Quantitative Aptitude · Reasoning

Time and Clocks

562 Questions

Time and clocks problems evaluate quantitative aptitude by testing concepts on clock gains, losses, and relative speeds of hands. Questions also cover global time zones and standard time calculations. These logical reasoning topics frequently appear in SSC and banking exams.

Clock gain or lossTime zonesAngle between handsStandard time calculationPrecise time measurement

Time and Clocks Questions

Multiple choice general knowledge

IST time zone refers to

  1. Interstate Standard Time

  2. Intercontinental Standard Time

  3. International Standard Time

  4. Indian Standard Time
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

IST stands for Indian Standard Time, the official time zone used throughout India. The other options (Interstate, Intercontinental, International Standard Time) are not real time zone abbreviations.

Multiple choice general knowledge math & puzzles

Light glows for every 13 seconds . How many times did it glow between 1:57:58 and 3:20:47 am.

  1. 392

  2. 383

  3. 384

  4. 385
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

The time interval is 1 hour, 22 minutes, and 49 seconds, totaling 4969 seconds. Dividing 4969 by 13 gives 382.23. Including the initial glow at the start of the interval, the total count is 383 or 384 depending on the exact boundary conditions. 384 is the closest standard answer for such problems.

Multiple choice general knowledge math & puzzles

A clock is set right at 8 a.m. The clock gains 10 minutes in 24 hours. What will be the true time when the clock indicates 1 p.m. on the following day?

  1. 48 min. past 12

  2. 38 min. past 12

  3. 28 min. past 12

  4. 25 min. past 12
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

From 8 a.m. on one day to 1 p.m. on the following day is 29 hours of indicated clock time. Since the clock gains 10 minutes every 24 hours, 24 hours and 10 minutes (1450 minutes) of indicated time corresponds to 24 hours (1440 minutes) of true time. Therefore, 29 hours of indicated time corresponds to $29 \times (1440 / 1450) = 28.8$ hours of true time, which is 28 hours and 48 minutes. Adding 28 hours and 48 minutes to 8 a.m. gives 12:48 p.m., or 48 minutes past 12.

Multiple choice general knowledge math & puzzles

At what time after 4.00 p.m. is the minutes hand of a clock exactly aligned with the hour hand?

  1. 0.181822916666667

  2. 0.185989583333333

  3. 0.14015625

  4. 0.181765046296296
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

The hands align when the minute hand catches up to the hour hand. At 4:00, the hour hand is at 20 minutes. The relative speed is 11/12 minutes per minute. Time = 20 / (11/60) hours? No, 20/(11/12) = 21.818 minutes past 4. 21.818/1440 minutes in a day is 0.18182. The decimal represents the fraction of a 24-hour day.

Multiple choice general knowledge math & puzzles

A clock is set right at 8 a.m. The clock gains 10 minutes in 24 hours. What will be the true time when the clock indicates 1 p.m. on the following day?

  1. 48 min. past 12

  2. 38 min. past 12

  3. 28 min. past 12

  4. 25 min. past 12
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

The clock gains 10 mins in 24 hours, so 1440 mins of true time = 1450 mins of faulty time. From 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. next day is 29 hours (1740 mins). True time = 1740 * (1440/1450) = 1728 mins = 28 hrs 48 mins.

Multiple choice general knowledge math & puzzles

At what time after 4.00 p.m. is the minutes hand of a clock exactly aligned with the hour hand?

  1. 4:21:49.5

  2. 4:27:49.5

  3. 3:21:49.5

  4. 4:21:44.5
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

At 4:00, the hour hand is at 120° and the minute hand is at 0°. The minute hand moves at 6°/minute while the hour hand moves at 0.5°/minute, so the minute hand gains 5.5° per minute on the hour hand. To align, it must gain 120°. Time = 120/5.5 = 21.8181 minutes = 21 minutes 49.09 seconds. Option A (4:21:49.5) is the closest approximation.

Multiple choice general knowledge

At noon and midnight the hour and minute hands are exactly coincident with each other. How many other times between noon and midnight do the hour and minute hands cross?

  1. Five

  2. Eight

  3. Nine

  4. Ten

  5. Eleven
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

The hour and minute hands coincide at noon (12:00) and midnight (0:00). Between noon and midnight, they cross 10 more times. This happens approximately every 65 minutes when the minute hand catches up to and passes the hour hand. The 11 crossings between noon and midnight occur at times like ~1:05, ~2:11, ~3:16, etc., with the 11th crossing happening at 12:00 (midnight).

Multiple choice general knowledge

At noon and midnight the hour and minute hands are exactly coincident with each other. How many other times between noon and midnight do the hour and minute hands cross?

  1. Five

  2. Eight

  3. Nine

  4. Ten

  5. Eleven
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Between noon and midnight, there are 12 hours. The minute hand completes 12 full rotations while the hour hand completes 1 rotation. The minute hand laps (crosses) the hour hand 11 times in those 12 hours. Since we want the times BETWEEN noon and midnight (excluding the endpoints where they're already together at noon and will be together at midnight), the answer is 10 crossings.

Multiple choice general knowledge

If the hour hand on a clock moves 1/60 of a degree every minute how many degrees will the hour hand move in one hour?

  1. 360

  2. 270

  3. 180

  4. 90

  5. 60

  6. 1
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
F Correct answer
Explanation

The hour hand moves 1/60 of a degree per minute. In one hour (60 minutes), it moves 60 × (1/60) = 1 degree. This is a straightforward calculation - you just multiply the rate per minute by the number of minutes in an hour. The trick is realizing it's asking for the hour hand movement, not the minute hand which would move 360 degrees.

Multiple choice general knowledge math & puzzles

You went to bed at 9 o'clock and wound up your analog clock and set the alarm at 10 o'clock in the morning? How many hours could you sleep before the clock alarms?

  1. 13 hours

  2. 11 hours

  3. 12 hours

  4. 1 hour
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

The correct answer is D. 1 hour.

If you went to bed at 9 o'clock and set the alarm for 10 o'clock in the morning, then you would sleep for 9 - 10 = 1 hour.

Option A is incorrect because it would mean that you slept for 13 - 9 = 4 hours before the alarm went off. However, this is not possible because 4 hours is less than the 9 hours between 9 o'clock and 10 o'clock in the morning.

Option B is incorrect because it would mean that you slept for 11 - 9 = 2 hours before the alarm went off. However, this is not possible because 2 hours is less than the 9 hours between 9 o'clock and 10 o'clock in the morning.

Option C is incorrect because it would mean that you slept for 12 - 9 = 3 hours before the alarm went off. However, this is not possible because 3 hours is less than the 9 hours between 9 o'clock and 10 o'clock in the morning.

Therefore, the only possible answer is 1 hour.