Analytical Reasoning and Sequences — Practice

Question 1

A is taller than B. B is taller than C.
Who is the shortest of the three?
(a) A (b) B (c) C (d) Cannot be determined

Accepted Answer

(c) C.

Chaining the clues gives A > B > C. C is below both A and B, so C is the shortest.

Question 2

P scored more than Q. Q scored more than R.
Which must be true?
(a) P scored more than R (b) R scored more than Q (c) Q scored the most (d) P and R scored equally

Accepted Answer

(a) P scored more than R.

The chain is P > Q > R, so P is above R in every case — P scored more than R. The other options contradict the chain or are not forced.

Question 3

Find the next term: 2, 5, 8, 11, ___
(a) 12 (b) 13 (c) 14 (d) 15

Accepted Answer

(c) 14.

Each term increases by 3 (2→5→8→11). Adding 3 to 11 gives 14.

Question 4

Find the next term: 2, 6, 18, 54, ___
(a) 108 (b) 162 (c) 216 (d) 150

Accepted Answer

(b) 162.

Each term is the previous one multiplied by 3 (2→6→18→54). Multiplying 54 by 3 gives 162.

Question 5

Five friends A, B, C, D and E stand in a row of positions 1 to 5 (left to right). C stands in the middle. A stands immediately to the left of C. E stands at position 1.
What is A's position?
(a) 1 (b) 2 (c) 3 (d) 4

Accepted Answer

(b) 2.

C is in the middle, position 3. A is immediately to the left of C, so A is at position 2. (E is at 1; B and D take positions 4 and 5.)

Question 6

Four books — Maths, Science, English and History — are stacked one above another. The Maths book is somewhere above the Science book. The English book is at the very bottom.
Which must be true?
(a) The Science book is above the English book (b) The Maths book is at the top (c) The History book is at the top (d) The Science book is second from the top

Accepted Answer

(a) The Science book is above the English book.

English is at the bottom, so every other book — including Science — is above it. That is forced. Maths need only be above Science (History could sit on top), so (b), (c) and (d) are not guaranteed.

Question 7

A is taller than B. C is taller than D. No other information links the two pairs.
Which must be true?
(a) A is taller than C (b) B is taller than D (c) A is taller than D (d) None of these can be determined

Accepted Answer

(d) None of these can be determined.

The clues give A > B and C > D but nothing connecting the two pairs. Any comparison across the pairs — A vs C, B vs D, A vs D — is undetermined, so none of (a)–(c) must be true.

Question 8

Four runners — J, K, L and M — finish a race in positions 1st to 4th. K finished before L. M finished last.
If J finished first, what was K's position?
(a) 1st (b) 2nd (c) 3rd (d) 4th

Accepted Answer

(b) 2nd.

M is 4th and, in this question, J is 1st. That leaves positions 2 and 3 for K and L. Since K finished before L, K takes 2nd and L takes 3rd.

Practice — Analytical Reasoning and Sequences

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