Q&A: practice questions with answers

Concept: Fix the definite clue first (K = Wednesday), then test the two cases for M.

1. Only one person between K and M → M = Monday or Friday. J is immediately after M, and L is before J but not on Monday – if M = Monday then J = Tuesday and L would have to be Monday, impossible. So M = Friday, J = Saturday.
2. Order N → H → I: with Mon, Tue, Thu, Sun left for N, H, I, L, N must be Monday and I must be Sunday.
3. L takes Tuesday or Thursday; H takes the other. Among the options only Thursday is offered, so H = Thursday (N, L, K, H, M, J, I).

Trick: In day puzzles, "only one person between" gives just two candidates – test both and one usually dies with the next clue.

Answer: (D) Thursday

Concept: A conclusion follows only if it is true in every possible Venn diagram of the statements; "some" never proves "all".

1. Draw: Roots fully inside Flowers; Leaves overlaps Roots; Stems overlaps Flowers (position otherwise free).
2. (I) All stems are roots – stems only share "some" with flowers; they need not touch roots at all → does not follow.
3. (II) All flowers are leaves – flowers is the bigger set; only some of it is leaves → does not follow.

Trick: Two "Some" statements and one "All" can never produce an "All" conclusion about the outer set – reject universal conclusions quickly.

Answer: (B) Neither conclusion (I) nor (II) follows

Concept: Find the position shift of each letter in the first pair and apply the same shift to the new cluster.

1. MELD → QHHA: M$+4$ = Q, E$+3$ = H, L$-4$ = H, D$-3$ = A. Pattern $(+4,+3,-4,-3)$.
2. Check UKDX → YNZU: U$+4$ = Y, K$+3$ = N, D$-4$ = Z, X$-3$ = U ✓.
3. CQVR: C$+4$ = G, Q$+3$ = T, V$-4$ = R, R$-3$ = O → GTRO.

Trick: Write $\pm$ shifts above each letter of the given pair; always verify with the second pair before applying.

Answer: (B) GTRO

Concept: Options give # = NXF in three cases; find the rule NXF → XHP and apply it to UEM.

1. N(14)$+10$ = X(24); X(24)$+10$ = 34 → $34-26=8$ = H; F(6)$+10$ = P(16). Rule: each letter $+10$ (wrapping after Z).
2. UEM: U(21)$+10$ = 31 → 5 = E; E(5)$+10$ = O(15); M(13)$+10$ = W(23) → % = EOW.
3. So # = NXF, % = EOW.

Trick: When options agree on #, use that agreed value to extract the rule and spend time only on %.

Answer: (D) # = NXF, % = EOW

Concept: # is PUQ in three options; find how PUQ becomes NSO and apply the same to SXT.

1. P(16) → N(14): $-2$; U(21) → S(19): $-2$; Q(17) → O(15): $-2$. Rule: each letter $-2$.
2. SXT: S(19)$-2$ = Q; X(24)$-2$ = V; T(20)$-2$ = R → % = QVR.
3. So # = PUQ, % = QVR.

Trick: Note the direction: # → NSO is $-2$, so the same arrow SXT → % must also be $-2$ (not $+2$).

Answer: (A) # = PUQ, % = QVR

Concept: Identify the required numbers first, then pick the stated digits.

1. Numbers: 571, 769, 642, 598, 796. Highest = 796, lowest = 571.
2. Third digit of 796 = 6; second digit of 571 = 7.
3. $6+7=13$.

Trick: Underline highest and lowest before reading the operation – most errors come from picking 769 instead of 796.

Answer: (A) 13

Concept: Try $a\times k+c$ on both given pairs; the same $k$ and $c$ must fit.

1. $12\times 5+3=63$ ✓ and $21\times 5+3=108$ ✓ → rule: $\times 5+3$.
2. $26\times 5+3=130+3=133$.

Trick: Difference of outputs ÷ difference of inputs gives the multiplier: $\frac{108-63}{21-12}=\frac{45}{9}=5$.

Answer: (B) 133

Concept: Plot each move on a grid with C at the origin; the net east–west and north–south displacements give the answer.

1. East 7 → (7, 0); left (North) 4 → (7, 4); right (East) 6 → (13, 4); right (South) 4 → (13, 0); left (East) 7 → (20, 0) = J.
2. North 4 and South 4 cancel; east moves add: $7+6+7=20$ km.
3. J is 20 km east of C.

Trick: Equal and opposite legs (4 N, 4 S) cancel – just total the remaining eastward legs.

Answer: (A) 20 km, east

Concept: Build the family tree generation by generation, marking gender.

1. G is husband of H → G, H are a couple. E is son of G → E is their son.
2. F is sister of E → F is daughter of G and H.
3. C is son of F → C is the son of H's daughter → daughter's son (grandson).

Trick: Start from the oldest couple and hang the others below – the relation of the lowest person to the top one reads straight off the tree.

Answer: (D) Daughter's son

Concept: Decode each symbol pair-wise from left to right and place everyone on a tree.

1. D – F: D is brother of F (D male). F + G: F is daughter of G. G × H: G is wife of H → H is father of F.
2. H ÷ J: H is father of J → J is a child of H and G, hence sibling of F and D.
3. D (male) is a sibling of J → D is J's brother.

Trick: Decode from the end backwards (H ÷ J first) when the asked person is at the right – you reach the common parents fastest.

Answer: (D) Brother

Concept: Find one rule that fits both given pairs, then test the options.

1. $19\times 4+2=78$ ✓, $24\times 4+2=98$ ✓ → rule: $\times 4+2$.
2. $26\times 4+2=106$ (options A, B fail); $27\times 4+2=110$ ✓.

Trick: Multiplier $=\frac{98-78}{24-19}=\frac{20}{5}=4$; then the constant is $78-76=2$.

Answer: (D) 27, 110

Concept: Facing the centre, a person's right is anticlockwise. Fix H and place the others clue by clue.

1. U is 2nd to the right of H → U two seats anticlockwise from H. Only one between U and W (not H's side) → W is between F-side and U; only one between H and F → F is 2nd clockwise from H.
2. Two between V and W → V sits immediately anticlockwise of H; one between G and F → G sits between W and U; I takes the last seat. Clockwise order: H, I, F, W, G, U, V.
3. 4th to the right (anticlockwise) of I: H, V, U, G → G.

Trick: Draw 7 dots, mark H at the top, and count anticlockwise for "right" – never reverse the direction mid-puzzle.

Answer: (C) G

Concept: Check the ratio of each pair; a constant ratio means the rule is multiplication.

1. $\frac{192}{48}=4$ and $\frac{208}{52}=4$ → rule: second number $=$ first $\times 4$.
2. $61\times 4=244$.

Trick: Test $\times k$ first when both outputs are exact multiples of the inputs; it fits here, so no $+c$ is needed.

Answer: (A) 244

Concept: Number positions 1 (top) to 7 (bottom) and fill the definite clues first.

1. Only R above U → R = 1, U = 2. Only two boxes above Q → Q = 3; Q immediately above P → P = 4.
2. Positions 5, 6, 7 remain for S, V, T with S immediately above V. S cannot be at position 5 (3rd from bottom) → S = 6, V = 7, T = 5.
3. Stack: R, U, Q, P, T, S, V. Between R (1) and T (5): U, Q, P = 3 boxes.

Trick: "Only X is above Y" fixes two positions at once – always start there.

Answer: (A) 3

Concept: Compare the two words – the common letters share the common digits; the leftover letter gets the leftover digit.

1. KITE → 5871 and TIME → 7853 share T, I, E; the codes share 5, 7, 8.
2. Letter not common in TIME is M; digit not common in 7853 is 3.
3. So M = 3.

Trick: Elimination coding – cross out common letters and common digits; what remains pairs up.

Answer: (A) 3

Concept: Treat the letter part and the number part as two separate series.

1. Letters: AZA, XWX, UTU, RQR – first/third letter A→X→U→R ($-3$ each) → next O; middle letter Z→W→T→Q ($-3$) → next N. So ONO.
2. Numbers: 27, 36, 45, 54 ($+9$) → 63.
3. Term = ONO 63.

Trick: Each cluster is a palindrome with the middle letter one step behind the outer one (A–Z, X–W…) – O–N fits, so ONO.

Answer: (B) ONO 63

Concept: The only letter common to both words gets the only digit common to both codes.

1. TIME → 3519 and EARS → 6894: common letter = E.
2. Common digit in 3519 and 6894 = 9.
3. So E = 9.

Trick: With one shared letter, just spot the one shared digit – no need to decode the rest.

Answer: (D) 9

Concept: Jalaluddin Khalji (1290–96), founder of the Khalji dynasty, is remembered for his mild and benevolent policies.

1. He held that the state should be based on the willing support of the governed, since most of India's population was non-Muslim – so statement (B), which says the opposite, is incorrect.
2. He avoided harsh punishments, pardoned rebels (e.g. Malik Chhajju) and even rewarded some of them, and sought the goodwill of the nobles through tolerance – statements (A), (C), (D) are true.

Yaad rakhein: Jalaluddin = "mild Sultan"; his nephew Alauddin Khalji = harsh Sultan who killed him in 1296.

Answer: (B) He put forward the view that the state should never be based on the willing support of the governed.

Concept: File extensions identify the format of a file; .wma is an audio format developed by Microsoft.

1. .wma = Windows Media Audio, Microsoft's compressed audio format, part of the Windows Media framework (video counterpart: .wmv).
2. "WiFi", "Wired" and "Wireless" Media Audio are not real formats.

Yaad rakhein: Audio: .mp3, .wav, .wma, .aac; Video: .mp4, .avi, .wmv, .mkv; Image: .jpg, .png, .gif, .bmp.

Answer: (A) Windows Media Audio format

Concept: The formal tertiary (services) sector – IT, finance, organised trade, transport – is concentrated where large cities and industry exist.

1. Southern (Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai), Western (Mumbai, Pune, Ahmedabad) and Northern (Delhi NCR, Gurugram, Noida) India host the bulk of formal service jobs.
2. Northeastern India, despite its population and towns like Guwahati, has limited industrial base and connectivity, so its share in formal services is the least; most employment there is agricultural or informal.

Yaad rakhein: Services share of India's GVA is above 50%, but it is highly concentrated in a few states – Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Delhi, Gujarat.

Answer: (A) Northeastern India