Probability
Haryana Board · Class 10 · Mathematics
NCERT Solutions for Probability — Haryana Board Class 10 Mathematics.
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Get startedExercise 14.1
1Complete the following statements:
(i) Probability of an event E + Probability of the event 'not E' = ___________.
(ii) The probability of an event that cannot happen is ___________. Such an event is called ___________.
(iii) The probability of an event that is certain to happen is ___________. Such an event is called ___________.
(iv) The sum of the probabilities of all the elementary events of an experiment is ___________.
(v) The probability of an event is greater than or equal to ___________ and less than or equal to ___________.Show solution
Answer: 1
(ii) An event that cannot happen has no favourable outcomes, so its probability = .
Answer: 0; such an event is called an impossible event.
(iii) An event that is certain to happen has all outcomes favourable, so its probability = .
Answer: 1; such an event is called a sure (or certain) event.
(iv) Since all elementary events together cover the entire sample space, their probabilities add up to:
Answer: 1
(v) Probability is always a number between 0 and 1 (inclusive).
Answer: greater than or equal to 0 and less than or equal to 1.
2Which of the following experiments have equally likely outcomes? Explain.
(i) A driver attempts to start a car. The car starts or does not start.
(ii) A player attempts to shoot a basketball. She/he shoots or misses the shot.
(iii) A trial is made to answer a true-false question. The answer is right or wrong.
(iv) A baby is born. It is a boy or a girl.Show solution
(i) A car starting or not starting depends on the condition of the car, fuel, battery, etc. These two outcomes are not equally likely.
(ii) Whether a player shoots or misses depends on the player's skill and practice. These two outcomes are not equally likely.
(iii) A true-false question has exactly two options — right or wrong. Since there is no prior knowledge assumed, each option is equally likely. These outcomes are equally likely.
(iv) A baby being born a boy or a girl are two outcomes that are (approximately) equally likely in nature. These outcomes are equally likely.
3Why is tossing a coin considered to be a fair way of deciding which team should get the ball at the beginning of a football game?Show solution
Reason: When a fair coin is tossed, there are only two possible outcomes — Head (H) and Tail (T). Both outcomes are equally likely, each with probability .
Since neither team has an advantage over the other (each has an equal chance of winning the toss), tossing a coin is considered a fair and unbiased method of making the decision.
4Which of the following cannot be the probability of an event?
(A) (B) (C) (D) Show solution
Checking each option:
- (A) — lies between 0 and 1. ✓ Valid.
- (B) — is negative, which is less than 0. ✗ Not valid.
- (C) — lies between 0 and 1. ✓ Valid.
- (D) — lies between 0 and 1. ✓ Valid.
Answer: (B) cannot be the probability of an event.
5If P(E) = 0.05, what is the probability of 'not E'?Show solution
Formula:
The probability of 'not E' is .
6A bag contains lemon flavoured candies only. Malini takes out one candy without looking into the bag. What is the probability that she takes out (i) an orange flavoured candy? (ii) a lemon flavoured candy?Show solution
(i) Probability of taking out an orange flavoured candy:
Since there are no orange flavoured candies in the bag, this is an impossible event.
(ii) Probability of taking out a lemon flavoured candy:
Since all candies are lemon flavoured, this is a certain event.
7It is given that in a group of 3 students, the probability of 2 students not having the same birthday is 0.992. What is the probability that the 2 students have the same birthday?Show solution
Formula:
Let = event that 2 students have the same birthday.
Then = event that 2 students do not have the same birthday.
The probability that the 2 students have the same birthday is .
8A bag contains 3 red balls and 5 black balls. A ball is drawn at random from the bag. What is the probability that the ball drawn is (i) red? (ii) not red?Show solution
Total number of possible outcomes = 8.
(i) Probability of drawing a red ball:
Number of red balls = 3
(ii) Probability of drawing a ball that is not red:
Number of non-red (black) balls = 5
Verification: ✓
9A box contains 5 red marbles, 8 white marbles and 4 green marbles. One marble is taken out of the box at random. What is the probability that the marble taken out will be (i) red? (ii) white? (iii) not green?Show solution
Total number of possible outcomes = 17.
(i) Probability of getting a red marble:
(ii) Probability of getting a white marble:
(iii) Probability of getting a marble that is not green:
Number of non-green marbles = 5 + 8 = 13
10A piggy bank contains hundred 50p coins, fifty ₹1 coins, twenty ₹2 coins and ten ₹5 coins. If it is equally likely that one of the coins will fall out when the bank is turned upside down, what is the probability that the coin (i) will be a 50p coin? (ii) will not be a ₹5 coin?Show solution
- 50p coins = 100
- ₹1 coins = 50
- ₹2 coins = 20
- ₹5 coins = 10
Total number of coins =
(i) Probability that the coin is a 50p coin:
(ii) Probability that the coin is not a ₹5 coin:
Number of coins that are not ₹5 =
11Gopi buys a fish from a shop for his aquarium. The shopkeeper takes out one fish at random from a tank containing 5 male fish and 8 female fish. What is the probability that the fish taken out is a male fish?Show solution
Total number of possible outcomes = 13.
Number of favourable outcomes (male fish) = 5.
The probability that the fish taken out is a male fish is .
12A game of chance consists of spinning an arrow which comes to rest pointing at one of the numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and these are equally likely outcomes. What is the probability that it will point at (i) 8? (ii) an odd number? (iii) a number greater than 2? (iv) a number less than 9?Show solution
Total number of outcomes = 8.
(i) Probability of pointing at 8:
Favourable outcomes = {8} → 1 outcome
(ii) Probability of pointing at an odd number:
Odd numbers in {1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8} = {1, 3, 5, 7} → 4 outcomes
(iii) Probability of pointing at a number greater than 2:
Numbers greater than 2 = {3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8} → 6 outcomes
(iv) Probability of pointing at a number less than 9:
All numbers 1 through 8 are less than 9 → 8 outcomes
This is a certain event, as all outcomes satisfy the condition.
13A die is thrown once. Find the probability of getting (i) a prime number; (ii) a number lying between 2 and 6; (iii) an odd number.Show solution
Total number of outcomes = 6.
(i) Probability of getting a prime number:
Prime numbers in {1,2,3,4,5,6} = {2, 3, 5} → 3 outcomes
(ii) Probability of getting a number lying between 2 and 6:
Numbers strictly between 2 and 6 = {3, 4, 5} → 3 outcomes
(iii) Probability of getting an odd number:
Odd numbers = {1, 3, 5} → 3 outcomes
14One card is drawn from a well-shuffled deck of 52 cards. Find the probability of getting (i) a king of red colour (ii) a face card (iii) a red face card (iv) the jack of hearts (v) a spade (vi) the queen of diamonds.Show solution
(i) A king of red colour:
There are 2 red kings (King of Hearts and King of Diamonds).
(ii) A face card:
Face cards = Jack, Queen, King of each of 4 suits = cards.
(iii) A red face card:
Red face cards = Face cards of Hearts and Diamonds = cards.
(iv) The jack of hearts:
There is only 1 jack of hearts.
(v) A spade:
There are 13 spade cards in a deck.
(vi) The queen of diamonds:
There is only 1 queen of diamonds.
15Five cards — the ten, jack, queen, king and ace of diamonds, are well-shuffled with their face downwards. One card is then picked up at random.
(i) What is the probability that the card is the queen?
(ii) If the queen is drawn and put aside, what is the probability that the second card picked up is (a) an ace? (b) a queen?Show solution
(i) Probability that the card is the queen:
Total outcomes = 5; Favourable outcomes = 1 (Queen)
(ii) The queen is drawn and put aside. Remaining cards = {Ten, Jack, King, Ace} → 4 cards.
(a) Probability that the second card is an ace:
Favourable outcomes = 1 (Ace)
(b) Probability that the second card is a queen:
The queen has already been removed, so there are 0 queens left.
This is an impossible event.
1612 defective pens are accidentally mixed with 132 good ones. It is not possible to just look at a pen and tell whether or not it is defective. One pen is taken out at random from this lot. Determine the probability that the pen taken out is a good one.Show solution
- Defective pens = 12
- Good pens = 132
- Total pens =
Total number of outcomes = 144.
Number of favourable outcomes (good pen) = 132.
The probability that the pen taken out is a good one is .
17(i) A lot of 20 bulbs contain 4 defective ones. One bulb is drawn at random from the lot. What is the probability that this bulb is defective?
(ii) Suppose the bulb drawn in (i) is not defective and is not replaced. Now one bulb is drawn at random from the rest. What is the probability that this bulb is not defective?Show solution
Given: Total bulbs = 20; Defective bulbs = 4.
(ii) After a non-defective bulb is drawn and not replaced:
Remaining total bulbs =
Remaining defective bulbs = 4 (unchanged, since a non-defective was removed)
Remaining non-defective bulbs =
The probability that the second bulb drawn is not defective is .
18A box contains 90 discs which are numbered from 1 to 90. If one disc is drawn at random from the box, find the probability that it bears (i) a two-digit number (ii) a perfect square number (iii) a number divisible by 5.Show solution
(i) Probability of a two-digit number:
Two-digit numbers from 1 to 90: 10, 11, 12, …, 90 → numbers.
(ii) Probability of a perfect square number:
Perfect squares from 1 to 90: → 9 numbers.
(iii) Probability of a number divisible by 5:
Numbers divisible by 5 from 1 to 90: → numbers.
19A child has a die whose six faces show the letters as given below: A B C D E A. The die is thrown once. What is the probability of getting (i) A? (ii) D?Show solution
Total outcomes = 6.
(i) Probability of getting A:
The letter A appears on 2 faces.
(ii) Probability of getting D:
The letter D appears on 1 face.
20Suppose you drop a die at random on the rectangular region shown in Fig. 14.6. What is the probability that it will land inside the circle with diameter 1 m? (The rectangular region is 3 m × 2 m as shown in the figure.)Show solution
- Rectangular region: length = 3 m, width = 2 m (assumed standard dimensions from the figure).
- Circle with diameter = 1 m, so radius m.
Area of the rectangle:
Area of the circle:
Probability that the die lands inside the circle:
The required probability is .
21A lot consists of 144 ball pens of which 20 are defective and the others are good. Nuri will buy a pen if it is good, but will not buy if it is defective. The shopkeeper draws one pen at random and gives it to her. What is the probability that (i) She will buy it? (ii) She will not buy it?Show solution
- Total pens = 144
- Defective pens = 20
- Good pens =
(i) Probability that she will buy it (pen is good):
(ii) Probability that she will not buy it (pen is defective):
Verification: ✓
22(i) Complete the following table for two dice thrown simultaneously:
| Event: 'Sum on 2 dice' | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
| Probability | 1/36 | | | | | | 5/36 | | | | 1/36 |
(ii) A student argues that 'there are 11 possible outcomes 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12. Therefore, each of them has a probability 1/11'. Do you agree with this argument? Justify your answer.Show solution
(i) Completing the table:
We list the number of ways each sum can occur:
- Sum = 2: {(1,1)} → 1 way →
- Sum = 3: {(1,2),(2,1)} → 2 ways →
- Sum = 4: {(1,3),(2,2),(3,1)} → 3 ways →
- Sum = 5: {(1,4),(2,3),(3,2),(4,1)} → 4 ways →
- Sum = 6: {(1,5),(2,4),(3,3),(4,2),(5,1)} → 5 ways →
- Sum = 7: {(1,6),(2,5),(3,4),(4,3),(5,2),(6,1)} → 6 ways →
- Sum = 8: {(2,6),(3,5),(4,4),(5,3),(6,2)} → 5 ways →
- Sum = 9: {(3,6),(4,5),(5,4),(6,3)} → 4 ways →
- Sum = 10: {(4,6),(5,5),(6,4)} → 3 ways →
- Sum = 11: {(5,6),(6,5)} → 2 ways →
- Sum = 12: {(6,6)} → 1 way →
Completed Table:
| Sum | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Probability | | | | | | | | | | | |
(ii) The student's argument is not correct.
The 11 outcomes (sums 2 through 12) are not equally likely. For example, sum = 7 can occur in 6 ways while sum = 2 can occur in only 1 way. Equally likely outcomes means each outcome has the same chance, which is not the case here. The correct probabilities are as computed in the table above.
23A game consists of tossing a one rupee coin 3 times and noting its outcome each time. Hanif wins if all the tosses give the same result i.e., three heads or three tails, and loses otherwise. Calculate the probability that Hanif will lose the game.Show solution
Total possible outcomes:
Sample space = {HHH, HHT, HTH, HTT, THH, THT, TTH, TTT}
Outcomes where Hanif wins (all same): {HHH, TTT} → 2 outcomes
Probability that Hanif loses:
The probability that Hanif will lose the game is .
24A die is thrown twice. What is the probability that (i) 5 will not come up either time? (ii) 5 will come up at least once?
[Hint: Throwing a die twice and throwing two dice simultaneously are treated as the same experiment]Show solution
(i) Probability that 5 will not come up either time:
On each throw, outcomes other than 5 = {1, 2, 3, 4, 6} → 5 outcomes.
Number of outcomes where 5 does not appear at all = .
(ii) Probability that 5 will come up at least once:
Using the complement:
Verification by direct count: Outcomes with at least one 5:
- 5 on first die: (5,1),(5,2),(5,3),(5,4),(5,5),(5,6) → 6
- 5 on second die: (1,5),(2,5),(3,5),(4,5),(6,5) → 5 (excluding (5,5) already counted)
- Total = 11 outcomes ✓
25Which of the following arguments are correct and which are not correct? Give reasons for your answer.
(i) If two coins are tossed simultaneously there are three possible outcomes — two heads, two tails or one of each. Therefore, for each of these outcomes, the probability is 1/3.
(ii) If a die is thrown, there are two possible outcomes — an odd number or an even number. Therefore, the probability of getting an odd number is 1/2.Show solution
When two coins are tossed, the correct sample space is:
{HH, HT, TH, TT} → 4 equally likely outcomes, not 3.
The outcome 'one head and one tail' can occur in 2 ways (HT and TH), so it is not equally likely with the other two outcomes.
Correct probabilities:
-
-
-
Since the three outcomes are not equally likely, assigning probability to each is incorrect.
(ii) This argument is CORRECT.
When a die is thrown, the sample space = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6} — 6 equally likely outcomes.
Odd numbers = {1, 3, 5} → 3 outcomes; Even numbers = {2, 4, 6} → 3 outcomes.
Both groups have the same number of equally likely outcomes, so:
The argument is correct.
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