Puzzles & Seating Arrangement — Practice

Question 1

Seven people P–V live on a seven-floor building (floor 1 = bottom). P lives on floor 4. There are three floors between P and Q. Q lives above P. Which floor does Q live on?
(a) 6th  (b) 7th  (c) 5th  (d) 2nd

Accepted Answer

'Three floors between' P (floor 4) and Q, with Q above ⇒ Q on floor 4 + 3 + 1 = floor 8? No — floor 8 doesn't exist. Three floors BETWEEN means floors 5, 6, 7 lie between, so Q = floor 4 + 4 = 8. Since the building has 7 floors, re-read: three floors between P(4) and Q above ⇒ Q on 4+3+1... the only valid reading giving a real floor is Q on floor 7 with floors 5 and 6 (two between) — so the intended clue is TWO between and answer is 7th.

Correct exam-style answer: (b) 7th — floors 5 and 6 sit between P(4) and Q(7). This is exactly why you must draw the ladder and count, not compute in your head.

Question 2

Eight friends sit in a row facing north. C is 3rd from the left end. There are two people between C and D. E sits at the extreme right end. How many people can sit to the right of C at most, given D is to C's right?
(a) 5  (b) 4  (c) 3  (d) 2

Accepted Answer

Row of 8, facing north. C at position 3 from left. D is to C's right with two between ⇒ D at position 6. E at position 8 (extreme right).

To the right of C (positions 4–8) there are 5 seats.

Answer: (a) 5. Draw the 8 blanks, place C(3), D(6), E(8); the count is immediate.

Question 3

Eight people sit around a circular table facing the centre. A is second to the left of B. C sits opposite A. How is C positioned relative to B?
(a) 2nd to the right of B  (b) 3rd to the left of B  (c) opposite B  (d) 4th to the right of B

Accepted Answer

Facing centre, 'left' = clockwise. Place B; A is two seats clockwise (2nd to left of B). C is directly opposite A (4 seats away).

Counting from B: A is +2, so C (opposite A, +4 from A) is +6 from B ≡ −2 from B = 2nd to the RIGHT of B.

Answer: (a) 2nd to the right of B. Fix the facing arrow first, then count.

Question 4

Five people have exams on five different days Monday–Friday. R's exam is before S's. T's exam is on Wednesday. Exactly one exam falls between R's and T's, with R before T. On which day is R's exam?
(a) Monday  (b) Tuesday  (c) Thursday  (d) Cannot be determined

Accepted Answer

Timeline Mon–Fri. T on Wednesday. 'Exactly one exam between R and T, R before T' ⇒ R is two days before Wednesday = Monday.

Check: Monday(R) – Tuesday(one exam) – Wednesday(T). ✓

Answer: (a) Monday. S sits somewhere after R — consistent.

Question 5

In the solved chapter set (Row 1: C–A–B facing south; Row 2: E–F–D facing north, facing each other), who faces the person sitting at the immediate left of B?
(a) E  (b) F  (c) D  (d) C

Accepted Answer

Row 1 faces south: C–A–B left-to-right as you look. B is at the right end; immediate left of B is A.

A (Row 1, position 2) faces the Row 2 person at position 2 = F.

Answer: (b) F. Once the grid stands, every such question is a one-step lookup.

Question 6

Five boxes have different weights. Box P is heavier than only two boxes. Box Q is the heaviest. Box R is lighter than P. If S is heavier than P, how many boxes are heavier than R at most?
(a) 4  (b) 3  (c) 2  (d) 1

Accepted Answer

'P heavier than only two' ⇒ P is 3rd heaviest (rank 3 of 5). Q heaviest (rank 1). S heavier than P ⇒ S is rank 2. R lighter than P ⇒ R is rank 4 or 5.

Boxes heavier than R (rank 4 at most) = Q, S, P and possibly one more = at most 4 (if R is the lightest, ranks 1–4 are all heavier).

Answer: (a) 4. Convert ranking words to rank numbers first.

Question 7

In a row of six facing north, which clue should you place FIRST?
(a) 'M sits somewhere to the left of N'  (b) 'P sits at the extreme right end'  (c) 'M is not adjacent to P'  (d) 'N sits somewhere to the right of O'

Accepted Answer

Definite (position-fixing) clues go first. 'P at the extreme right end' fixes an exact seat; the others are floating/negative clues that only resolve once the frame fills.

Answer: (b). Method beats cleverness — always place certainties before relationships.

Practice — Puzzles & Seating Arrangement

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