SSC CGL (Combined Graduate Level) General Intelligence and Reasoning Syllabus

How do you find a letter's code in a reverse/opposite (atbash) coding where A↔Z?

Opposite letter = 27 minus the letter's position. So position of opposite = 27 - p (A=1↔Z=26, B↔Y, etc.). For any letter, pair sums to 27.

In Blood Relations, what does 'mother's brother' mean?

Maternal uncle.

Who is 'the only daughter of my father's wife' to me?

It refers to the speaker's sister (if the speaker is male) or the speaker herself — i.e., 'my father's wife' is my mother, and her only daughter is my sister/me.

In blood-relation pointing puzzles, what is the standard method?

Break the statement into small relation links, draw a family tree using symbols (+ male, - female, = married, | for siblings/children), and trace the relation step by step.

What relation is 'my father's father's only son' to me?

Father's father is grandfather; grandfather's only son is my father. So it is my father.

What is the relation: A is B's sister, B is C's mother. How is A related to C?

A is C's maternal aunt (A is the sister of C's mother).

In Direction Sense, name the four cardinal and four ordinal directions.

Cardinal: North, South, East, West. Ordinal (intermediate): North-East, North-West, South-East, South-West.

If you face North and turn 90° clockwise (to the right), which direction do you face? And 90° anticlockwise?

Clockwise (right) 90° → East. Anticlockwise (left) 90° → West.

In direction and distance problems, which formula gives the shortest (straight-line) distance between start and end points?

The Pythagoras theorem: shortest distance = √(net horizontal displacement² + net vertical displacement²).

A man walks 3 km North then 4 km East. How far is he from the starting point?

By Pythagoras: √(3² + 4²) = √(9+16) = √25 = 5 km.

At sunrise your shadow falls toward which direction, and how is this used in direction problems?

At sunrise the sun is in the East, so shadows fall toward the West. (At sunset, sun in West, shadow toward East.) This fixes orientation in shadow-based questions.

What is a syllogism in logical reasoning?

A form of deductive reasoning with two or more premises (statements) from which you must determine whether given conclusions logically and necessarily follow.

In syllogisms, what does the 'All A are B' statement imply about its converse?

'All A are B' gives a valid converse only as 'Some B are A' (not 'All B are A'). Some-conversion is always valid one way.

What conclusion validly follows from 'All A are B' and 'All B are C'?

'All A are C' follows. (Also 'Some C are A' and 'Some A are C'.) This is the classic universal chain.

From 'Some A are B' and 'All B are C', what definitely follows?

'Some A are C' follows. (And 'Some C are A'.)

Why does no definite conclusion follow from two particular (Some) premises in syllogism?

Two 'Some' premises do not establish a fixed relationship covering all cases, so no universal or particular conclusion is logically guaranteed — the result is uncertain.

In Statement and Conclusion questions, what is the golden rule for accepting a conclusion?

A conclusion must follow logically and directly from the information given in the statement only — do not use outside knowledge or assumptions beyond the statement.

What is the difference between a 'conclusion' and an 'assumption' in reasoning?

A conclusion is something derived/inferred FROM the statement. An assumption is something taken for granted (unstated) that the statement's author presupposes to be true.

In Statement-Conclusion, when is conclusion 'I or II follows' the answer?

When the two conclusions are complementary/mutually exclusive alternatives that together cover all possibilities (an either-or pair), so at least one must be true.

How should very strong or extreme words (always, only, never, all) be treated in Statement-Conclusion?

Treat them cautiously — extreme conclusions rarely follow unless the statement explicitly supports them; they are often the trap option.

In Seating Arrangement, what is the difference between a linear and a circular arrangement regarding 'left' and 'right'?

In a linear row facing one way, left/right are fixed. In a circular arrangement facing the center, a person's left is the next seat clockwise and right is anticlockwise (reversed if facing outward).

When people sit in a circle facing the center, how do their left and right relate to the clockwise direction?

Facing center: a person's RIGHT side is anticlockwise and LEFT side is clockwise. (If facing outward, this reverses.)

What is the recommended first step in solving a seating arrangement puzzle?

Note the type (linear/circular/facing direction), draw the figure, place the most definite clue first, then add conditional clues, keeping possibilities until they resolve.

In a circular arrangement of n people, what does 'opposite' or 'facing' a person mean?

Only possible when n is even; the person directly across is n/2 seats away in either direction around the circle.

In Puzzles and Ordering (ranking), if a person is 7th from the top and 11th from the bottom, how many people are there in total?

Total = (position from top) + (position from bottom) − 1 = 7 + 11 − 1 = 17.

In comparison/ordering puzzles, how do you handle statements like 'A is taller than B' to build an order?

Convert each comparison into an inequality (A > B), then chain them into a single sequence (e.g., A > B > C) to determine the full ranking.

If in a row of 40 students a boy is 15th from the left, what is his position from the right?

Position from right = Total − position from left + 1 = 40 − 15 + 1 = 26th from the right.

What is a Logical Venn Diagram question, and what does each circle represent?

It tests relationships between groups using overlapping circles; each circle represents a class/category, and overlaps show items belonging to multiple categories. You pick the diagram matching the real-world relation among given terms.

Which Venn diagram represents 'Dogs, Animals, Cats': overlapping or one-inside-another?

Two separate small circles (Dogs and Cats) both lying entirely inside one big circle (Animals); Dogs and Cats do not overlap each other.

What Venn relationship fits three terms that partly overlap, like 'Doctors, Players, Men'?

Three mutually intersecting circles, since some men can be doctors, some doctors can be players, and some men can be players — all categories partially overlap.

In Figure (non-verbal) Series and Analogy, what kinds of transformations should you look for between figures?

Rotation (clockwise/anticlockwise), reflection/mirror, addition or removal of elements, change in number of sides/lines/dots, shading/color changes, and movement of an element along a path.