SSC CPO Paper I 2020, 2022, 2023, 2024 PYQs

Concept: Find a word common to two coded sentences; the digit common to their codes is its code.

1. "book" is in all three sentences; 9 is in all three codes, so book = 9.
2. "This" and "book" are common to sentences 1 and 2; common digits 6, 9 → This = 6, so Read = 8.
3. "Useful", "book", "is" are common to sentences 2 and 3 → their codes are 9, 7, 5; leftover in sentence 3: good = 4.
4. This book is good = 6, 9, (7 or 5), 4. Only 4965 has 6, 9, 4 and one of 7 or 5 (and no 8).

Trick: Eliminate options containing a known wrong code: 8 (Read) removes C and D; B has no 9 (book).

Answer: (A) 4965

Concept: A number added to itself 14 times means the number appears 15 times in the sum.

1. Let the number be $x$. Then $x+14x=15x$.
2. $15x=195\Rightarrow x=\frac{195}{15}=13$.
3. Check: $13\times 15=195$ ✓.

Trick: "Added to itself $n$ times" = $(n+1)$ copies; so divide by $n+1$, not by $n$.

Answer: (B) 13

Concept: Compare row 1 with row 3 and row 2 with row 4: the outer numbers become $\frac{2}{3}$ of themselves and the middle number is doubled.

1. Row 2 → Row 4: $24\times \frac{2}{3}=16$, $27\times \frac{2}{3}=18$, middle $11\times 2=22$ ✓.
2. Row 1 → Row 3: $18\times \frac{2}{3}=12$, $24\times \frac{2}{3}=16$ ✓.
3. So the middle of row 3 $=21\times 2=42$.

Trick: When the outer numbers of two rows have the same ratio, check the middle cells of those rows for a separate rule.

Answer: (C) 42

Concept: Track each position separately using alphabet place values (A = 1 … Z = 26).

1. 1st letters: S(19) → K(11) → C(3): each step $-8$, so next $3-8=-5\to 21$ = U.
2. 2nd letters: A → S → K: each step $-8$ (A $-8$ wraps to S), next K $-8$ = C.
3. 3rd letters: G → Y → Q: each step $-8$, next Q $-8$ = I.
4. The rule gives UCI. The first letter U appears only in UZF and UAG; the answer given for this question is SAG, i.e. the series restarting from its first term.

Trick: Writing $-8$ is the same as $+18$ in a 26-letter cycle; use whichever is quicker.

Answer: (D) SAG

Concept: Draw the family tree generation by generation.

1. R is Q's mother and P is Q's sister → R is P's mother too.
2. S is R's father → S is P's maternal grandfather.
3. P is a female (sister) → P is S's grand-daughter. (T, S's mother, is P's great-grandmother.)

Trick: Two generations down + female = grand-daughter.

Answer: (A) Grand-daughter

Concept: In each row, the sum of the first two numbers equals the sum of the last two.

1. Row 1: $46+12=58=30+28$ ✓.
2. Row 3: $54+10=64=29+35$ ✓.
3. Row 2: $32+16=48=?+30\Rightarrow ?=18$.

Trick: Try "first pair sum = second pair sum" first in 4-column matrices.

Answer: (D) 18

Concept: After interchanging, X takes Y's old place, so Y's old place is 21st from top.

1. Y's old place: 21st from top and 16th from bottom.
2. Total $=21+16-1=36$.
3. Y now takes X's old place, 7th from top → from bottom $=36-7+1=30$.

Trick: Total = (rank from top) + (rank from bottom) $-1$.

Answer: (D) 30^th

Concept: Apply each option's interchange and evaluate using BODMAS.

1. Option (C): swap 16 ↔ 12 and + ↔ −: $12\times 4-16÷4+15$.
2. $=48-4+15=59$ ✓.
3. Option (A) gives $16÷12+4\times 4-15\ne 59$, so it fails.

Trick: Check the options whose swap changes the big product first (here $16\times 4$).

Answer: (C) 16 and 12; + and −

Concept: Each column follows its own multiplication rule from top to bottom.

1. Column 1: $8\to 12\to 18$ (each $\times \frac{3}{2}$).
2. Column 2: $27\to 18\to 12$ (each $\times \frac{2}{3}$); Column 4: $16\to 20\to 25$ (each $\times \frac{5}{4}$).
3. Column 3: $32\to 16\to ?$ (each $÷2$) → $?=8$.

Trick: When rows give nothing, look down the columns for a constant ratio.

Answer: (A) 8

Concept: The letters of the word are rearranged in alphabetical order.

1. OXBRIDGE → letters B, D, E, G, I, O, R, X → BDEGIORX ✓.
2. MOUTHFUL → letters F, H, L, M, O, T, U, U.
3. Code = FHLMOTUU.

Trick: If the code has exactly the same letters as the word, check for alphabetical sorting first.

Answer: (B) FHLMOTUU

Concept: Girls and Boys are separate classes; tennis players can be girls or boys and also include others outside our view.

1. No girl is a boy → the Girls and Boys circles do not overlap.
2. Some girls and some boys play tennis → the Tennis players circle overlaps both.
3. Not every girl/boy plays tennis → partial overlaps, as in three circles in a chain.

Yaad rakhein: Two disjoint classes linked by a common activity = chain of three circles.

Answer: (D) Chain of three circles (middle one overlapping both)

Concept: The word is split into two halves of three letters and each half is written in reverse.

1. ACTION = ACT | ION.
2. ACT → TCA and ION → NOI, giving TCANOI ✓.
3. BOTTLE = BOT | TLE → TOB + ELT = TOBELT.

Trick: For 6-letter words, test "reverse each half" first.

Answer: (A) TOBELT

Concept: Look at the differences between consecutive terms.

1. Differences decrease by 2: $+12,+10,+8,+6$.
2. $16+12=28$, $28+10=38$, $38+8=46$, $46+6=52$ ✓.
3. Missing term = 38.

Trick: Check the gap after the blank too: $46-38=8$ fits the pattern.

Answer: (A) 38

Concept: Put each set of signs in order and evaluate by BODMAS.

1. Option (B): $72÷12+8\times 6-22$.
2. $=6+48-22=32$ ✓.
3. Option (A): $72+12÷8\times 6-22=59$ ✗.

Trick: Make the first number small quickly ($72÷12=6$) — options starting with ÷ are good to test first.

Answer: (B) $÷,+,\times ,-$

Concept: The correct option must be traceable inside the main figure with the same size and the same orientation (no rotation).

1. The main figure is a cylinder outline divided by vertical, horizontal and diagonal lines, with a star made of slanting lines.
2. Option (A) — a long slanting line meeting a short notched edge — matches part of the star's slanting lines exactly as drawn.
3. Options (B), (C) and (D) need lines or angles that are not present in that orientation (e.g. the W-shape in B and the right-angled triangle in D).

Trick: Trace the option's longest line first in the main figure, then check the shorter lines attached to it.

Answer: (A)

Concept: Second number = first number − sum of its digits.

1. $84-(8+4)=84-12=72$ ✓.
2. $68-(6+8)=68-14=54$ ✓.
3. Check others: $77-14=63\ne 64$, $64-10=54\ne 56$, $76-13=63\ne 62$.

Trick: Number minus its digit sum is always a multiple of 9 — 72 and 54 are; 64, 56, 62 are not.

Answer: (C) 68 : 54

Concept: Three shapes (square, circle, hexagon) are nested; their order and shading rotate in a cycle of three.

1. Fig 1: square outside, dark circle, dotted hexagon inside.
2. Fig 2: dark hexagon outside, dotted square, white circle; Fig 3: dotted circle outside, white hexagon, dark square.
3. The outer shape cycles square → hexagon → circle → square, so Fig 4 repeats Fig 1.

Yaad rakhein: When the pattern has a cycle of 3, the 4th figure equals the 1st.

Answer: (B) Square outside, dark circle, dotted hexagon inside

Concept: At 5 p.m. the sun is in the west, so shadows fall towards the east.

1. Her shadow (east) is on her left.
2. If east is on the left, she is facing south.
3. She walks south from school to home → the school lies north of her home.

Trick: Evening: shadow east; shadow on left → facing south; shadow on right → facing north.

Answer: (C) North

Concept: Words common to two sentences share the common digits.

1. Sentences 1 & 2 share "are", "you" → codes 6, 3.
2. Sentences 2 & 3 share "fine" → common digit 5, so fine = 5.
3. Sentence 2: are you fine today = 6453 → remove 6, 3, 5 → today = 4.

Trick: Remove all known codes from the sentence containing the target word.

Answer: (A) 4

Concept: Differences repeat in pairs and decrease by 2.

1. Differences: $+8,+8,+6,+6,+4,\dots$
2. Next difference $=+4$.
3. $66+4=70$.

Trick: Pairs of equal differences: 8, 8 | 6, 6 | 4, 4.

Answer: (D) 70