Logical reasoning questions

Reasoning Updated 11 Oct 2026

These logical reasoning questions with answers cover the verbal reasoning topics that appear in school olympiads, SSC, bank, CLAT and placement tests. You will find odd one out, analogies, syllogisms, assumptions, ranking, coding-decoding, directions and blood relations, each in its own section.

Every question has four options and an explanation that shows the working in one to three short steps. Start with the odd one out and analogy sections to warm up, then move to syllogisms and coding, which need a fixed method. Time yourself: most of these should take under a minute each.

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Odd one out reasoning questions

Q1. Find the odd one out: Mango, Guava, Banana, Potato
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Answer: A. Potato
Mango, guava and banana are fruits that grow on plants above the ground; potato is a vegetable (a stem tuber) that grows underground.
Q2. Find the odd one out: 11, 13, 21, 17
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Answer: C. 21
11, 13 and 17 are prime numbers. 21 = 3 x 7, so it is not prime.
Q3. Find the odd one out: Copper, Iron, Silver, Wood
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Answer: D. Wood
Copper, iron and silver are metals; wood is not a metal.
Q4. Find the odd one out: Square, Rectangle, Triangle, Cube
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Answer: B. Cube
Square, rectangle and triangle are flat 2D shapes; a cube is a 3D solid.
Q5. Find the odd one out: 121, 144, 169, 180
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Answer: C. 180
121 = 11^2, 144 = 12^2 and 169 = 13^2 are perfect squares; 180 is not a perfect square.
Q6. Find the odd letter pair: BD, FH, JL, MP
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Answer: B. MP
In BD, FH and JL exactly one letter is skipped (C, G and K). In MP two letters (N and O) are skipped.
Q7. Find the odd one out: Mercury, Venus, Moon, Mars
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Answer: A. Moon
Mercury, Venus and Mars are planets; the Moon is a natural satellite of the Earth.
Q8. Find the odd one out: 27, 64, 125, 150
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Answer: D. 150
27 = 3^3, 64 = 4^3 and 125 = 5^3 are perfect cubes; 150 is not.
Q9. Find the odd one out: Pen, Pencil, Marker, Eraser
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Answer: D. Eraser
Pen, pencil and marker are used to write; an eraser is used to rub writing out.

Analogy questions

Q10. Complete the analogy. Carpenter : Wood :: Tailor : ?
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Answer: C. Cloth
A carpenter shapes wood, the material of his work; in the same way a tailor works on cloth.
Q11. Complete the analogy. Cow : Calf :: Dog : ?
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Answer: B. Puppy
A calf is the young one of a cow, and a puppy is the young one of a dog.
Q12. Complete the analogy. 6 : 36 :: 9 : ?
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Answer: A. 81
36 = 6 x 6, so the second number is the square of the first. 9 x 9 = 81.
Q13. Complete the analogy. Fish : Gills :: Human : ?
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Answer: D. Lungs
A fish breathes through its gills, and a human breathes through the lungs.
Q14. Complete the letter analogy. BDF : CEG :: KMO : ?
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Answer: C. LNP
Each letter moves one place forward: B to C, D to E, F to G. So K, M, O become L, N, P.
Q15. Complete the analogy. 5 : 125 :: 6 : ?
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Answer: B. 216
125 = 5^3, so the second number is the cube of the first. 6^3 = 6 x 6 x 6 = 216.
Q16. Complete the analogy. Painter : Brush :: Writer : ?
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Answer: A. Pen
A brush is the tool a painter works with, and a pen is the tool a writer works with.

Syllogism and critical reasoning questions

Q17. Statements: All cats are animals. All animals are living beings. Conclusions: I. All cats are living beings. II. All living beings are cats.
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Answer: D. Only I follows
All cats lie inside animals, which lie inside living beings, so I is true. The reverse of an 'all' statement need not be true, so II does not follow.
Q18. Statements: Some pens are books. All books are papers. Conclusions: I. Some pens are papers. II. All papers are pens.
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Answer: A. Only I follows
The pens that are books are also papers, so some pens are papers. Nothing tells us that every paper is a pen.
Q19. Statements: All roses are flowers. No flower is a tree. Conclusions: I. No rose is a tree. II. Some trees are roses.
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Answer: C. Only I follows
Every rose is a flower and no flower is a tree, so no rose can be a tree. That makes II false.
Q20. Statements: Some boys are students. Some students are players. Conclusions: I. Some boys are players. II. No boy is a player.
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Answer: B. Either I or II follows
Neither conclusion is definite, but together they cover every case (some boys are players, or none are), so one of them must be true.
Q21. Statements: All chairs are tables. Some tables are fans. Conclusions: I. Some chairs are fans. II. Some fans are tables.
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Answer: A. Only II follows
'Some tables are fans' can be reversed to 'some fans are tables', so II follows. The tables that are fans may not be chairs, so I is not certain.
Q22. Statements: No man is a bird. All birds are animals. Conclusions: I. Some animals are not men. II. No animal is a man.
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Answer: B. Only I follows
Birds are animals and no bird is a man, so at least those animals are not men. Other animals could still be men, so II is not certain.

Verbal reasoning: assumptions, ranking and order

Q23. Statement: A shop advertises, 'Buy one shirt and get one free.' Assumptions: I. People are attracted by offers that give more value. II. The shop sells only shirts. Which assumption is implicit?
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Answer: D. Only I is implicit
The offer is made because the shop expects buyers to like extra value, so I is assumed. The advertisement says nothing about the shop selling only shirts.
Q24. Statement: Ravi told his friend, 'Leave for the station early, as the roads are crowded in the evening.' Assumptions: I. Ravi's friend has to reach the station. II. Crowded roads can delay travel. Which assumption is implicit?
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Answer: C. Both I and II are implicit
The advice only makes sense if the friend is going to the station (I) and if crowded roads slow people down (II).
Q25. In a row of 40 students, Meena is 12th from the left end. What is her position from the right end?
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Answer: C. 29th
Position from right = total - position from left + 1 = 40 - 12 + 1 = 29.
Q26. In a class, Ravi is 7th from the top and 18th from the bottom. How many students are in the class?
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Answer: B. 24
Total = 7 + 18 - 1 = 24, because Ravi is counted in both positions.
Q27. P is taller than Q, Q is taller than R, and S is taller than P. Who is the shortest?
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Answer: D. R
Order from tallest: S > P > Q > R. So R is the shortest.
Q28. If these words are arranged in dictionary order, which word comes third: Market, Marble, Margin, Marine, Marvel?
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Answer: A. Marine
Compare the fourth and fifth letters: Marble, Margin, Marine, Market, Marvel. The third word is Marine.

Coding-decoding questions

Q29. If CAT is coded as DBU, how is DOG coded in the same way?
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Answer: C. EPH
Each letter moves one place forward: C to D, A to B, T to U. So D, O, G become E, P, H.
Q30. If TABLE is written as ELBAT in a code, how is MANGO written?
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Answer: D. OGNAM
The code writes the word in reverse order. MANGO reversed is OGNAM.
Q31. If A = 1, B = 2, C = 3 and so on, what is the total value of the word BAG?
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Answer: A. 10
B = 2, A = 1, G = 7, so 2 + 1 + 7 = 10.
Q32. If ROSE is coded as TQUG, how is LILY coded?
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Answer: B. NKNA
Each letter moves two places forward: R to T, O to Q. So L to N, I to K, L to N and Y to A (after Z, start again at A).
Q33. In a code, each letter is replaced by its opposite letter in the alphabet (A with Z, B with Y and so on). How is FISH written?
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Answer: B. URHS
Opposite letters add up to 27 in position: F(6) to U(21), I(9) to R(18), S(19) to H(8), H(8) to S(19).

Direction sense and blood relation questions

Q34. A man walks 5 km north, turns right and walks 3 km, then turns right again and walks 5 km. How far and in which direction is he from his starting point?
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Answer: C. 3 km East
The 5 km north and 5 km south cancel out. Only the 3 km walked east remains, so he is 3 km east of the start.
Q35. Sunil is facing north. He turns 90 degrees clockwise and then 180 degrees. Which direction is he facing now?
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Answer: D. West
North turned 90 degrees clockwise gives East; turning 180 degrees from East gives West.
Q36. Asha walks 6 km east and then 8 km north. What is the straight-line distance from her starting point?
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Answer: A. 10 km
Using Pythagoras: distance = square root of (6^2 + 8^2) = square root of 100 = 10 km.
Q37. Pointing to a man, Riya says, 'He is the son of my father's father's only son.' How is the man related to Riya?
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Answer: A. Brother
Riya's father's father has only one son, who must be Riya's father. The son of Riya's father is her brother.
Q38. Neha is the sister of Arjun. Arjun's mother is Kavita, and Kavita's father is Ramesh. How is Neha related to Ramesh?
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Answer: D. Granddaughter
Neha and Arjun are Kavita's children, and Kavita is Ramesh's daughter. So Neha is the daughter of Ramesh's daughter, his granddaughter.
Q39. Mohan is the father of Sita's brother. How is Mohan related to Sita?
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Answer: C. Father
Sita and her brother share the same father, so Mohan is Sita's father.

How to prepare

Logical reasoning rewards method more than memory. For odd one out and analogy, first name the relation in words (organ and its use, number and its square) and then test each option against it. For syllogisms, draw quick circles for each statement and accept a conclusion only if it is true in every possible drawing; remember that 'some A are B' can be reversed but 'all A are B' cannot.

For coding, write the position number of each letter (A = 1 to Z = 26) and look for a fixed shift, a reversal or opposite pairs that add to 27. In direction questions draw a small sketch with north at the top, and in blood relations draw a family tree with males and females marked. Ranking questions mostly use one formula: total = left position + right position - 1.

Study tips

Learn the letter positions and the opposite pairs (A with Z, B with Y, C with X) by heart, as they speed up coding questions.
Always draw circles for syllogisms and a sketch for direction questions instead of solving in your head.
Practise a mixed set of 10 questions daily and note which type takes you the longest.

Questions people ask

What topics are covered in logical reasoning questions?

Common topics are odd one out, analogies, syllogisms, statements and assumptions, coding-decoding, ranking, direction sense, blood relations and series. Verbal reasoning uses words and statements, while non verbal reasoning uses figures and patterns.

How do I solve syllogism questions quickly?

Draw a Venn diagram for each statement and check whether the conclusion holds in every possible diagram. Remember that 'some' statements can be reversed, 'all' statements cannot, and complementary pairs such as 'some are' and 'no' lead to an 'either or' answer.

Are these logical reasoning questions useful for CLAT and placement tests?

Yes. The syllogism, assumption and verbal reasoning sections match the style used in CLAT, CAT and campus placement tests, while coding, direction and ranking suit SSC and bank exams.

What is the difference between verbal and non verbal reasoning?

Verbal reasoning questions are written in words, such as analogies, syllogisms and coding. Non verbal reasoning uses pictures, such as figure series, mirror images and paper folding.

Can class 6 students practise these questions?

Yes. The odd one out, analogy, direction and blood relation sections suit students from class 6 onwards, especially for reasoning olympiads. Older students can add the syllogism and assumption sections.

Every question on this page is written and fact-checked by the GK Quizzes team. Spotted a mistake? Tell us and we will fix it. How we make our questions.