then
(A) P(E0) + P (E3) = P (E1) (B) P(E0) . P (E1) = P(E3)
(C) P (E0 Ç E1) = P(E2) (D) P(E0) + P (E1) + P (E3) = 1

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22. For any two events A & B defined on a sample space,
P (A ) + P (B) - 1
(A) P (A B) ³ , P (B) ¹ 0 is always true
P (B)
(B) ( )
P A È B = P (A) - P (A Ç B)
(C) P (A È B) = 1 - P (Ac). P (Bc), if A & B are independent
(D) P (A È B) = 1 - P (Ac). P (Bc), if A & B are disjoint
23. A n u n bia sed co in is t o sse d n t im e s. L et X d e n ot e th e n u m b e r o f tim es h ea d o c c u r s. If
P(X = 4), P (X = 5) and P(X = 6) are in AP, then the value of n can be
(A) 7 (B) 10 (C) 12 (D) 14

PART - II : SUBJECTIVE QUESTIONS

1. A cube painted red on all sides, is cut into 125 equal small cubes. A small cube when picked up is found to show
red colour on one of its faces. Find the Probability that two more faces also show red colour.
2. let X be a set containing n elements. Two subsets A nad B of X are chosen at random. Find the pbobility that
A È B = X.
3. An urn contains 'm' green and 'n' red balls. K (, m, n) balls are drawn and laid aside, their colour being ignored.
Then one more ball is drawn. Find the probability that it is green.
4. An unbiased die, with faces numbered 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 is thrown n times and the list of n numbers showing up is
noted. What is the brobability that, among the numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, only three numbers appear in this list?
5. There is a group of k targets, each of which independently of the other targets, can be detected by a radar unit
with probability p. Each of 'm' radar units detectes the targets independently of other units. Find the probability
that not all the targets in the group will be detedted.
6. An urn contains m white and n black balls. A ball is drawn at random and is put back into the urn along with k
additional balls of the same colour as that of the ball drawn. A ball is again drawn at random. What is the
probability that the ball drawn now is white?
7. In a multiple choice question there are 4 alternative answers of which 1, 2, 3 or all may be correct. A
candidate will get marks in the question only if he ticks all the correct answer. The candidate decides to
tick answers at random. If he is allowed upto 5 chances to answer the question, find the probability that he
will get the marks in the question.
8. 3 firemen X, Y and Z shoot at a common target. The probabilities that X and Y can hit the target are
2/3 and 3/4 respectively. If the probability that exactly two bullets are found on the target is 11/24, then
find the probability of Z to hit the target.
9. In a Nigerian hotel, among the english speaking people 40% are English & 60% Americans. The English
& American spellings are "RIGOUR " & "RIGOR" respectively. An English speaking person in the hotel writes
this word. A letter from this word is chosen at random & found to be a vowel. Find the probability that the
writer is an Englishman.
10. A man has 10 coins and one of them is known to have two heads. He takes one at random and tosses it
5 times and it always falls head : what is the chance that it is the coins with two heads?
11. A cubical die with faces marked 1, 2, 3, ....., 6 is loaded such that the probability of throwing the number is
proportional to t2. Find the probability that the number 5 has appeared given that when the die is rolled the numbe
turned up is not even.
12. 2 hunters A & B shot at a bear simultaneously. The bear was shot dead with only one hole in its hide.
Probability of A shooting the bear 0.8 & that of B shooting the bear is 0.4. The hide was sold for
Rs. 280/-. If this sum of money is divided between A & B in a fair way, then find their respective shares.
13. A coin has probability ‘ p ‘ of showing head when tossed. If is tossed ‘ n’ times. Let p n denote the
probability that no two ( or more ) consecutive heads occur. Prove that , p 1 = 1, p 2 = 1 – p 2 & p n =
( 1 – p ) p n – 1 + p ( 1 – p ) p n – 2 , for al l n ³ 3 .

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 PART-I IIT-JEE (PREVIOUS YEARS PROBLEMS)

1. A box contains N coins, m of which are fair and the rest are biased. The probability of getting a head when
a fair coin is tossed is 1/2, while it is 2/3 when a biased coin is tossed. A coin is drawn from the box at
random and is tossed twice. The first time it shows head and the second time it shows tail. What is the
probability that the coin drawn is fair? [IIT - 2002 (Mains), 5]

3 1 1
2. If P (B) = , P (A Ç B Ç C ) = and P (A Ç B Ç C ) = , then P (B Ç C) is: [IIT - 2003, 3 + 3]
4 3 3
(A) 1/12 (B) 1/6 (C) 1/15 (D) 1/9
3. Two numbers are selected randomly from the set S = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6} without replacement one by one. The
probability that minimum of the two numbers is less than 4 is: [IIT - 2003, 3 + 3]
(A) 1/15 (B) 14/15 (C) 1/5 (D) 4/5
4. A person has to go through three successive tests. Probability of his passing first exam is P. Probability
of passing successive test is P or P/2 according as he passed the last test or not. He is selected if he
passes atleast two tests. Find the probability of his selection. [IIT - 2003 (Mains), 2 + 2 ]
5. In a combat, A targets B, and both B and C target A, The probabilities of A, B, C hitting their targets are 2/
3, 1/2 and 1/3 respectively. They shoot simultaneously and A is hit. Find the probability that B hits his
target whereas C does not. [IIT - 2003 (Mains), 2 + 2 ]
6. Three distinct numbers are selected from first 100 natural numbers. The probability that all the three
numbers are divisible by 2 and 3 is [IIT - 2004]

4 4 4 4
(A) (B) (C) (D)
25 35 55 1155

7. ( )
Prove that P(A U B) P A Ç B £ P (C) where A and B are independent events and P(C) is the probability of
exactly one of A or B occurs. [IIT - 2004, 2]
8. A box contains 6 white and 12 red balls. 6 balls are drawn without replacement, in which at least 4 balls are
white, find the probability that exactly one of the ball in next two draws, is white. [IIT - 2004, 4]
9. A six faced fair die is thrown until 1 comes, then the probability that 1 comes in even number of trials is
[IIT - 2005]

5 5 6 1
(A) (B) (C) (D)
11 6 11 6
10. A person goes to office either by car, scooter, bus or train, the probability of which being
1 3 2 1
, , and respectively. Probability that he reaches office late, if he takes car, scooter, bus or train
7 7 7 7

2 1 4 1
is , , and respectively. Given that he reached office in time, then what is the probability that he
9 9 9 9
travelled by a car. [IIT - 2005, 2]

Comprehension [IIT - 2006]

There are n urns numbered 1 to n. The ith urn contains i white and (n + 1 – i) black balls. Let Ei denote the event
of selecting ith urn at random and let W denote the event that the ball drawn from the selected urn is white.

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11. If P(Ei) µ i for i = 1, 2, ......, n, then nlim
®¥
P(W) is [IIT - 2006 (5, –1)]

2 1 3 1
(A) (B) (C) (D)
3 3 4 4
12. If P(Ei) = c, a constant "i, then P(En | W) is [IIT - 2006 (5, –1)]

2 1 n 1
(A) (B) (C) (D)
n +1 n +1 n +1 2

1
13. If n is even and P(Ei) = " n and E denotes the event of choosing even numbered urn, then P(W | E) is
n
[IIT - 2006 (5, –2)]

1 n+ 4 n+2 n +1
(A) (B) (C) (D)
2n 2(n + 1) 2(n + 1) 2n
14. One Indian and four American men and their wives are to be seated randomly around a circular table. Then the
conditional probability that the Indian man is seated adjacent to his wife given that each American man is seated
adjacent to his wife is [IIT - JEE 2007]

1 1 2 1
(A) (B) (C) (D)
2 3 5 5
15. Let H1, H2, ..... Hn be mutually exclusive and exhaustive events with P(Hi) > 0 i = 1, 2, ....., n. Let E be any other
event with 0 < P(E) < 1. [IIT - JEE 2007]
STATEMENT-1 : P(Hi / E) > P (E / Hi) . P(Hi ) for i = 1, 2, ..., n.
because
n
STATEMENT-2 : å P(H ) = 1.
i=1
i

(A) Statement-1 is True, Statement-2 is True ; Statement-2 is a correct explanation for Statement-1
(B) Statement-1 is True, Statement-2 is True ; Statement-2 is NOT a correct explanation for Statement-1
(C) Statement-1 is True, Statement-2 is False
(D) Statement-1 is False, Statement-2 is True
16. Let Ec denote the complement of an event E. Let E, F, G be pairwise independent events with P(G) > 0 and P(E
Ç F Ç G) = 0. Then P (Ec Ç Fc |G) equals [IIT - JEE 2007]
(A) P(Ec) + P(Fc) (B) P(Ec) – P(Fc) (C) P(Ec) – P(F) (D) P(E) – P(Fc)

17. Consider the system of equations [IIT-JEE 2008, Paper-1, (3, –1), 81]
ax + by = 0 ; cx + dy = 0, where a, b, c, d Î {0, 1}
3
STATEMENT-1 : The probability that the system of equations has a unique solution is .
8
and
STATEMENT-2 : The probability that the system of equations has a solution is 1.
(A) STATEMENT-1 is True, STATEMENT-2 is True ; STATEMENT-2 is a correct explanation for
STATEMENT-1
(B) STATEMENT-1 is True, STATEMENT-2 is True ; STATEMENT-2 is NOT a correct explanation for
STATEMENT-1
(C) STATEMENT-1 is True, STATEMENT-2 is False
(D) STATEMENT-1 is False, STATEMENT-2 is True

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18. An experiment has 10 equally likely outcomes. Let A and B be non-empty events of the experiment. If A
consists of 4 outcomes, the number of outcomes that B must have so that A and B are independent, is
[IIT-JEE 2008, Paper-1, (3, –1), 81]
(A) 2, 4 or 8 (B) 3, 6 or 9 (C) 4 or 8 (D) 5 or 10
Comprehension
A fair die is tossed repeatedly until a six is obtained. Let X denote the number of tosses required.
19. The probability that X = 3 equals [IIT-JEE 2009, Paper-1, (4, –1), 80]
25 25 5 125
(A) (B) (C) (D)
216 36 36 216
20. The probability that X ³ 3 equals [IIT-JEE 2009, Paper-1, (4, –1), 80]
125 25 5 25
(A) (B) (C) (D)
216 36 36 216
21. The conditional probability that X ³ 6 given X > 3 equals [IIT-JEE 2009, Paper-1, (4, –1), 80]
125 25 5 25
(A) (B) (C) (D)
216 216 36 36
22. Let w be a complex cube root of unity with w ¹ 1. A fair die is thrown three times. If r1, r2 and r3 are the numbers
obtained on the die, then the probability that wr1 + wr2 + wr3 = 0 is [IIT-JEE 2010, Paper-1, (3, –1), 84]

1 1 2 1
(A) (B) (C) (D)
18 9 9 36

4 1
23. A signal which can be green or red with probability and respectively, is received by station A and then
5 5

3
transmitted to station B. The probability of each station receiving the signal correctly is . If the signal received
4
at station B is green, then the probability that the original signal was green is
[IIT-JEE 2010, Paper-2, (5, –2), 79]
Paragraph for Qeustion Nos. 24 and 25
Let U1 and U2 be two urns such that U1 contains 3 white and 2 red balls, and U2 contains only 1 white ball. A
fair coin is tossed. If head appears then 1 ball is drawn at random from U1 and put into U2. However, if tail
appears then 2 balls are drawn at random from U1 and put into U2. Now 1 ball is drawn at random from U2.
24. The probability of the drawn ball from U2 being white is
13 23 19 11
(A) (B) (C) (D)
30 30 30 30
25. Given that the drawn ball from U2 is white, the probability that head appeared on the coin is

17 11 15 12
(A) (B) (C) (D)
23 23 23 23

11
26. Let E and F be two independent events. The probability that exactly one of them occurs is and the
25

2
probability of none of them occurring is . If P(T) denotes the probability of occurrence of the event T,,
25
then

4 3 1 2
(A) P(E) = , P(F) = (B) P(E) = , P(F) =
5 5 5 5

2 1 3 4
(A) P(E) = , P(F) = (B) P(E) = , P(F) =
5 5 5 5

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27*. A ship is fitted with three engines E1, E2 and E3, The engines function independently of each other with
1 1 1
respective probabilities , and . For the ship to be operational at least two of its engines must function.
2 4 4
Let X denote the event the the ship is operational and let X1, X2 and X3 denote respectively the events that
the engines E1 E2 and E3 are functioning. Which of the following is (are) true ? [JEE-2012]

3 7
(A) P éë X1 | X ùû =
c
(B) P[Exactly two engines of the ship are functioning|X] =
16 8

5 7
(C) P [ X | X2 ] = (D) P [ X | X1 ] =
16 16
28. Four fair dice D1, D2, D3 and D4 each having six faces numbered 1,2, 3, 4, 5, and 6, are rolled simultaneously.
The probability that D4 shows a number appearing on one of D1, D2 and D3 is [JEE-2012]
91 108 125 127
(A) (B) (C) (D)
216 216 216 216
1 1 1
29*. Let X and Y be two events such that P(X|Y) = , P(Y|X) = and P(X Ç Y) = , Which of the following
2 3 6
is (are) correct? [JEE-2012]
2
(A) P(X È Y) = (B) X and Y are independent
3
1
(C) X and Y are not independent (D) P (XC Ç Y) =
3

1 3 1 1
30. Four persons independently solve a certain problem correctly with probabilities , , , . Then the probability
2 4 4 8
that the problem is solved correctly by at least one or them is
[JEE- Advanced- 2013]

235 21 3 253
(A) (B) (C) (D)
256 256 256 256

31. Of the three independent events E1, E2 and E3, the probability that only E1 occurs is a, only E2 occurs is b and
only E3 occurs is g . Let the probability p that none of events E1, E2 or E3 occurs satisfy the equations (a – 2b)
p = ab and (b – 3g) p = 2bg.
All the given probabilities are assumed to lie in the interval (0, 1).

Probability of occurrence of E1
Then Pr obability of occurrence of E = [JEE- Advanced- 2013]
3

Paragraph for Question 32 and 33

A box B1 contains 1 white ball, 3 red balls and 2 black balls. Another box B2 contains 2 white balls, 3 red balls
and 4 black balls. A third box B3 contains 3 white balls, 4 red balls and 5 black balls. [JEE- Advanced- 2013]
32. If 2 balls are drawn (without replacement) from a randomly selected box and one of the balls is white and the
other ball is red, the probability that these 2 balls are drawn from box B2 is

116 126 65 55
(A) (B) (C) (D)
181 181 181 181

33. If 1 ball is drawn from each of the boxes B1, B2 and B3 the probability that all 3 drawn balls are of the same colour
is

82 90 558 566
(A) (B) (C) (D)
648 648 648 648

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 PART-II AIEEE (PREVIOUS YEARS PROBLEMS)

1. A problem in mathematics is given to three students A, B, C and their respectively probability of solving the
1 1 1
problem is , and . Probability that the problem is solved, is [AIEEE 2002]
2 3 4
(A) 3/4 (B) 1/2 (C) 2/3 (D) 1/3
2. A and B play a game where each is asked to select a number from 1 to 25. If the two numbers match, both of
them win a prize. The probability that they will not win a prize in a single trial, is [AIEEE 2002]

1 24 2
(A) (B) (C) (D) None of these
25 25 25
3. If A and B are two mutually exclusive events, then [AIEEE 2002]

(A) P(A) < P( B ) (B) P(A) > P( B ) (C) P(A) < P(B) (D) None of these
4. The probability of India winning a test match against West-Indies is 1/2 assuming independence from match to
match. The probability that in a match series India's second win occurs at the third test is [AIEEE 2002]

1 1 1 2
(A) (B) (C) (D)
8 4 2 3
5. A biased coin with probability p, 0 < p < 1, of heads is tossed until a head appears for the first time. If the
probability that the number of tosses required is even, is 2/5, then p equals [AIEEE 2002]

1 2 2 3
(A) (B) (C) (D)
3 3 5 5
6. A fair die is tossed eight times. The probability that a third six is observed on the eight throw, is [AIEEE 2002]

7
C2 ´ 55 7
C2 ´ 55 7
C2 ´ 55
(A) 7 (B) 8 (C) (D) None of these
6 6 66
7. In an experiment with 15 observations on x, the following results were available å x2 = 2830, å x = 170.
One observation that was 20, was found to be wrong and was replaced by the correct value 30. Then the
corrected variance is : [AIEEE 2003]
(A) 78.00 (B) 188.66 (C) 177.33 (D) 8.33
8. Five horses are in a race. Mr. A selects two of the horses at random and bets on them. The probability that Mr.
A selected the winning horse, is : [AIEEE 2003]

4 3 1 2
(A) (B) (C) (D)
5 5 5 5

3x + 1 1- x 1- 2x
9. Events A, B, C are mutually exclusive events such that P(A) = , P(B) = and P(C) = . The set
3 4 2
of possible values of x are in the interval : [AIEEE 2003]

é 1 1ù é1 2ù é 1 13 ù
(A) ê , ú (B) ê , ú (C) ê , ú (D) [0, 1]
ë3 2û ë3 3û ë3 3 û

10. The mean and variance of a random variable X having a binomial distribution are 4 and 2 respectively, then
P(X = 1) is : [AIEEE 2003]

1 1 1 1
(A) (B) (C) (D)
32 16 8 4

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11. The probability that A speaks truth is 4/5 while this probability for B is 3/4. The probability that they contradict
each other when asked to speak on a fact, is : [AIEEE 2004]
(A) 3/20 (B) 1/5 (C) 7/20 (D) 4/5
12. A random variable X has the probability distribution : [AIEEE 2004]

X: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
P(X) : 0.15 0.23 0.12 0.10 0.20 0.08 0.07 0.05
For the events E = {X is a prime number} and F = {X < 4}, the probability P(E È F) is :
(A) 0.87 (B) 0.77 (C) 0.35 (D) 0.50
13. The mean and the variance of a binomial distribution are 4 and 2 respectively. Then the probability of 2 suc-
cesses is : [AIEEE 2004]

37 219 128 28
(A) (B) (C) (D)
256 256 256 256

1 1 1
14. Let A and B be two events such that P( A È B) = , P(A Ç B) = and P( A ) = , where A stands for
6 4 4
complement of event A. Then events A and B are : [AIEEE 2005]
(A) mutually exclusive and independent (B) independent but not equally likely
(C) equally likely but not independent (D) equally likely and mutually exclusive
15. Three houses are available in a locality. Three persons apply for the houses. Each applies for one house without
consulting others, The probability that all the three apply for the same house, is : [AIEEE 2005]
(A) 7/9 (B) 8/9 (C) 1/9 (D) 2/9

16. A pair of fair dice is thrown independently three times. The probability of getting a score of exactly 9 twice
is [AIEEE 2007]
(A) 1/729 (B) 8/9 (C) 8/729 (D) 8/243

17. Two aeroplanes I and II bomb a target in succession. The probability of I and II scoring a hit correctly are 0.3 and
0.2, respectively. The second plane will bomb only if the first misses the target. The probability that the target is
hit by the second plane is [AIEEE 2007]
(A) 0.06 (B) 0.14 (C) 0.32 (D) 0.7

1 æAö 1 æBö 2
18. It is given that the events A and B are such that P(A) = , Pç ÷ = and P ç ÷ = . Then, P(B) is
4 B
è ø 2 A
è ø 3
[AIEEE 2008]

1 1 2 1
(A) (B) (C) (D)
6 3 3 2

19. A die is thrown. Let A be the event that the number obtained is greater than 3. Let B be the event that the number
obtained is less than 5. Then P(A È B) is [AIEEE 2008]

3 2
(A) (B) 0 (C) 1 (D)
5 5

æ 1ö 9
20. In a binomial distribution B ç n, p = ÷ , if the probability of at least one success is greater than or equal to ,
è 4 ø 10
then n is greater than : [AIEEE 2009]

1 9 4 1
(A) log 4 + log 3 (B) log 4 - log 3 (C) log 4 - log 3 (D) log 4 - log 3
10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10

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21. One ticket is selected at random from 50 tickets numbered 00, 01, 02, ....., 49. Then the probability that the
sum of the digits on the selected ticket is 8, given that the product of these digits is zero, equal :
[AIEEE 2009]
1 5 1 1
(A) (B) (C) (D)
7 14 50 14

22. Four numbers are chosen at random (without replacement) from the set {1,2,3,.....,20}.

1
Statement -1 : The probability that the chosen numbers when arranged in some order will form an AP is .
85
[AIEEE 2010]
Statement -2 : If the four chosen numbers form an AP, then the set of all possible values of common
difference is {±1, ±2, ±3, ±4, ±5}
(A) Statement -1 is true, Statement-2 is true ; Statement -2 is not a correct explanation for Statement -1.
(B) Statement-1 is true, Statement-2 is false.
(C) Statement -1 is false, Statement -2 is true.
(D) Statement -1 is true, Statement -2 is true; Statement-2 is a correct explanation for Statement-1.

23. An urn contains nine balls of which three are red, four are blue and two are green. Three balls are drawn at
random without replacement from the urn. The probability that the three balls have different colours is

2 1 2 1
(A) (B) (C) (D)
7 21 23 3

24. Consider 5 independent Bernoulli trials each with probability of success p. If the probability of at least one failure
31
is greater than or equal to , then p lies in the interval: [AIEEE 2011]
32

æ 1 3ù æ 3 11 ù é 1ù æ 11 ù
(A) ç , ú (B) ç , ú (C) ê1, ú (D) ç ,1ú
è 2 4û è 4 12 û ë 2û è 12 û

25. If C and D are two events such tha C Ì D and P(D) ¹ 0, then the correct statement among the following is :

P(D)
(A) p(C|D) = P(C) (B) P(C|D) ³ P(C) (C) P(C|C) < P(C) (D) P(C|D) =
P(C)

26. Let A, B, C be pariwise independent events with P(C) > 0 and P (A Ç A Ç C) = 0.

The P(AC Ç BC /C).
(A) P(1) – P(BC) = (B) P(Ac ) + P(Bc) (C) P(Ac) – P(Bc) (D) P(Ac) – P(B)
27. Three numbers are chosen at random without replacement from {1, 2, 3 .... 8}. The probability that their mini-
mum is 3, given that their maximum is 6, is [AIEEE 2012]
3 1 1 2
(A) (B) (C) (D)
8 5 4 5
28. A multiple choice examination has 5 questions. Each question has three alternative answers of which exactly
one is correct. The probability that a student will get 4 or more correct answers just by guessing is:

17 13 11 10
(A) (B) (C) (D) [JEE-Mains 2013]
35 35 35 35

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 NCERT BOARD QUESTIONS

Short Answer
1. The probability that at least one of the two events a and B occurs is 0.6. If A and B occur simultaneously with
probability 0.3, evaluate P(A) + P(B) .
2. A bag contains 5 red marbles and 3 black marbles. Three marbles are drawn one by one without replacement.
What is the probability that at least one of the three marbles drawn be black, if the first marbles is red?
3. Two dice are thrown together an the total score is noted. The events E, F and G are 'a total of 4', 'a total of 9 or
more' , and 'a total divisible by 5', respectively. Calculate P(E), P(F) and P(G) and decide which pairs of events,
if any, are independent.
1 1 1
4. A and B are two events such that P(A) = ,P(B) = and P(A Ç B) = , Find :
2 3 4
(i) P(A|B) (ii) P(B|A) (iii) P(A'|B) (iv) P(A'|B')
2 1 1 1
5. Three events A, B and C have probabilities , and , respectively. Given that P (A Ç C) = and P (B Ç C)
5 3 2 5
1
, find the values of P(C|B) and P (A' Ç C").
4
6. Let E1 and E2 be two independent events such that p(E1) = p1 and P(E2) = p2.
Describe in words of the events whose probabilities are :
(i) p1p2 (ii) (1 – p1) p2 (iii) 1 – (1 – p1) (1 – p2) (iv) p1 + p2 – 2p1p2
7. A discreate random variable X has the probability distribution given as below :
X 0.5 1 1.5 2
P(X) k k 2 2k 2 k
(i) Find the value of k
(ii) Determine the mean of the distribution.
8. If X is the number of tails in three tosses of a coin, determine the standard deviation of X.
9. In a dice game, a player pays a stake of Re1 for each throw of a die. She receives Rs 5 if the die shows a 3, Rs
2 if the die shows a 1 or 6, and nothing otherwise. What is the player's expected profit per throw over a long
series of throws?

Long Answer

10. Three bags contain a number of red and white balls as follows:
Bag 1 : 3 red balls, Bag 2 : 2 red balls and 1 white balls
Bag 3 : 3 white balls.
i
The probability that bag i will be chosen and a ball is selectd from it is , i = 1, 2, 3. What is the probability that
6
(i) a red ball will be selected? (ii) a white balls is selectecd?
11. Refer to Question 41 above. If a white balls is selected, what is the probability that it came from
(i) Bag 2 (ii) Bag 3
12. A shopkeeper sells three types of flower seeds A1, A2 and A3. They are sold as a mixture where the proportions
are 4 : 4 : 2 respectively. The germination rates of the three tyeps of seeds are 45%, 60% and 35%. Calculate
the probability
(i) of a randomly chosen seed to germinate
(ii) that it will not germinate given that the seed is of type A3,
(iii) that it is of the type A2 given that a randomly chosen seed does not germinate.

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13. A letter is known to have come either from TATA NAGAR or from CALCUTTA. on the envelope, just two consecu-
tive letter TA are visible. What is the probability that the letter came from TATA NAGAR.
14. There are two bags, one of which contains 3 black and 4 white balls while the other contains 4 black and 3 white
balls. A die is thrown. If it shows up 1 or 3, a ball is taken from the Ist bag; but it shows up any other number, a
ball is chosen from the second gag. Find the probability of choosing a black ball.
15. There are three urns containing 2 white and 3 black balls, 3 white and 2 black balls , and 4 white and 1 black
balls, respectively. There is an equal probability of each urn being chosen. A ball is drawn at random from the
chosen urn and it is found to be white. Find the probability aht the ball drawn was from the second urn.
16. By examining the chest X ray, the probability that TB is detected when a person is actually suffering is 0.99. The
probability of an healthy person diagnosed to have TB is 0.001. In a certain city, 1 in 1000 people suffers from
TB. A person is selected at random and is diagnosed to have TB. What is the probability that he actually has
TB?
17. An item is manufactured by three machines A, B and C. Out of the total number of items manufactured during
a specified period, 50% are manufactured on A, 30% on B and 20% on C. 2% of the items produced on A nad 2%
of items produced on B are defective, and 3% of these produced on C are defective. All the items are stored at
one godown. One item is drawn at random and is found to be defective. What is the probability that it was
manufactured on machine A?
18. Let X be a discrete random variable whose probability distribution is defined as follows:

ìk(x + 1)x for x = 1,2,3,4

ï
P(X = x) = í 2kx for x = 5,6,7
ï 0 otherwise
î
where k i a constant. Calculate
(i) the value of k (ii) E(X) (iii) Standard deviation of X.
19. The probability distribution of a discrete random variable X is given as under.
Calculate :

x 1 2 4 2A 3A 5A
1 1 3 1 1 1
P(X)
2 5 25 10 25 25

(i) The value of A if E(X) = 2.94

(ii) Variance of X.
20. The probability distribution of a random variable x is given as under.

ìkx 2 for x = 1,2,3

ï
2kx for x = 4,5,6
P(X = x ) = í
ï 0 otherwise
î
where k is a constant. Calculate
(i) E(X) (ii) E(3X2) (iii) P(K ³ 4)
21. A bag contains (2n + 1) coins. It is known that n of these coins have a head on both sides where as teh rest of
the coins are fair. A coin is picked up at random from the bag and is tossed. If the probability that the toss results
31
in a head is , determine the value of n.
42
22. Two cards are drawn successively without replacement from a well shuffled deck of cards. Find the mean and
standard variation of the random variable X where X is the number of aces.
23. A die is tossed twice. A 'success' is getting an even number of a toss. Find the variance of the number of
successes.
24. There are 5 cards numbered 1 to 5, one number on one card. Two cards are drawn at random without replace-
ment. Let X denote the sum of the numbers on two cards drawn. Find the mena and variance of X.

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 EXERCISE # 1
PART-I
A-1*. (A,C) A-2. (D*) A-3. (C) A-4. (B) A-5. (A) A-6. (A) A-7. (A)

A-8. (A) A-9. (C) B-1. (C) B-2. (D) B-3. (D) B-4*. (A,C,D) B-5*. (C, D)

B-6*. (B,C,D) C-1. (C) C-2. (A) C-3. (C) D-1. (A) D-2. (D) E-1. (D)

F-1. (A) F-2. (C) F-3. (C) F-4. (B) F-5. (A)

PART-II
A-1. (i) {HHH, HHT, HTH, THH, HTT, THT, TTH, TTT}

(ii) {B1 B2, B1 B3, B1 G1, B1 G2, B2 B3, B2 G1, B2 G2, B3 G1, B3 G2, G1 G2}

1 1 1 4
A-2. 43 to 34 A-3. 2/11 A-.4 A-5. A-6. A-7.
72 132 6 5

2 1 4 7
A-8. (i) (ii) A-9. (i) (ii) A-10. (a) No (b) No
3 2 15 15

29 35
A-11. (i) (ii) 1/18 A-12. B-1. (i) 0.72 (ii) 1/3 (iii) 0.28
36 136

2 4 52 16 12 9 17
B-2. (i) (ii) C-1. C-2. , , D-1. .
13 13 77 37 37 37 125

27 8 1 40 48 45927
D-2. (i) (ii) D-3. E-1. E-2. F-1. F-2. 10 paise
56 29 17 41 25 p 50000

xi 0 1 2 3
F-3. 28 paise F-4. æ 19 ö
3
19 2 19 216 F-5.mean = 2.5, variance = 1.25
pi ç ÷ 18 ´ 108 ´
è 25 ø 25 3 25 3 25 3

PART-III
1. (A) ® (q), (B) ® (r), (C) ® (r), (D) ® (r)

2. (A) ® (s), (B) ® (r), (C) ® (q), (D) ® (p) 3. (A) 4. (C) 5. (D)

6. (B) 7. (B) 8. (D) 9. (A) 10. (D) 11. (A) 12. (B)

EXERCISE # 2
PART-I
1. (A) 2. (B) 3. (C) 4. (B) 5. (A) 6. (A) 7. (B)

8. (A) 9. (A) 10. (C) 11. (C) 12. (A) 13. (C) 14. (A)

15. (C) 16. (D) 17. (D) 18. (B) 19. (C)

20. (A, B, C, D) 21. (A, B, C, D) 22. (A,C) 23. (A, D)

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 PART-II
n
4 æ3ö m
6
C3 [3n - 3(2n ) + 3]
1. 2. ç4÷ 3. 4. 5. 1 – {1 – (1 –p)m}k
49 è ø m+n 6n

m 1 1 5
6. 7. 8. 9. 10. (32/41) 12. 240 and 40
m+n 3 2 11

EXERCISE # 3
PART-I

9m 1
1. 2. (A) 3. (D) 4. 2 P2 – P3 5. 6. (D)
8N+ m 2

6
C 4 ´12 C 2 ´2 C1 ´10 C1 + 6 C 5 ´12 C1 ´11 C1
8. 12
(
C 2 6 C 4 ´12 C 2 + 6 C 5 ´12 C1 + 6 C 6 ) 9. (A) 10. 1/7 11. (A)

12. (A) 13. (C) 14. (C) 15. (B) 16. (C) 17. (B) 18. (D)
19. (A) 20. (B) 21. (D) 22. (C) 23. (C) 24. (B) 25. (D)

26. (A,D) 27*. (B, D) 28. (A*) 29*. (A, B) 30. (A*) 31. 6 32. (D*)
33. (A*)
PART-II
1. (A) 2. (B) 3. (A) 4. (B) 5. (A) 6. (B) 7. (A)
8. (D) 9. (A) 10. (A) 11. (C) 12. (B) 13. (D) 14. (B)
15. (C) 16. D) 17. (C) 18. (B) 19. (C) 20. (D) 21. (D)
22. (B) 23. (A) 24. (C) 25. (B) 26. (D) 27. (B) 28. (C)
EXERCISE # 4
NCERT BOARD QUESTIONS
25 1 5 7
1. 1.1 2. 3. P(E) = ,P(F) : ,P(G) = , no pair is independent
56 12 18 36

3 1 1 5 3 3
4. (i) , (ii) (iii) (iv) 5. ,
4 2 4 8 4 10
6. (i) E1 and E2 occur (ii) E1 does not occur, But E2 occurs
(iii) Either E1 or E2, or both E1 and E2 occurs (iv) Either E1 or E2 occurs, but not both

1 23 3 7 11 2 9
7. (i) , (ii) 8. 9. Rs 0.50 10. (i) (ii) 11. (i) , (ii)
3 18 2 18 18 11 11
12. (i) 0.49, (ii) 0.65, (iii) .314

7 11 1 110 5
13. 14. 15. 16. 17.
11 21 3 221 11

1 15
18. (i) (ii) 5.2 (iii) 1.7 (approx) 19. (i) 3 (ii) 19.05 20. (i) 4.32 (ii) 61.9 (iii)
50 22

2 1
21. 10 22. Mean = , S.D. = 0.377 23. 24. Mean = 6, Variance = 3
13 2

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