Q.Let P(A)=137, P(B)=139 and P(A∩B)=134. Then P(A′∣B) is equal to
(A) 136
(B) 134
(C) 94
(D) 95
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🔒 Start your 14-day free trial to unlock the full solution →Concept understanding — Conditional Probability
Conditional Probability
Roll a die and ask "what is the chance of an even number?" — that is 3/6. But suppose someone tells you the result is greater than 3. Now you are no longer looking at all six faces, only at {4,5,6}, and two of those (4 and 6) are even, so the probability becomes 2/3. That change — from the probability of A to the probability of A given that B has already occurred — is conditional probability.
The Idea: Shrink the Sample Space
Conditioning on B throws away every outcome where B is false and treats B as the new "whole world." You measure A only against what is still possible.
Think of filtering a table of data: unconditional probability uses every row; conditional probability keeps only the rows where the condition is true.
The Definition
For events A and B with P(B)>0,
P(A∣B)=P(B)P(A∩B).
We divide by P(B) to rescale so that B itself has probability 1; the surviving part of A is the overlap A∩B. Checking the die: P(A∩B)=P({4,6})=62 and P(B)=63, so P(A∣B)=3/62/6=32, matching the intuition.
Rearranging gives the multiplication rule P(A∩B)=P(A∣B)P(B), which is usually the easier way to compute a joint probability when a problem says "given that."
Two Cautions
- P(A∣B) and P(B∣A) are generally not equal; swapping them is the classic mistake. They are linked by Bayes' theorem, P(A∣B)=P(B)P(B∣A)P(A). …
Concept: Conditional Probability — P(A′∣B)=P(B)P(A′∩B).
Step 1: A′∩B means "not A but B". From the Venn diagram:
P(A′∩B)=P(B)−P(A∩B).
Step 2: Substitute the given values:
P(A′∩B)=139−134=135.
Step 3: Apply the conditional formula: …
The key idea is to use the definition of conditional probability: P(A′∣B)=P(B)P(A′∩B). Since A′∩B is just the part of B that is not in A, we have P(A′∩B)=P(B)−P(A∩B). Substituting the given values gives 95, which corresponds to option (D).
We are asked for P(A′∣B) — the probability that A does not happen, given that B has happened. This is a classic conditional probability problem.
Why this approach works:
Conditional probability shrinks the sample space to the event we are conditioning on (here, B). Within that restricted space, we want the portion where A is false. That portion is exactly B minus the part where A and B both occur — i.e., B∖(A∩B). So the numerator becomes P(B)−P(A∩B).
Let’s work through it step by step.
- Recall the definition of conditional probability: For any two events X and Y with P(Y)>0,
P(X∣Y)=P(Y)P(X∩Y).
Here, X=A′ and Y=B, so
P(A′∣B)=P(B)P(A′∩B).
- Find P(A′∩B): The event A′∩B means “B occurs but A does not.” This is exactly B minus the overlap A∩B. Since A∩B is a subset of B, we have
P(A′∩B)=P(B)−P(A∩B).
- Substitute the given values: P(B)=139 and P(A∩B)=134. So
P(A′∩B)=139−134=135.
- Now compute the conditional probability: …
Method: Conditional probability of a complement, same condition
Use this for P(A′∣B) — the chance A does not occur given B.
Steps
Step 1: Express the numerator as the part of B outside A.
P(A′∩B)=P(B)−P(A∩B).
Step 2: Divide by the condition's probability.
P(A′∣B)=P(B)P(A′∩B)=P(B)P(B)−P(A∩B).
Step 3: Simplify (and cross-check). …
Common Mistakes
Mistake 1: Computing P(A′∩B) as 1−P(A∩B).
Why it's wrong: A′∩B is the part of B outside A, so it equals P(B)−P(A∩B). Correct approach: subtract the overlap from P(B), keeping everything inside B.
Mistake 2: Dividing by 1 instead of P(B). …
Showing the 12 most recent of 69 on this concept.
- AP EAPCET 2021Set eng-2021-08-25-AN1 markMCQQ.Given P(A)=0.5,P(B)=0.4,P(A∩B)=0.3 then P(A′/B′) is equal to (A) 31 (B) 21 (C) 32 (D) 43
›Reveal solutionSolution
Using De Morgan's law A′∩B′=(A∪B)′ and the conditional probability formula gives P(A′∣B′)=32.
Concept and Intuition
P(A′∣B′) asks: given we're outside B, what's the chance we're also outside A? The key trick is that A′∩B′=(A∪B)′ (De Morgan), which is easy to compute from P(A∪B).
Step-by-Step Solution
- P(A∪B)=P(A)+P(B)−P(A∩B)=0.5+0.4−0.3=0.6.
- P(A′∩B′)=P((A∪B)′)=1−P(A∪B)=1−0.6=0.4.
- P(B′)=1−P(B)=1−0.4=0.6. …
- AP EAPCET 2021Set eng-2021-08-23-FN1 markMCQQ.Let A and B be two events with P(A)=71, P(A/B)=52 and P(B)=72. Then the value P(B/A) is (A) 51 (B) 495 (C) 54 (D) 53
›Reveal solutionSolution
Chain the conditional-probability definition twice: first get P(A∩B) from P(A/B), then get P(B/A) from that.
Concept and Intuition
Conditional probability is defined as P(E/F)=P(F)P(E∩F). Given one conditional probability, we can back out the joint probability P(A∩B), and then use it (with the definition again, but conditioning the other way) to find the other conditional probability.
Step-by-Step Solution
- P(A/B)=P(B)P(A∩B)⇒P(A∩B)=P(A/B)⋅P(B)=52×72=354.
- Now use P(B/A)=P(A)P(A∩B)=1/74/35. …
- AP EAPCET 2026Set eng-2026-05-18-FN1 markMCQQ.Two balls are drawn at random from a box containing 4 white, 6 black balls one after the other without replacement. If it is known that second ball drawn is black, then the probability that the first ball drawn is also black is (A) 115 (B) 95 (C) 125 (D) 135
›Reveal solutionSolution
Conditional probability with sampling without replacement, solved with Bayes' theorem; answer is 95.
Concept and Intuition
When balls are drawn one after another without replacement, the marginal probability that any particular draw (say the 2nd) is black equals the overall proportion of black balls, 106 — position doesn't matter for the marginal event by symmetry. To find the conditional probability of the first draw given information about the second, we use Bayes' theorem: we need the joint probability of both events and divide by the marginal probability of the conditioning event.
Step-by-Step Solution
- Total balls: 4 white (W) + 6 black (B) = 10.
- P(2nd is black)=P(1st B, 2nd B)+P(1st W, 2nd B) =106⋅95+104⋅96=9030+9024=9054=53.
- P(1st black and 2nd black)=106⋅95=9030=31. …
- AP EAPCET 2024Set eng-2024-05-23-FN1 markMCQQ.It is given that in a random experiment events A and B are such that P(A)=41, P(A∣B)=21 and P(B∣A)=32 then P(B)= (A) 31 (B) 32 (C) 21 (D) 61
›Reveal solutionSolution
Using P(B∣A) to find P(A∩B), then dividing by P(A∣B), gives P(B)=31.
Concept and Intuition
The conditional probability definitions P(A∣B)=P(B)P(A∩B) and P(B∣A)=P(A)P(A∩B) share the common quantity P(A∩B) — computing it from one equation lets us solve the other for the unknown probability.
Step-by-Step Solution
- From P(B∣A)=P(A)P(A∩B)=32, and P(A)=41: P(A∩B)=32×41=61.
- From P(A∣B)=P(B)P(A∩B)=21: P(B)=P(A∣B)P(A∩B)=1/21/6=31.
Common Mistakes …
- AP EAPCET 2021Set eng-2021-08-24-FN1 markMCQQ.If A and B are mutually exclusive events with P(A)=41 and P(B)=73. Then what is the value of P(A/A∪B)= (A) 197 (B) 1912 (C) 1906 (D) 1913
›Reveal solutionSolution
Mutually exclusive events make P(A∪B) a simple sum, and since A is entirely contained in A∪B, the conditional probability reduces to P(A)/P(A∪B).
Concept and Intuition
For mutually exclusive A,B: P(A∩B)=0, so P(A∪B)=P(A)+P(B). Also A∩(A∪B)=A always, so P(A∣A∪B)=P(A∪B)P(A∩(A∪B))=P(A∪B)P(A).
Step-by-Step Solution
- P(A∪B)=P(A)+P(B)=41+73.
- Common denominator 28: 287+2812=2819. …
- AP EAPCET 2023Set eng-2023-05-18-AN1 markMCQQ.If A,B are any two events of a random experiment and P(B)=1, then P(A∣Bc)= (A) 1−P(B)P(A)+P(A∩B) (B) 1−P(B)P(A)−P(A∩B) (C) 1+P(B)P(A)+P(A∩B) (D) 1+P(B)P(A)
›Reveal solutionSolution
Direct application of the conditional-probability definition to the complement event gives P(A∣Bc)=1−P(B)P(A)−P(A∩B).
Concept and Intuition
A∩Bc is exactly the part of A that does not overlap with B, so its probability is P(A) minus the overlapping piece P(A∩B). Dividing by P(Bc)=1−P(B) (valid since P(B)=1) gives the conditional probability.
Step-by-Step Solution
- P(A∣Bc)=P(Bc)P(A∩Bc) by definition (needs P(Bc)=0, i.e. P(B)=1, as given).
- A=(A∩B)∪(A∩Bc), a disjoint union, so P(A)=P(A∩B)+P(A∩Bc)⇒P(A∩Bc)=P(A)−P(A∩B).
- P(Bc)=1−P(B). …
- AP EAPCET 2026Set eng-2026-05-13-FN1 markMCQQ.Bag A contains 3 white and 4 black balls. Bag B contains 4 white and 3 black balls. Bag C contains 2 white and 5 black balls. A bag is randomly selected and then a ball is randomly drawn from that bag. If the ball drawn was found to be white, then the probability that the ball is drawn from bag C is (A) 61 (B) 92 (C) 41 (D) 132
›Reveal solutionSolution
This is a direct Bayes'-theorem (inverse probability) question. Answer: 92.
Concept and Intuition
We're given the outcome (a white ball was drawn) and asked for the probability of a particular cause (it came from bag C). This is exactly Bayes' theorem: P(C∣W)=∑iP(bagi)P(W∣bagi)P(C)P(W∣C).
Step-by-Step Solution
- Each bag is chosen with probability 31.
- P(W∣A)=73 (3 white out of 7 total in bag A).
- P(W∣B)=74 (4 white out of 7 in bag B).
- P(W∣C)=72 (2 white out of 7 in bag C).
- Total probability of white: P(W)=31(73+74+72)=31⋅79=219=73. …
- AP EAPCET 2025Set eng-2025-05-27-FN1 markMCQQ.On every evening, a student either watches TV or reads a book. The probability of watching TV is 54. If he watches TV, the probability that he will fall asleep is 43 and it is 41 when he reads a book. If the student is found to be asleep on an evening, the probability that he watched the TV is (A) 1311 (B) 1312 (C) 132 (D) 134
›Reveal solutionSolution
This tests Bayes' theorem: finding the probability of a cause (watched TV) given an observed effect (fell asleep). The answer is 1312.
Concept and Intuition
When asked "given the observed outcome, what's the probability of a particular cause," that's a Bayes'-theorem setup: compute the joint probability of that cause with the outcome, and divide by the total probability of the outcome (summed over all causes).
Step-by-Step Solution
- P(TV)=54, P(book)=51.
- P(asleep∣TV)=43, P(asleep∣book)=41.
- Total probability of falling asleep: P(asleep)=P(TV)P(asleep∣TV)+P(book)P(asleep∣book)=54⋅43+51⋅41=53+201=2012+201=2013. …
- AP EAPCET 2025Set eng-2025-05-26-FN1 markMCQQ.If two events A and B are such that P(Aˉ)=0.3, P(B)=0.4 and P(A∩Bˉ)=0.5, then P(B/(A∪Bˉ))= (A) 0.25 (B) 0.6 (C) 0.45 (D) 0.8
›Reveal solutionSolution
This tests careful set manipulation of conditional probability with a compound conditioning event A∪Bˉ. Answer: 0.25.
Concept and Intuition
Conditional probability P(B∣E)=P(E)P(B∩E) works exactly the same way when E is a compound event like A∪Bˉ — we just need to correctly compute P(E) and P(B∩E) using set algebra (distributing intersection over union, and using the fact that B and Bˉ are disjoint).
Step-by-Step Solution
- From P(Aˉ)=0.3, get P(A)=1−0.3=0.7.
- P(A∩Bˉ)=0.5 is given directly, so P(A∩B)=P(A)−P(A∩Bˉ)=0.7−0.5=0.2.
- Compute P(A∪Bˉ) using inclusion-exclusion: P(A∪Bˉ)=P(A)+P(Bˉ)−P(A∩Bˉ). Here P(Bˉ)=1−0.4=0.6, so P(A∪Bˉ)=0.7+0.6−0.5=0.8. …
- AP EAPCET 2022Set eng-2022-07-05-FN1 markMCQQ.If A and B are two events such that P(B)=0 and P(B)=1, then P(Aˉ∣Bˉ) is (A) 1−P(A∣B) (B) 1−P(Aˉ∣B) (C) P(Bˉ)1−P(A∪B) (D) P(Bˉ)P(Aˉ)
›Reveal solutionSolution
Directly apply the definition of conditional probability together with De Morgan's law; the answer is P(Bˉ)1−P(A∪B).
Concept and Intuition
Conditional probability is defined as P(X∣Y)=P(Y)P(X∩Y). Here X=Aˉ, Y=Bˉ. By De Morgan's law, Aˉ∩Bˉ=A∪B, so its probability is 1−P(A∪B).
Step-by-Step Solution
- P(Aˉ∣Bˉ)=P(Bˉ)P(Aˉ∩Bˉ).
- Aˉ∩Bˉ=A∪B (De Morgan).
- So P(Aˉ∩Bˉ)=1−P(A∪B). …
- AP EAPCET 2022Set eng-2022-07-06-FN1 markMCQQ.Two persons P and Q are considering to apply for a job. The probability that P applies for the job is 1/4, the probability that P applies for the job given that Q applies for the job is 1/2, and the probability that Q applies for the job given that P applies for the job is 1/3. Then the probability that P does not apply for the job given that Q does not apply for the job is (A) 4/5 (B) 5/6 (C) 7/8 (D) 11/12
›Reveal solutionSolution
Chain the given conditional probabilities to find P(Q) and P(P∩Q), then use the complement rule — the answer is (A) 4/5.
Concept and Intuition
Conditional probability definitions let us cross-multiply to recover the joint probability P(P∩Q) from either conditional. Once P(P),P(Q),P(P∩Q) are all known, De Morgan's law converts "neither event" into the complement of the union.
Step-by-Step Solution
- Given: P(P)=41, P(P∣Q)=21, P(Q∣P)=31.
- P(P∩Q)=P(Q∣P)⋅P(P)=31×41=121.
- Also P(P∩Q)=P(P∣Q)⋅P(Q)⇒121=21⋅P(Q)⇒P(Q)=61.
- P(P∪Q)=P(P)+P(Q)−P(P∩Q)=41+61−121=123+122−121=124=31.
- By De Morgan's law, "neither P nor Q applies" is the complement of P∪Q: P(P∩Q)=1−31=32.
- P(Q)=1−P(Q)=1−61=65. …
- AP EAPCET 2025Set eng-2025-05-22-AN1 markMCQQ.There are three families F1,F2,F3. F1 has 2 boys and 1 girl; F2 has 1 boy and 2 girls; F3 has 1 boy and 1 girl. A family is randomly chosen and a child is chosen from that family randomly. If it is known that the child thus selected is a girl, then the probability that she is from F2 is (A) 94 (B) 92 (C) 73 (D) 75
›Reveal solutionSolution
Applying Bayes' theorem across the three equally-likely families gives P(F2∣girl)=94.
Concept and Intuition
This is a textbook application of Bayes' theorem: we're given the reverse conditional probabilities (family → probability of picking a girl) and asked for the forward one (girl picked → probability she's from a specific family).
Step-by-Step Solution
- Prior: P(F1)=P(F2)=P(F3)=31.
- P(girl∣F1)=31 (1 girl out of 3 children), P(girl∣F2)=32, P(girl∣F3)=21.
- Total probability: P(girl)=31⋅31+31⋅32+31⋅21=31(31+32+21)=31⋅62+4+3=31⋅69=21
- P(F2∩girl)=31⋅32=92. …
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