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CBSE Class 12 · Mathematics 041 · 95+ challenge

Class 12 Maths Sample Paper 5 (CBSE 2026-27 pattern)

A full-length practice paper for CBSE Class 12 Mathematics on the 2026-27 board pattern, pitched at the hardest items the pattern allows, for students aiming at 95+. Sit it in one go against the 3-hour timer, then mark it: the Section A answer key and the scheme for question 36 are open to everyone, and the full step-marking scheme, with where toppers lose marks on every long answer and case study, is free with an account.

  • 80 marks
  • 3 hours
  • 38 questions, sections A to E
  • Internal choice in B, C, D and E

Not an official CBSE paper. This is an original practice paper written to the CBSE pattern by CBSE Math Revision and independently checked. CBSE's own 2026-27 sample paper is on cbseacademic.nic.in: question paper · marking scheme.

Time 3:00:00

General instructions

  1. This question paper contains 38 questions. All questions are compulsory.
  2. The paper is divided into five sections: A, B, C, D and E.
  3. Section A: questions 1–18 are MCQs and questions 19–20 are Assertion–Reason based, 1 mark each.
  4. Section B: questions 21–25 are very short answer (VSA) questions of 2 marks each.
  5. Section C: questions 26–31 are short answer (SA) questions of 3 marks each.
  6. Section D: questions 32–35 are long answer (LA) questions of 5 marks each.
  7. Section E: questions 36–38 are case study based questions of 4 marks each, with sub-parts of 1, 1 and 2 marks.
  8. There is no overall choice. Internal choice is provided in 2 questions of Section B, 2 of Section C, 2 of Section D and in the 2-mark sub-part of each case study in Section E.
  9. Use of calculators is not allowed.

Section A 20 marks

Questions 1 to 20 carry 1 mark each. Questions 1 to 18 are multiple choice questions (MCQs); questions 19 and 20 are Assertion–Reason based questions.

3.

If \(A\) is a square matrix with \(A^3 = O\), then \((I - A)^{-1}\) equals

  1. (a) \(I + A\)
  2. (b) \(I - A\)
  3. (c) \(I + A + A^2\)
  4. (d) \(I - A + A^2\)
1
4.

If \(A\) and \(B\) are square matrices of order \(3\) with \(|A| = 6\) and \(|B| = -2\), then \(\left|3A^{-1}B'\right|\) is

  1. (a) \(-9\)
  2. (b) \(9\)
  3. (c) \(-1\)
  4. (d) \(-3\)
1
5.

The number of \(2 \times 2\) skew-symmetric matrices whose entries are all from \(\{-1, 0, 1\}\) is

  1. (a) \(1\)
  2. (b) \(2\)
  3. (c) \(3\)
  4. (d) \(9\)
1
6.

If \(A\) is a non-singular matrix of order \(3\) and \(|\operatorname{adj} A| = 64\), then \(|A|\) is

  1. (a) \(8\) only
  2. (b) \(\pm 8\)
  3. (c) \(\pm 4\)
  4. (d) \(4\) only
1
7.

The area of the triangle with vertices \((a, b + c)\), \((b, c + a)\) and \((c, a + b)\), where \(a, b, c\) are distinct, is

  1. (a) \(0\)
  2. (b) \(\dfrac12(a + b + c)\)
  3. (c) \(\dfrac12|(a - b)(b - c)(c - a)|\)
  4. (d) \(1\)
1
8.

Let \(f(x) = x^3\) for \(x \le 1\) and \(f(x) = 3x - 2\) for \(x \gt 1\). Then at \(x = 1\), \(f\) is

  1. (a) discontinuous
  2. (b) continuous but not differentiable
  3. (c) differentiable with \(f'(1) = 3\)
  4. (d) differentiable with \(f'(1) = 1\)
1
11.

For every \(n \gt 0\), \(\displaystyle\int_0^{\pi/2}\dfrac{\sin^n x}{\sin^n x + \cos^n x}\,dx\) equals

  1. (a) \(\dfrac\pi2\)
  2. (b) \(\dfrac\pi4\)
  3. (c) \(\dfrac{n\pi}{4}\)
  4. (d) \(1\)
1
13.

If \(|\vec a| = 3\), \(|\vec b| = 4\) and \(\vec a \cdot \vec b = 6\), then \(|\vec a \times \vec b|\) is

  1. (a) \(6\)
  2. (b) \(6\sqrt3\)
  3. (c) \(12\)
  4. (d) \(6\sqrt2\)
1
14.

The direction cosines of a line equally inclined to the three coordinate axes are

  1. (a) \(\pm\left(\dfrac{1}{\sqrt3}, \dfrac{1}{\sqrt3}, \dfrac{1}{\sqrt3}\right)\)
  2. (b) \((1, 1, 1)\)
  3. (c) \(\left(\dfrac13, \dfrac13, \dfrac13\right)\)
  4. (d) \(\pm\left(\dfrac{1}{\sqrt2}, \dfrac{1}{\sqrt2}, 0\right)\)
1
15.

The angle which the line \(\dfrac{x - 2}{3} = \dfrac{y + 1}{-2} = \dfrac{z}{6}\) makes with the positive \(x\)-axis is

  1. (a) \(\cos^{-1}\dfrac37\)
  2. (b) \(\cos^{-1}\dfrac27\)
  3. (c) \(\cos^{-1}\dfrac67\)
  4. (d) \(\cos^{-1}\dfrac{3}{\sqrt{41}}\)
1
16.

The system of constraints \(x + y \le 4\), \(x + y \ge 6\), \(x, y \ge 0\)

  1. (a) has a bounded feasible region
  2. (b) has an unbounded feasible region
  3. (c) has no feasible solution
  4. (d) has exactly one feasible point
1
17.

On a bounded feasible region, \(Z = 3x + 2y\) attains its maximum value \(18\) at the corner points \((4, 3)\) and \((6, 0)\). Then

  1. (a) the maximum occurs only at these two points
  2. (b) the maximum occurs at every point of the segment joining \((4, 3)\) and \((6, 0)\)
  3. (c) the problem has no maximum
  4. (d) the minimum is also 18
1
18.

An urn has \(5\) red and \(5\) black balls. A ball is drawn, its colour noted, and it is returned together with \(2\) more balls of the same colour. A second ball is then drawn. The probability that the second ball is red is

  1. (a) \(\dfrac{5}{12}\)
  2. (b) \(\dfrac12\)
  3. (c) \(\dfrac{7}{12}\)
  4. (d) \(\dfrac35\)
1
19.

In the following question, a statement of Assertion (A) is followed by a statement of Reason (R). Choose the correct option.

Assertion (A): The vectors \(\vec a = \hat i + 2\hat j - \hat k\) and \(\vec b = -2\hat i - 4\hat j - 2\hat k\) are collinear.

Reason (R): Two non-zero vectors are collinear if and only if one is a scalar multiple of the other.

  1. (a) Both Assertion (A) and Reason (R) are true and Reason (R) is the correct explanation of Assertion (A).
  2. (b) Both Assertion (A) and Reason (R) are true but Reason (R) is not the correct explanation of Assertion (A).
  3. (c) Assertion (A) is true but Reason (R) is false.
  4. (d) Assertion (A) is false but Reason (R) is true.
1
20.

In the following question, a statement of Assertion (A) is followed by a statement of Reason (R). Choose the correct option.

Assertion (A): If \(A\) and \(B\) are independent events, then \(P(A \cup B) = 1 - P(A')P(B')\).

Reason (R): If \(A\) and \(B\) are independent, then \(A'\) and \(B'\) are also independent.

  1. (a) Both Assertion (A) and Reason (R) are true and Reason (R) is the correct explanation of Assertion (A).
  2. (b) Both Assertion (A) and Reason (R) are true but Reason (R) is not the correct explanation of Assertion (A).
  3. (c) Assertion (A) is true but Reason (R) is false.
  4. (d) Assertion (A) is false but Reason (R) is true.
1

Section B 10 marks

Questions 21 to 25 are very short answer (VSA) type questions carrying 2 marks each. Internal choice is provided in 2 questions.

23.

Find \(\displaystyle\int \sqrt{e^x - 1}\,dx\).

OR

Evaluate \(\displaystyle\int_{-1}^{1}\left(x|x| + e^{x} + e^{-x}\right)dx\).

2

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Section C 18 marks

Questions 26 to 31 are short answer (SA) type questions carrying 3 marks each. Internal choice is provided in 2 questions.

27.

If \(y = (\sin x)^{\tan x}\), \(0 \lt x \lt \dfrac\pi2\), find \(\dfrac{dy}{dx}\), and its value at \(x = \dfrac\pi4\).

OR

If \(y = x^2\log x\), \(x \gt 0\), show that \(x^2\dfrac{d^2y}{dx^2} - 3x\dfrac{dy}{dx} + 4y = 0\).

3
30.

Find the vector equation of the line through \(P(2, 1, -1)\) that meets the line \(L: \dfrac{x - 1}{1} = \dfrac{y + 2}{2} = \dfrac{z - 3}{-2}\) at right angles. Also find the point where they meet.

OR

Find \(k\) so that the lines \(\dfrac{x - 1}{1} = \dfrac{y + 1}{2} = \dfrac{z - 2}{1}\) and \(\dfrac{x - 3}{2} = \dfrac{y - k}{1} = \dfrac{z - 1}{-1}\) intersect, and find their point of intersection.

3
31.

Maximise \(Z = 2x + 2y\) subject to \(x + y \le 5\), \(x \le 4\), \(y \le 3\), \(x, y \ge 0\). Show that the problem has infinitely many optimal solutions and describe them.

3

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Section D 20 marks

Questions 32 to 35 are long answer (LA) type questions carrying 5 marks each. Internal choice is provided in 2 questions.

32.

Find \(A^{-1}\) for \(A = \begin{bmatrix} 2 & 1 & 0 \\ 1 & -1 & 3 \\ 0 & 2 & 1 \end{bmatrix}\). Hence solve the system \(2x + y = 4\), \(x - y + 2z = 5\), \(3y + z = 9\).

OR

Express \(M = \begin{bmatrix} 3 & 5 & 1 \\ -1 & 2 & 4 \\ 7 & 0 & -2 \end{bmatrix}\) as the sum of a symmetric matrix \(P\) and a skew-symmetric matrix \(Q\). Find \(|P|\), and show that \(|Q| = 0\).

5
33.

A farmer in Punjab wants to fence a rectangular field along a straight canal; no fence is needed along the canal. He also puts one fence across the field, perpendicular to the canal, to split it into two plots. Fencing parallel to the canal costs ₹30 per metre and fencing perpendicular to it costs ₹20 per metre, and his budget is ₹6000. Find the dimensions that maximise the total area, and the maximum area.

OR

A right circular cylinder is inscribed in a right circular cone of height \(12\) cm and base radius \(6\) cm, with their axes along the same line and the base of the cylinder on the base of the cone. Find the dimensions of the cylinder with the greatest curved surface area, and that area.

5
34.

A cup of tea at \(90^\circ\)C is left in a room at \(30^\circ\)C. Its temperature \(T\) falls at a rate proportional to \(T - 30\). After \(5\) minutes it is \(70^\circ\)C. (a) Form and solve the differential equation. (b) Find how long after the start the tea reaches \(50^\circ\)C. (Answer in logarithmic form and to one decimal place, using \(\log 3 = 1.0986\), \(\log 1.5 = 0.4055\).)

5
35.

The vertices of \(\triangle ABC\) are \(A(1, 2, 3)\), \(B(3, 4, 1)\) and \(C(-1, 6, 5)\). (a) Write the vector equation of the line \(BC\). (b) Find the foot \(D\) of the perpendicular from \(A\) to \(BC\), and the length \(AD\). (c) Verify that \(\dfrac12|\vec{AB} \times \vec{AC}| = \dfrac12 \cdot BC \cdot AD\).

5

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Section E 12 marks

Questions 36 to 38 are case study based questions carrying 4 marks each (1 + 1 + 2). Internal choice is provided in the 2-mark sub-part of each case study.

36.

Motor insurance. A motor insurer classifies its policy-holders in Chennai as careful \((60\%)\), average \((30\%)\) and risky \((10\%)\). The probabilities that a driver of each type has an accident in a year are \(0.01\), \(0.03\) and \(0.15\) respectively.

  1. Find the probability that a randomly chosen policy-holder has an accident in the year. [1 mark]

  2. A policy-holder had an accident. Find the probability that the driver is of the risky type. [1 mark]

  3. A policy-holder had an accident. Find the probability that the driver is careful, and comment on the insurer's classification. [2 marks]

    OR

    Two policy-holders are chosen at random, independently. Find the probability that exactly one of them has an accident in the year. [2 marks]

Marking scheme free
  1. \[\begin{aligned}0.6(0.01) + 0.3(0.03) + 0.1(0.15) &= 0.006 + 0.009 + 0.015 \\ &= 0.03\end{aligned}\] A1

  2. \(\dfrac{0.015}{0.03} = \dfrac12\) A1

  3. \[\begin{aligned}P(\text{careful} \mid \text{acc}) &= \dfrac{0.006}{0.03} \\ &= \dfrac15\end{aligned}\] M1
    Risky drivers are only \(10\%\) of the policy-holders but account for half the accidents, so the classification is useful for setting premiums A1

Where toppers lose marks: Write the total-probability sum before dividing. In (iii) the comment must use the numbers (10% of drivers, 50% of accidents).

OR option for part (iii)

\(P = 2 \times 0.03 \times 0.97\) M1
\(= 0.0582\) A1

4
37.

Giant wheel. At a mela in Lucknow, the height (in metres) of a rider on a giant wheel above the ground \(t\) minutes after the ride starts is \(h(t) = 12 - 10\cos\dfrac{\pi t}{2}\), \(0 \le t \le 4\).

  1. Find the height of the rider at \(t = 1\). [1 mark]

  2. Find the rate of change of height at \(t = 1\). [1 mark]

  3. Find the times in \([0, 2]\) at which the rider is rising at \(2.5\pi\) m/min. [2 marks]

    OR

    Find \(\dfrac{d^2h}{dt^2}\) at \(t = \dfrac13\) and state whether the rider's rate of rising is increasing or decreasing then. [2 marks]

4
38.

Square residues. A number-theory club studies the relation \(R = \{(a, b) \in \mathbb{Z} \times \mathbb{Z} : 5 \text{ divides } a^2 - b^2\}\).

  1. Is \((2, 3) \in R\)? Justify. [1 mark]

  2. Write the equivalence class of \(0\). [1 mark]

  3. Show that \(R\) is an equivalence relation, and find the number of distinct equivalence classes. [2 marks]

    OR

    Describe the equivalence class of \(1\). [2 marks]

4

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Marking scheme and answers

Mark your own paper step by step. M1 is a method mark, A1 an accuracy mark that depends on the method, and B1 an independent mark for a correct result.

Section A answer key (free)

Q1234567891011121314151617181920
Answer(c)(b)(c)(a)(c)(b)(a)(c)(b)(c)(b)(c)(b)(a)(a)(c)(b)(b)(d)(a)

The complete scheme for question 36, the first case study, is open under the question, with the note on where toppers lose marks.

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Every step mark for all 38 questions and both options of every internal choice, plus a note on where toppers lose marks on each long answer and case study. Free, no card.

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Unit weightage in this paper

UnitMarks
Relations and Functions8
Algebra10
Calculus35
Vectors and Three-Dimensional Geometry14
Linear Programming5
Probability8

The same unit marks as the CBSE curriculum for 2026-27.

After the paper

Take every lost mark back to its chapter: each question above links to its chapter's Route to 95 and to our NCERT solutions for that chapter. Chapters in this paper: Relations and Functions, Inverse Trigonometric Functions, Matrices, Determinants, Continuity and Differentiability, Application of Derivatives, Integrals, Differential Equations, Vector Algebra, Three Dimensional Geometry, Linear Programming, Probability.

CBSE Math Revision is independent and not affiliated with CBSE or NCERT. Spotted a slip? Tell us and it goes in the corrections log.