Positional and Logic-Puzzle Questions
How do you solve arrival order and positional logic puzzles in verbal reasoning?
Set out every possible position as a table with one column per slot, list which items are ruled in or out of each position from the clues given, then work left to right filling in any position that only has one possible occupant left. Never attempt these mentally — writing the table down is the single biggest factor separating a fast, correct answer from a slow, wrong one.
Why this is usually the hardest question type
These are typically the most time-consuming verbal reasoning questions, built from dense, interlocking clues about the order or arrangement of a set of people or items. The difficulty isn't really the logic itself — it's holding all the clues in mind at once. A written table removes that burden entirely, which is why the method below matters more than raw ability.
There's also a related but distinct form — sometimes called complex connections — where instead of a single order, you're tracking overlapping characteristics across a group (who has which combination of traits), and a quantitative form asking for the least or greatest possible count that satisfies a set of conditions. Both use the same core method: a table, filled in from what's certain, then refined by elimination.
Worked example
Seven people travel to work daily. Person A is never fourth and always arrives after Person C. Person B arrives sixth or seventh. Person G is first if not last. Person F is third or sixth, and always before Person D. If Person E arrives first, who arrives second?
Set out seven columns. Since E is first, G — who is only ever first or last — must be last (seventh). B, who is sixth or seventh, must then be sixth, since seventh is taken.
That leaves F needing third or sixth — sixth is taken, so F is third. What remains is fitting A, C and D into the remaining slots (second, fourth, fifth) while keeping C before A, and F before D.
Testing the possible remaining arrangements against every original clue — not just the ones already used — only one survives: C in second, A in fourth, D in fifth. Person C arrives second.
The step students skip
After the table narrows things down, it's tempting to declare an answer as soon as most positions are filled. The last check — going back to the original clues and confirming the finished arrangement satisfies every one of them, not just the ones used to fill the table — is the step most often skipped, and the one that catches an error before it costs a mark.
Steps
- Set out one column per position and note every clue's certain and possible placements
- Fill in any position with only one remaining possible occupant, then repeat
- When positions can't be resolved by elimination alone, trial the remaining arrangements against every clue, not just the most recent one
- Confirm the finished arrangement against the original wording before selecting an answer
This is one chapter of the Scholarship & Entrance English Assessment Guide. The complete guide — every technique, collected in one document — is available as a free PDF from the guide's main page.