In this guide
This page is for the last two weeks, not the first two. It assumes you have already learnt each question type and now need the rules in one place, so that you can revise them in 20 minutes before a mock and walk in with them automatic.
Use it in three passes. Read the tables. Cover the right-hand column and say each rule aloud. Then do the drill at the end against the clock. Anything you get wrong goes back to the full guide for that topic.
Verbal reasoning: the one move for each type
| Type | The move | Trap to avoid |
|---|---|---|
| Analogy | Say the relationship in a sentence ("A is the young one of B"), then test each option with the same sentence | Accepting an option that fits a looser relationship |
| Classification | Find the property three share, then check no other property picks out a different item | Stopping at the first odd feature you see |
| Number series | Differences, then second differences, then ratios, then squares, cubes, primes, then alternate terms | Fitting a rule to three terms and not checking the rest |
| Letter series | Convert letters to positions; look for gaps between them | Counting the gap wrongly (A to D is a gap of 3) |
| Coding–decoding | Write word and code in two rows; find each letter's shift | Assuming every letter shifts by the same amount |
| Blood relations | Draw the tree as you read: + for male, − for female, = for couple | Guessing gender from a name |
| Directions | Draw with north at the top; turn from the way you are facing | Turning right as if you still faced north |
| Seating | Place definite clues first; in a circle facing the centre, left is clockwise | Using the same rule when people face outwards (then left is anticlockwise) |
| Syllogisms | A conclusion follows only if it is true in every valid diagram | Using real-world knowledge |
| Venn diagrams | Decide whether each pair is inside, overlapping or separate | Drawing overlap where one group is wholly inside another |
Non-verbal and spatial: the one move for each type
| Type | The move | Trap to avoid |
|---|---|---|
| Figure series and analogy | Track one element at a time: rotation, count, position, shading | Trying to see the whole change at once |
| Odd figure out | Check rotation first: three may be the same figure turned | Picking the one that merely looks different |
| Mirror image | Left and right swap; top and bottom stay | Flipping top and bottom too |
| Water image | Top and bottom swap; left and right stay | Confusing it with a mirror image |
| Paper folding | Open the last fold first; reflect every hole across each fold line | Forgetting that a hole on a fold line does not double |
| Embedded figures | Find the most distinctive corner of the small shape first | Scanning the whole figure at random |
| Dot situation | Note which regions each dot is in, then find the same overlap in the options | Matching the shape instead of the regions |
| Dice | Two faces seen together in one view are never opposite | Assuming a standard die when the question does not say so |
Numbers to know cold
Letter positions. Remember EJOTY: E = 5, J = 10, O = 15, T = 20, Y = 25. Every other letter is one or two steps from these.
Opposite letters add up to 27: A–Z, B–Y, C–X, D–W, E–V, F–U, G–T, H–S, I–R, J–Q, K–P, L–O, M–N. The reverse position of a letter is 27 minus its position.
Squares and cubes. Squares to 25² and cubes to 15³ turn up in series. If 17², 19² and 23² (289, 361, 529) do not come instantly, drill them.
Primes to 50: 2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, 17, 19, 23, 29, 31, 37, 41, 43, 47.
Formulas
| Question | Formula | Check |
|---|---|---|
| Triangles, n lines from one vertex to the base | (n + 1)(n + 2) ÷ 2 | 3 lines: 4 × 5 ÷ 2 = 10 |
| Squares in an n × n grid | 1² + 2² + … + n² | 3 × 3 grid: 1 + 4 + 9 = 14 |
| Rectangles in an n × n grid (squares included) | [n(n + 1) ÷ 2]² | 2 × 2 grid: 3² = 9 |
| Painted cube cut into n × n × n: three faces | 8 (the corners) | Always 8 when n is 2 or more |
| Exactly two faces | 12(n − 2) | n = 4: 24 |
| Exactly one face | 6(n − 2)² | n = 4: 24 |
| No face | (n − 2)³ | n = 4: 8, and 8 + 24 + 24 + 8 = 64 |
| Holes after folding in half | 2 after one fold, 4 after two, 8 after three | Only if the punch is off the fold lines |
| Mirror image of a clock | 11:60 minus the time (23:60 if the time is past 12) | 3:40 shows 8:20 |
| Water image of a clock | 18:30 minus the time, less 12 hours if needed | Exam convention, not an exact reading |
| Angle between clock hands | Difference between 30 × hours and 5.5 × minutes | 3:40: 220 − 90 = 130° |
| Straight-line distance | √(north–south net² + east–west net²) | 6 and 8 give 10 |
Traps that cost marks
- Two rules fit. In series and odd-one-out, check at least one more property (odd or even, prime, square, cube) before you mark. If two answers survive, the rule you found is not the intended one.
- "Some" means at least one, possibly all. "Some A are B" does not rule out "All A are B".
- Gender unstated. "A is the child of B" does not tell you whether A is a son or daughter. If an option needs it, that option cannot be definitely true.
- Facing outwards. In a circle, people facing outwards have left and right reversed.
- Uncertain spatial answers. With +3 for a right answer and −1 for a wrong one, a pure guess among four options gains nothing on average. Eliminate at least one option before you guess.
Mixed drill: 12 questions in 12 minutes
- Find the next term: 3, 5, 9, 17, 33, ?
- If COLD is coded XLOW, how is HEAT coded?
- What is the position of R in the alphabet, and which letter is its opposite?
- A clock shows 5:25. What does its mirror image show?
- What is the angle between the hands of a clock at 3:40?
- How many squares are there in a 3 × 3 grid?
- A triangle has 3 lines drawn from its top vertex to the base. How many triangles are there?
- A 5 × 5 × 5 painted cube is cut into unit cubes. How many have exactly two faces painted?
- A's mother is the only daughter of B's mother. B is a man. How is B related to A?
- A cadet walks 5 km south, turns left and walks 3 km, then turns left again and walks 9 km. How far are they from the start, and in which direction?
- All A are B. No B is C. Conclusions: I. No A is C. II. Some C are A. Which follows?
- Six people sit in a circle facing the centre. P is second to the left of Q. Moving clockwise from Q, what is P's position?
Answers:
- 65. Differences 2, 4, 8, 16 double each time, so the next is 32.
- SVZG. Each letter becomes its opposite: H–S, E–V, A–Z, T–G.
- 18, and I. 27 − 18 = 9, and the 9th letter is I.
- 6:35. 11:60 − 5:25 = 6:35.
- 130°. 30 × 3 = 90; 5.5 × 40 = 220; 220 − 90 = 130.
- 14. Nine 1 × 1, four 2 × 2 and one 3 × 3.
- 10. (3 + 1)(3 + 2) ÷ 2 = 10.
- 36. 12 × (5 − 2) = 36.
- Maternal uncle. B's mother's only daughter is B's sister, and she is A's mother.
- 5 km, north-east. Facing south, left is east: 3 km east. Facing east, left is north: 9 km north. Net 4 km north and 3 km east: √(16 + 9) = 5.
- Only I. A sits inside B, and B shares nothing with C, so no A is C. II is therefore false.
- Second place clockwise. Facing the centre, left is clockwise, so P is two seats clockwise from Q.
Score yourself: 11 or 12 in 12 minutes means the rules are automatic. Below 9, go back to the topic guides for the ones you missed.
What to do next
- Cover the "move" columns and recite them. Repeat until you miss none.
- Write EJOTY, the opposite pairs and the painted-cube formulas from memory.
- Redo the drill in two days without looking at the answers.
- For counting and Venn questions, revise counting figures and Venn diagrams.
- Place this sheet inside the wider schedule in the reasoning plan.
A note on dates and numbers. Exam patterns, vacancies and schedules change from year to year. Always confirm the current details in the latest notification on the Indian Air Force website .
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