Logical Reasoning · Arrangements & Puzzles
Seating Arrangement — Questions & Answers
Seating arrangement questions place people in a row or around a table from a set of clues. Fix the definite positions first, then place everyone else.
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Fix the definite seats first (ends, middle), then place people using "immediately right/left" and "second to the right". Facing north, your right is towards the east; facing south, your right is towards the west. Around a circle facing the centre, everyone's right runs the same way round.
Put one person at the top, then place the others going round to the right or left. In a circle of six, "opposite" is three seats away. Facing north, your right is towards the east; facing south, your right is towards the west. Around a circle facing the centre, everyone's right runs the same way round.
Start with fixed placements and group sizes, then use "sits with" and "not with" to fill the rest.
Build the full arrangement first, then test each statement against it.
5 solved Seating Arrangement questions
Six friends, Anu, Bala, Chitra, Dev, Esha and Farid, sit in a row facing north. Anu is at the left end. Bala is second to the right of Anu. Chitra sits immediately to the right of Bala. Farid is at the right end. Esha does not sit next to Farid.
Who sits between Anu and Bala?Solution — answer C
Anu is 1st, Bala 3rd, Chitra 4th and Farid 6th. Esha can't be 5th (next to Farid), so Esha is 2nd, between Anu and Bala.
4 steps · reveal one at a timeStep 1: Place known friends
Let's fill in the positions based on the direct statements. Anu is at the left end, so Anu is 1st. Bala is second to the right of Anu, placing Bala 3rd. Chitra is immediately to the right of Bala, so Chitra is 4th. Farid is at the right end, making Farid 6th.
Step 2: Identify remaining spots
So far, we have: Anu (1), Bala (3), Chitra (4), Farid (6). The remaining positions are 2 and 5. The friends left to place are Dev and Esha. We need to figure out who goes into position 2 and 5.
Step 3: Place Esha and Dev
We are told that Esha does not sit next to Farid. Since Farid is at position 6, Esha cannot be at position 5. This means Esha must be at position 2. The only remaining friend, Dev, must then be at position 5.
Step 4: The answer
So the answer is (C) Esha. Esha is at position 2, which is between Anu (position 1) and Bala (position 3).
Six friends, Anbu, Bharathi, Charan, Dhanam, Ezhil and Fathima, sit around a circle facing the centre. Anbu sits opposite Dhanam. Bharathi sits immediately to the right of Anbu. Charan sits immediately to the right of Bharathi. Fathima does not sit next to Anbu.
Who sits immediately to the left of Anbu?Solution — answer A
Going right from Anbu: Bharathi, Charan, then Dhanam (opposite). Fathima avoids Anbu, so the order ends Fathima, Ezhil, and Ezhil is immediately to Anbu's left.
4 steps · reveal one at a timeStep 1: Place known friends
Start by placing Anbu. Since Dhanam sits opposite Anbu, place Dhanam across the circle. Bharathi sits immediately to the right of Anbu. Charan sits immediately to the right of Bharathi. This gives us a sequence: Anbu, Bharathi, Charan, Dhanam.
Step 2: Fill remaining spots
We have six friends in a circle. Our current sequence (clockwise from Anbu) is Anbu, Bharathi, Charan, Dhanam. This leaves two empty spots between Dhanam and Anbu. The remaining friends are Ezhil and Fathima.
Step 3: Apply exclusion rule
Fathima does not sit next to Anbu. The spots next to Anbu are already taken by Bharathi (right) and one empty spot (left). Since Fathima cannot be next to Anbu, she must take the spot next to Dhanam. This leaves Ezhil for the last remaining spot, immediately to the left of Anbu.
Step 4: The answer
So the answer is (A) Ezhil. Ezhil is the only person left to fill the spot immediately to Anbu's left after placing everyone else according to the rules.
Seven students, Arul, Bhanu, Chezhian, Dhivya, Eswar, Gowri and Hamid, sit on three benches, I, II and III, with two or three students on each bench. Arul and Bhanu sit on bench I. Gowri sits on bench III with exactly one other student. Dhivya sits neither with Arul nor with Gowri. Eswar sits with Hamid.
Who sits with Gowri?Solution — answer B
Dhivya can't be on bench I (Arul) or III (Gowri), so she is on II. Eswar and Hamid must be together, and bench I would have four with them, so they join Dhivya on II. Only Chezhian is left, and he joins Gowri on bench III.
3 steps · reveal one at a timeStep 1: Place Dhivya
We know Arul and Bhanu are on bench I, and Gowri is on bench III with one other. Dhivya cannot be on bench I (with Arul) or bench III (with Gowri). This means Dhivya must sit on bench II.
Step 2: Place Eswar & Hamid
Eswar and Hamid must sit together. Bench I already has Arul and Bhanu, so it cannot fit two more students. Therefore, Eswar and Hamid must join Dhivya on bench II.
Step 3: The answer
So the answer is (B) Chezhian. We have placed Arul, Bhanu (Bench I), Dhivya, Eswar, Hamid (Bench II), and Gowri (Bench III). Only Chezhian is left, so he must sit with Gowri on bench III.
Five students, Kavi, Latha, Mohan, Nila and Om, sit in a row facing north. Mohan sits in the middle. Kavi sits immediately to the left of Mohan. Nila sits at one end but not next to Kavi. Om is not at an end.
Which of these statements is NOT true?Solution — answer A
The order is Latha, Kavi, Mohan, Om, Nila, so Nila sits next to Om, not Mohan. The statement that Nila sits next to Mohan is not true.
4 steps · reveal one at a timeStep 1: Place Mohan and Kavi
Five students are in a row. First, place Mohan in the middle position. Since there are five seats, Mohan is in the 3rd seat. Then, Kavi sits immediately to the left of Mohan, placing Kavi in the 2nd seat. So far: _ Kavi Mohan _ _.
Step 2: Place Nila
Next, Nila sits at one end. The ends are the 1st or 5th seat. Nila is also 'not next to Kavi'. Since Kavi is in the 2nd seat, Nila cannot be in the 1st seat (as that would be next to Kavi). Therefore, Nila must be in the 5th seat. Current arrangement: _ Kavi Mohan _ Nila.
Step 3: Place Om and Latha
Now, Om is 'not at an end'. The remaining empty seats are the 1st and 4th. Since Om can't be at an end, Om must be in the 4th seat. This leaves only the 1st seat for Latha. The final order is: Latha, Kavi, Mohan, Om, Nila.
Step 4: The answer
So the answer is (A) Nila sits next to Mohan. Based on our arrangement (Latha, Kavi, Mohan, Om, Nila), Nila sits next to Om, not Mohan, making this statement untrue.
Six people sit in two rows of three, facing each other. Arivu, Banu and Chella sit in the north row (facing south); Deva, Elavarasi and Firoz sit in the south row (facing north). Arivu sits in the middle of the north row. Deva faces Arivu. Banu sits immediately to the right of Arivu. Elavarasi faces Banu.
Who sits immediately to the left of Deva?Solution — answer A
Arivu is in the middle of the north row and Deva faces Arivu. Facing south, Arivu's right is on the west, so Banu is at the west end, and Elavarasi faces Banu. Deva faces north, so Deva's left is on the west: Elavarasi.
5 steps · reveal one at a timeStep 1: Set up the rows
First, let's visualize the two rows. The north row has Arivu, Banu, Chella facing south. The south row has Deva, Elavarasi, Firoz facing north. We know Arivu is in the middle of the north row.
Step 2: Place Arivu and Deva
Since Arivu is in the middle of the north row, we can place them. Deva faces Arivu, so Deva must be in the middle of the south row. This sets up the central positions for both rows.
Step 3: Place Banu and Elavarasi
Arivu is in the north row, facing south. Their right is to the west. Banu sits immediately to the right of Arivu, so Banu is on Arivu's west side. Elavarasi faces Banu, placing Elavarasi on the west side of the south row.
Step 4: Find Deva's left
Deva is in the south row, facing north. If you face north, your left is to the west. We just placed Elavarasi on the west side of the south row. Therefore, Elavarasi is immediately to the left of Deva.
Step 5: The answer
So the answer is (A) Elavarasi. Elavarasi is in the south row, facing north, and is positioned to the west of Deva, which is Deva's left side.
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