Q.Every continuous function is differentiable. Examine whether this statement is true.
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🔒 Start your 14-day free trial to unlock the full solution →Concept understanding — Continuity Differentiability Relationship
How Continuity and Differentiability Are Related
Two properties describe how "well-behaved" a function is at a point. Continuity means the graph has no break there — you can draw through the point without lifting your pen. Differentiability means the graph is smooth there — it has one definite tangent line, so a well-defined slope f′(a). This concept is about the exact link between the two.
The theorem: If f is differentiable at x=a, then f is continuous at x=a.
Why differentiability forces continuity
If f′(a) exists, then
limx→a(f(x)−f(a))=limx→ax−af(x)−f(a)⋅(x−a)=f′(a)⋅0=0.
So limx→af(x)=f(a), which is exactly continuity at a. A curve that has a tangent cannot also have a jump — a break would send the difference quotient to infinity and the derivative would not exist.
The converse is FALSE
Continuity does not guarantee differentiability. A graph can be unbroken yet still have a sharp corner, and a corner has no single tangent.
The classic counterexample is f(x)=∣x∣ at x=0. It is continuous there (limx→0∣x∣=0=f(0)), but the slope from the left is −1 and from the right is +1. Since these disagree, f′(0) does not exist.
Putting it together
- Differentiable at a ⇒ continuous at a.
- Continuous at a ⇒ differentiable at a.
- Not continuous at a ⇒ not differentiable at a (the contrapositive of the theorem). …
False; ϕ(x)=∣x∣ is a continuous but non-differentiable counterexample.
The modulus function ϕ(x)=∣x∣ is continuous everywhere, including at x=0. But at x=0 the one-sided difference quotients differ:
limh→0+h∣h∣=1,limh→0−h∣h∣=−1, …
The statement is false; the continuous function ϕ(x)=∣x∣ is a counterexample — it is continuous everywhere but not differentiable at x=0.
Step 1 — Note why the claim is tempting.
Many familiar continuous functions are also differentiable everywhere, for example
f(x)=x2,g(x)=ex,h(x)=sinx.
Each is continuous for all x and differentiable for all x, which might suggest that continuity always forces differentiability.
Step 2 — Choose a candidate counterexample.
Consider the modulus function
ϕ(x)=∣x∣={x,−x,x≥0x<0.
It is continuous everywhere, including at x=0, since x→0lim∣x∣=0=ϕ(0).
Step 3 — Test differentiability at x=0.
Examine the difference quotient from each side:
Right derivative: limh→0+h∣0+h∣−∣0∣=limh→0+hh=1,
Left derivative: limh→0−h∣0+h∣−∣0∣=limh→0−h−h=−1. …
Method: Testing a "Does Property A Imply Property B" Claim with a Known Counterexample
Use this whenever asked to examine whether one property (continuity, etc.) forces a stronger related property (differentiability, etc.). The general technique: know the true implication, know why the converse can fail, and keep a standard counterexample ready.
Steps
Step 1: Identify which direction of implication is actually a theorem
For continuity and differentiability, the proven direction is: differentiable at a point ⇒ continuous at that point (provable directly from the definition of the derivative as a limit). Know this direction is solid before questioning the reverse.
Step 2: Recognise the claim under examination is the (unproven) converse
"Every continuous function is differentiable" reverses the arrow of the real theorem. A converse of a true implication is not automatically true — it must be checked independently, usually by trying to find where it fails.
Step 3: Recall or construct a function that is continuous but has a "corner" …
Common Mistakes
Mistake 1: Confusing the claim with the (true) reverse implication
Reasoning "differentiable functions are continuous, so the statement is true" conflates "every continuous function is differentiable" with the actual theorem "every differentiable function is continuous." Why it's wrong: these are different statements; only the second is a proven theorem, and confusing them leads to affirming a false converse. Correct approach: always identify precisely which direction of implication is being asked about before deciding whether it's provably true or needs a counterexample.
Mistake 2: Sign errors in the one-sided derivative limits …
[!FORMULA] If f(x)={x2x−1,0≤x≤1,x>1 then
- COMEDK 2024Set 2024-E1 markMCQQ.
[!FORMULA] If f(x)={x2x−1,0≤x≤1,x>1 then
(A) f is not continuous but differentiable at x=1 (B) f is differentiable at x=1 (C) f is continuous but not differentiable at x=1 (D) f is discontinuous at x=1›Reveal solutionSolution
The function is continuous at x=1 because the left and right limits equal the function value, but the left and right derivatives differ (1 vs. 2), so it is not differentiable there. The correct option is (C).
We need to decide whether f is continuous and/or differentiable at x=1. The function is defined piecewise:
f(x)={x,2x−1,0≤x≤1x>1
The key idea: continuity checks whether the graph has a break; differentiability checks whether it has a sharp corner. At a piecewise boundary, we must compare the left-hand and right-hand limits (for continuity) and the left-hand and right-hand derivatives (for differentiability).
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Check continuity at x=1
- Left-hand limit: as x→1−, we use f(x)=x, so limx→1−f(x)=1.
- Right-hand limit: as x→1+, we use f(x)=2x−1, so limx→1+f(x)=2(1)−1=1.
- Function value: f(1)=1 (since x=1 falls in the first piece). Since left limit = right limit = f(1), the function is continuous at x=1.
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Check differentiability at x=1
Differentiability requires that the derivative from the left equals the derivative from the right.
- Left-hand derivative: for x≤1, f(x)=x, so f′(x)=1. Thus the left-hand derivative at x=1 is 1.
- Right-hand derivative: for x>1, f(x)=2x−1, so f′(x)=2. Thus the right-hand derivative at x=1 is 2. …
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- COMEDK 2022Set 20221 markMCQQ.If the derivative of the function f(x)={bx2+ax+4;ax2+b;x≥−1x<−1 is everywhere continuous, then (A) a=2,b=3 (B) a=3,b=2 (C) a=−2,b=−3 (D) a=−3,b=−2
›Reveal solutionSolution
Check: f(x) = 3x^2 + 2x + 4 (x >= -1) gives f(-1) = 3 - 2 + 4 = 5; f(x) = 2x^2 + 3 gives f(-1) = 2 + 3 = 5. Derivatives: 6(-1) + 2 = -4 and 4(-1) = -4. Both match.
Concept: If f' is continuous everywhere then f must be differentiable everywhere, hence continuous; both f and f' must match at the junction x = -1.
f(x) = b x^2 + a x + 4 , x >= -1
f(x) = a x^2 + b , x < -1
Continuity at x = -1:
b(1) + a(-1) + 4 = a(1) + b
b - a + 4 = a + b
4 = 2a => a = 2
Derivative matching at x = -1:
Right branch: f'(x) = 2bx + a -> at x = -1: -2b + a
Left branch: f'(x) = 2ax -> at x = -1: -2a …
- KCET 2020Set A-11 markMCQQ.If f(x)={xsinx1−cosKx,21,if x=0if x=0 is continuous at x=0, then the value of K is (A) ±21 (B) 0 (C) ±2 (D) ±1
›Reveal solutionSolution
For continuity at x=0, the limit of f(x) as x→0 must equal f(0)=21. Using the standard limit limx→0xsinx1−cosKx=2K2, we set 2K2=21, giving K2=1, so K=±1. The correct option is (D).
The key idea is that continuity at a point means the function's value equals its limit there. Here, f(0) is given as 21, so we need to find K such that limx→0f(x)=21.
The expression xsinx1−cosKx is a classic 0/0 form at x=0. The numerator involves cosKx, and the denominator has xsinx. The standard trick is to use the small-angle approximations or the known limit limθ→0θ21−cosθ=21. This lets us rewrite the numerator in terms of (Kx)2, and the denominator in terms of x2, so the ratio becomes a constant times K2.
Let's work through it step by step.
- Set up the continuity condition. For f to be continuous at x=0, we require
limx→0f(x)=f(0)=21.
So we need
limx→0xsinx1−cosKx=21.
- Rewrite the numerator using a standard limit. Multiply numerator and denominator by (Kx)2 in a clever way:
xsinx1−cosKx=(Kx)21−cosKx⋅xsinx(Kx)2.
This separates the limit into a product of two known limits.
- Evaluate the first factor. As x→0, let θ=Kx. Then
limx→0(Kx)21−cosKx=limθ→0θ21−cosθ=21.
This is a fundamental limit you should remember.
- Evaluate the second factor.
xsinx(Kx)2=K2⋅sinxx.
As x→0, xsinx→1, so sinxx→1. Hence
limx→0xsinx(Kx)2=K2⋅1=K2.
- Combine the two limits. Since both limits exist, the product is the product of the limits:
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