Explore: All CDS topics · CDS hub · Syllabus & pattern · CDS 2026
Answer first
CDS General Knowledge PYQs (previous year questions), topic wise: we tagged 2640 General Knowledge questions from 66 official CDS papers (2016–2026). The topics asked most are History and Culture (463), Current Affairs, Defence and Sports (457), Geography (433). Open any topic for every question it has had with the official answer.
General Knowledge topics ranked by questions
- History and Culture PYQs: 463 questions; most asked: Social Reform Movements
- Current Affairs, Defence and Sports PYQs: 457 questions; most asked: Defence
- Geography PYQs: 433 questions; most asked: Atmosphere
- Polity PYQs: 333 questions; most asked: Fundamental Rights
- Economy PYQs: 282 questions; most asked: Inflation
- Physics PYQs: 235 questions; most asked: Optics
- Biology PYQs: 225 questions; most asked: Cell Biology
- Chemistry PYQs: 212 questions; most asked: Acids and Bases
General Knowledge questions by year
| Topic | 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | All questions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| History and Culture | 41 | 50 | 40 | 45 | 40 | 42 | 45 | 42 | 40 | 38 | 40 | 463 |
| Geography | 32 | 43 | 41 | 36 | 44 | 40 | 41 | 40 | 40 | 38 | 38 | 433 |
| Polity | 28 | 20 | 26 | 18 | 31 | 40 | 32 | 29 | 32 | 36 | 41 | 333 |
| Economy | 28 | 23 | 27 | 33 | 21 | 21 | 22 | 26 | 25 | 30 | 26 | 282 |
| Physics | 30 | 20 | 12 | 21 | 24 | 20 | 22 | 23 | 21 | 22 | 20 | 235 |
| Chemistry | 20 | 21 | 22 | 19 | 16 | 20 | 19 | 18 | 18 | 21 | 18 | 212 |
| Biology | 26 | 19 | 20 | 20 | 21 | 21 | 19 | 19 | 23 | 16 | 21 | 225 |
| Current Affairs, Defence and Sports | 35 | 44 | 52 | 48 | 43 | 36 | 40 | 43 | 41 | 39 | 36 | 457 |
Most-asked General Knowledge concepts
| Concept | Topic | Questions | Papers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Defence | Current Affairs, Defence and Sports | 69 | 20 |
| Sports | Current Affairs, Defence and Sports | 40 | 18 |
| International Organisations | Current Affairs, Defence and Sports | 34 | 18 |
| Cell Biology | Biology | 29 | 18 |
| Fundamental Rights | Polity | 30 | 16 |
| Atmosphere | Geography | 26 | 16 |
| Optics | Physics | 24 | 16 |
| Judiciary | Polity | 18 | 15 |
| Awards | Current Affairs, Defence and Sports | 29 | 14 |
| Acids and Bases | Chemistry | 23 | 14 |
| Government Schemes | Current Affairs, Defence and Sports | 38 | 12 |
| Inflation | Economy | 16 | 12 |
| Parliament | Polity | 26 | 11 |
| Electricity | Physics | 23 | 11 |
| Chemical Reactions | Chemistry | 21 | 11 |
How to use CDS General Knowledge PYQs
- Start with the topics at the top of the ranking. They carry the most questions.
- For each topic, solve its PYQs year by year from the official PDFs, then check the answers.
- Log misses by concept. When a concept repeats in your log, go back to that topic’s concept table.
- Finish with full CDS papers from the year pages to practise timing.
Other CDS subjects
FAQ
Which General Knowledge topics are most important for CDS?
By questions in the official papers we tagged (2016–2026): History and Culture (463), Current Affairs, Defence and Sports (457), Geography (433). The table on this page ranks every General Knowledge topic.
How many General Knowledge questions are in these CDS PYQs?
2640 General Knowledge questions across 66 official CDS papers from 2016–2026, spread over 8 topics.
Are these CDS General Knowledge PYQs official?
Yes. Every question is from an official CDS paper hosted on our year pages. Summaries are ours; the full question is in the official PDF linked beside it.