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Functions — General Properties practice questions — A-Level Maths

26 free multiple-choice problems on functions — general properties, ordered to match A-Level Maths difficulty, each with a full worked solution. No account needed — and there's a fresh problem set every day.

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Problem #0278 International
Mediumfunctions
For which value of is the function , , not invertible?

Problems & worked solutions

Problem #0278 International

Problem 1 — Functions — General Properties

For which value of a∈R is the function f:R→R, f(x)=(a−2) x+5, not invertible?

Show answer & worked solution
  1. A. a=0
  2. B. a=1
  3. C. a=2✓ correct
  4. D. a=5

f is invertible iff its slope a−2≠0. So f fails to be invertible exactly when a=2 (it then becomes the constant 5, neither injective nor surjective).

Problem #0277 International

Problem 2 — Functions — General Properties

The function f:R→R, f(x)=2x−3 is bijective. Determine the abscissa of the intersection point of the graphs of f and f−1.

Show answer & worked solution
  1. A. −3
  2. B. 0
  3. C. 3✓ correct
  4. D. 6

The graph of f−1 is the reflection of the graph of f across y=x. Their intersection lies on y=x, so we solve f(x)=x: 2x−3=x⇒x=3.

Problem #0276 International

Problem 3 — Functions — General Properties

Let f:R→R, f(x)=3x−6. The inverse f−1 is:

Show answer & worked solution
  1. A. f−1(y)=y3+6
  2. B. f−1(y)=y+63✓ correct
  3. C. f−1(y)=3y+6
  4. D. f−1(y)=y−63

y=3x−6⇒x=y+63, so f−1(y)=y+63.

Problem #0275 International

Problem 4 — Functions — General Properties

Consider f:R→R, f(x)=x2. Which statement is correct?

Show answer & worked solution
  1. A. f is neither injective nor surjective✓ correct
  2. B. f is injective but not surjective
  3. C. f is surjective but not injective
  4. D. f is bijective

f(−1)=1=f(1), so f is not injective. The value −1 has no real preimage (since x2≥0), so f is not surjective either.

Problem #0272 International

Problem 5 — Functions — General Properties

For f:R→R, f(x)=x2+1, the image Im⁡(f) is:

Show answer & worked solution
  1. A. R
  2. B. (0,+∞)
  3. C. [1,+∞)✓ correct
  4. D. [0,+∞)

f(x)=x2+1≥1, with equality only at x=0. So Im⁡(f)=[1,+∞).

Problem #0774 International

Problem 6 — Functions — General Properties

Let f(x)=2x+1 and g(x)=x2. Then (f∘g)(3) equals:

Show answer & worked solution
  1. A. 16
  2. B. 18
  3. C. 19✓ correct
  4. D. 49

g(3)=32=9.

Then f(9)=2⋅9+1=19.

Problem #0273 International

Problem 7 — Functions — General Properties

Let f,g:R→R, f(x)=2x−1 and g(x)=x+3. Compute (f∘g)(2).

Show answer & worked solution
  1. A. 4
  2. B. 7
  3. C. 9✓ correct
  4. D. 11

g(2)=5, then f(5)=2⋅5−1=9. Hence (f∘g)(2)=9.

Problem #0274 International

Problem 8 — Functions — General Properties

Which property does the function f:R→R, f(x)=2x+3 have?

Show answer & worked solution
  1. A. It is neither injective nor surjective
  2. B. It is injective but not surjective
  3. C. It is surjective but not injective
  4. D. It is bijective✓ correct

For any y∈R, the equation 2x+3=y has the unique solution x=y−32. Existence proves surjectivity, uniqueness proves injectivity, so f is bijective.

Problem #0779 International

Problem 9 — Functions — General Properties

The domain of f(x)=x−2 (as a function R→R) is:

Show answer & worked solution
  1. A. R
  2. B. (−∞,2]
  3. C. [2,∞)✓ correct
  4. D. (2,∞)

We need x−2≥0, i.e. x≥2.

The value at x=2 is 0=0, which is allowed, so the domain is [2,∞).

Problem #0781 International

Problem 10 — Functions — General Properties

Which of the following does not define a function R→R?

Show answer & worked solution
  1. A. f(x)=x2
  2. B. f(x)=∣x∣
  3. C. f(x)=±x✓ correct
  4. D. f(x)=3

x2, ∣x∣ and the constant 3 each give one value for every real x.

±x fails twice: it is not single-valued (two outputs) and is undefined for x<0. So it is not a function R→R.

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