The VARC section is the most important and consists of the highest number of questions (24) in the CAT exam. Among these, Reading Comprehensions (RC) make up 16 questions, while the rest are focused on Verbal Ability (VA) topics such as Para Jumbles, Para Completions, Para Summary, and Odd Sentence Out. Choosing the right RC set can drastically improve your chances of success in this section.

Reading Comprehension

Improve your reading skills with passages and questions designed to test comprehension, inference, and critical thinking.

Para Summary

Learn to summarize paragraphs effectively by identifying key points and main ideas in a structured manner.

Para Completion

Develop the skill of logically completing a given paragraph by understanding its flow and intended meaning.

Para Jumbles

Practice rearranging jumbled sentences to form a coherent and meaningful paragraph.

Odd One Out

Identify the sentence that doesn’t fit in a sequence, testing your logical and contextual understanding.

How to Prepare for VARC for CAT 2025

📚 Reading Comprehension (RC)

RC is the king of VARC! Practice reading CAT-level passages on topics like economics, philosophy, psychology, and technology.

Develop skills in skimming, inferring, and identifying author intent—critical for RC accuracy.

Keyword Tip: Practice 2 CAT reading comprehension questions daily with detailed analysis to boost your score.

🧩 Verbal Ability (VA)

Ace para-jumbles, odd-sentence-out, and passage summaries.

Use tricks like recognizing sentence connectors, keywords, and logical flow to solve faster.

Master previous year’s CAT Verbal Ability questions to understand the exam pattern.

📖 Vocabulary Building

Learn 10+ high-frequency CAT vocabulary words daily.

Use apps like Anki or Word Power Made Easy to enhance your retention.

Apply vocabulary in RCs and para-summary questions to reinforce learning.

🤔 Critical Reasoning

Strengthen skills in identifying assumptions, conclusions, and inferences.

Solve past CAT critical reasoning questions with solutions to spot reasoning traps.

Practice assumption-based and strengthening/weakening argument questions to enhance logical accuracy.

🖊️ Strategy for Success

Take weekly CAT VARC sectional mocks and analyze your accuracy and speed.
Revise concepts regularly and focus on weak areas like para-summary or RC inference questions.
Build stamina for solving lengthy RC passages under timed conditions.

Why Focus on VARC?

VARC for CAT accounts for 34% of the total marks—high-scoring potential!

Strong performance in VARC boosts your overall CAT percentile, making it a key section for IIM aspirants.

Extra Tips:

Dedicate 1–2 hours daily to CAT VARC preparation.
Follow blogs and resources like Hindu Editorials or Aeon Essays for RC practice.
Solve 20+ VARC CAT mock tests to simulate exam pressure and improve time management.

Frequently Asked Questions

An onscreen calculator is available during the CAT examination. So, you are not allowed to bring your own calculator to the exam hall. Only the onscreen calculator given on the test page has to be used.

You will be provided with a basic virtual calculator, depicted in the video above. Watch the video to learn & know everything about the CAT Exam Calculator. Find out some excellent tips and lesser-known functions of the onscreen calculator provided during the exam.

No, you cannot download the CAT onscreen calculator for PC. You can practice using the onscreen calculator Click Here

CAT Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension Practice Questions