Q&A: practice questions with answers

Concept: Find the gap pattern (first→second, second→third) that three clusters share.

1. LIM: L(12)→I(9) = −3, I(9)→M(13) = +4.
2. BYC: B→Y = −3 (wrap Z, Y), Y→C = +4. QNR: Q(17)→N(14) = −3, N→R = +4.
3. IGJ: I(9)→G(7) = −2, G→J = +3 – different pattern.

Trick: Check only the middle letter against the first: three clusters move back 3, one moves back 2 – that is the odd one.

Answer: (D) IGJ

Concept: In many figure series two arrangements simply alternate: 1st = 3rd = 5th, 2nd = 4th.

1. Compare the four corner symbols of figures 1 and 3 – they are identical (filled dot and h on top, hollow square and x below).
2. Figures 2 and 4 form the second arrangement.
3. So the 5th figure must be a copy of figure 1/3; only option (D) matches every corner.

Trick: When positions 1 and 3 look the same, skip the rule-hunting – just pick the option identical to figure 1.

Answer: (D)

Concept: Letters common to two words take the digits common to both codes.

1. CALF = 7904, FACE = 0489.
2. Common letters C, A, F ↔ common digits 9, 0, 4.
3. Left-over letter of FACE is E and left-over digit of 0489 is 8.
4. So E = 8 (and L = 7).

Trick: Strike out shared letters and shared digits; the single survivors pair up directly.

Answer: (D) 8

Concept: Find the shift applied to every letter and repeat it.

1. XUYZ → WTXY: X−1 = W, U−1 = T, Y−1 = X, Z−1 = Y.
2. EBFG → DAEF also uses −1 on each letter.
3. DAEF −1: D→C, A→Z (wrap-around), E→D, F→E = CZDE.

Trick: Remember A − 1 = Z. Only options with Z in 2nd place survive (C, D); then E−1 = D picks CZDE.

Answer: (D) CZDE

Concept: When one common shift fails, check each position separately.

1. U→V +1, S→U +2, T→W +3, D→H +4.
2. PAVG → QCYK: same +1, +2, +3, +4.
3. ZJOU: Z+1 = A, J+2 = L, O+3 = R, U+4 = Y → ALRY.

Trick: Z+1 = A, so only an option starting with A can be right – that is (D) straight away.

Answer: (D) ALRY

Concept: Build the family tree one link at a time.

1. P is father of Q (daughter) and of R → Q and R are sisters.
2. R is wife of S and T is son of S → R is T's mother.
3. Q is the sister of T's mother.

Yaad rakhein: Mother's sister = maternal aunt (mausi); father's sister = bua.

Answer: (B) Mother's sister

Concept: Facing the centre, 'right' means anticlockwise. Number seats to C's right: C = 0.

1. I is immediate right of C → I = 1. H has 3 people between from C's right → H = 4.
2. Two people between K and I from K's right → I is 3rd right of K → K = 1 − 3 = 5.
3. Free seats 2, 3 take L, G (G right of L) → L = 2, G = 3; D = 6.
4. 4th right of D: 6 + 4 = 10 → 10 − 7 = 3 → G.

Trick: Give seat numbers 0–6 and use (position + steps) mod 7 – no drawing needed.

Answer: (A) G

Concept: 20 places with 8 blanks; try a 5-letter block repeated 4 times.

1. The given letters fit the block PMSTV.
2. PMSTV | PMSTV | PMSTV | PMSTV.
3. Blanks in order: T V M S P S S T.

Trick: First two blanks follow 'PMS', so they must be T, V → only options (B) and (C) remain; the last two blanks (before V) are S, T → (B).

Answer: (B) TVMSPSST

Concept: Accept a conclusion only when every valid diagram supports it.

1. Cages ⊂ Nests; Nests overlap Houses; Houses and Dens are separate.
2. Dens have no link with Cages – dens may lie inside cages, so 'No cage is a den' (I) is not certain.
3. The Nest–House overlap may lie outside the Cage circle, so 'Some houses are cages' (II) is not certain.

Trick: 'Some + All' in the wrong order or a 'No' about a third class gives no definite conclusion – look for a direct link; none here.

Answer: (D) Neither conclusion (I) nor (II) follows.

Concept: The hidden figure must appear in the same size and orientation (no rotation).

1. Note the parts of (X): a vertical stroke, one loop at its lower-left and one long curve to the right.
2. Option (B) contains exactly these parts in the same direction; the extra square and triangle are only drawn over it.
3. (A) shows the shape tilted, (C) has the loop on the wrong side, (D) has an extra loop.

Trick: Pick one distinctive part (the single loop) and check its side and direction first – it eliminates most options at once.

Answer: (B)

Concept: Track each letter position of the clusters separately.

1. 1st letters: E, F, G, H → I.
2. 2nd letters: B, C, D, E → F.
3. 3rd letters: F, G, H, I → J.
4. Next term = IFJ.

Trick: Each term's 3rd letter = its 1st letter + 1 (E→F, F→G…). So after I comes J at the end → IFJ, not IJF.

Answer: (D) IFJ

Concept: Facing the centre, right = anticlockwise. Number seats to I's right: I = 0.

1. J immediate right of I → J = 1; three between I and H from I's right → H = 4.
2. J is 3rd to the right of O → O = 1 − 3 = 5.
3. Seats 2, 3 → N, G (G right of N); M = 6.
4. 4th right of M: 6 + 4 = 10 → 10 − 7 = 3 → G.

Trick: Same structure as the C-D-G-H question: seat numbers 0–6 and (seat + steps) mod 7.

Answer: (C) G

Concept: Look for a fixed relation between each letter's position and its number.

1. FWOD pairs (letter value & code): F 6 & 23, W 23 & 6, O 15 & 14, D 4 & 25 – each pair totals 29.
2. SINH behaves the same way (S 19 & 10, and so on).
3. Code = 29 − position. TYLB: T(20)→9, Y(25)→4, L(12)→17, B(2)→27.

Trick: Find just the first number: T(20) → 29 − 20 = 9; only option (C) starts with 9.

Answer: (C) 9-4-17-27

Concept: Unfold in reverse order; each opening creates a mirror image across the fold line.

1. The sheet is folded bottom-to-top, then left-to-right, so the cut lies in the top-right quarter.
2. Opening the vertical fold: the top-left quarter shows the left-right mirror (arrow-heads point the other way).
3. Opening the horizontal fold: the bottom half is the up-down mirror of the top half.
4. Only option (C) shows both mirrorings correctly.

Trick: Final pattern must be symmetric about both fold lines – reject any option where all four marks face the same way.

Answer: (C)

Concept: If A is part of B and B is part of C, draw three circles one inside another.

1. Bangalore is a city in India.
2. India is a country in Asia.
3. So Bangalore ⊂ India ⊂ Asia → three concentric circles, option (A).

Trick: City ⊂ Country ⊂ Continent is always the nested (concentric) pattern.

Answer: (A)

Concept: Check the differences between consecutive terms.

1. Differences: 50, 41, 32, 23.
2. Each difference is 9 less than the previous → next = 23 − 9 = 14.
3. 251 + 14 = 265.

Trick: Differences 50, 41, 32, 23 all have digit-sum 5 and fall by 9 – the next is 14.

Answer: (B) 265

Concept: Differences increasing by 1 each step.

1. Differences: 4, 5, 6, 7.
2. Next difference = 8.
3. 40 + 8 = 48.

Yaad rakhein: When differences rise 1, 2, 3… by one each, the series is quadratic – always check the first-difference row before anything else.

Answer: (B) 48

Concept: Rearrange the letters Z→A and compare position by position.

1. Original word: ALTERING.
2. Letters arranged Z→A: TRNLIGEA.
3. Match column by column – 1st T≠A, 2nd R≠L … no column has the same letter.

Yaad rakhein: 'Position unchanged' means the same letter at the same serial number – write both rows one below the other and match column-wise.

Answer: (B) Zero

Concept: Replace P = ×, Q = ÷, R = −, S = + and simplify by BODMAS.

1. Option (B): $160÷10=16$; $30\times 2=60$; $16\times 4=64$.
2. Add the plus terms: $16+60+45=121$; then $121-64=57$ ✓.
3. Others: (A) = 124, (C) = 20, (D) = −59.

Trick: (D) has $30\times 4=120$ against $16+45$ – clearly negative; drop it first, then test the shorter option (B).

Answer: (B) (160 Q 10) S (30 P 2) R (16 P 4) S 45

Concept: Unfold step by step; every unfold gives a mirror image of the cut across that fold.

1. Folds: bottom up, then left to right → the cut sits in the top-right quarter.
2. Undo the vertical fold: top-left gets the left-right mirror (the F-shaped mark reverses).
3. Undo the horizontal fold: the lower half is the top half flipped upside down.
4. Option (D) alone shows both mirrors.

Trick: Diagonally opposite quarters are 180° turns of each other – check one diagonal pair and you're done.

Answer: (D)