Free guide · Verbal & logic · 2 min read

How to solve ordering and deduction puzzles

Ordering puzzles: draw the line

Comparative statements pin people onto a line. Place them as you read — never hold the order in your head.

Updated 30 September 2026

'Priya is taller than Omar; Lena is shorter than Omar' — the amateur re-reads while juggling names. The trained solver draws a vertical line and PLACES each name as its statement arrives. Working memory is the enemy; the sketch is the weapon.

Translate every sentence to an arrow

'A is taller than B' becomes A above B. 'C is shorter than B' places C below B. Reversed wordings ('B is lighter than A') are the same arrow read from the other end — normalize each sentence to 'X above Y' before placing.

Redundancy and the second rank

Longer puzzles add statements that repeat what the chain already implies — recognizing 'nothing new' saves seconds. Questions about the second tallest exist because the endpoints are easy: after building the line, read the queried rank directly off your sketch.

The strategy

Draw the line on paper (or firmly in mind at 3 names — paper at 4+).
Normalize each sentence to 'X above Y' and place immediately.
After placing all statements, verify each one against the finished line.
Answer the exact rank asked — tallest, shortest, second — and check you didn't answer the wrong end.

Common traps

Flipped comparatives ('shorter than' processed as 'taller than').
Answering the opposite end of the question (shortest when asked tallest).
Assuming an order between names no statement connects. Use unconnectedness to eliminate options that depend on it — never as a shortcut to 'cannot be determined': on these puzzles the asked rank is always pinned down, so if that option tempts you, a statement went unread.

Speed · ~45s/item: With immediate placement, three-person puzzles run 20 seconds and five-person puzzles under a minute.

Try it yourself: 4 practice questions

Pick an answer, then reveal it. Nothing is recorded, there is no clock, and none of these questions is ever used in a test.

Question 1 · Easy

Lena is lighter than Kofi. Lena is heavier than Dana. Who is the heaviest?

Reveal the answer

The answer is D — Kofi.

Show why — the worked reasoning

Sketch the order as a chain while reading, placing each person relative to the others. The statements pin down: Kofi > Lena > Dana (reading “>” as “heavier”). So the answer to “Who is the heaviest?” is Kofi. If a statement only repeats known facts, skip it; if two orders were possible, the correct answer would be “cannot be determined”.

Question 2 · Easy

Tomas is slower than Kofi. Tomas is faster than Aiko. Who is the slowest?

Reveal the answer

The answer is D — Aiko.

Show why — the worked reasoning

Sketch the order as a chain while reading, placing each person relative to the others. The statements pin down: Kofi > Tomas > Aiko (reading “>” as “faster”). So the answer to “Who is the slowest?” is Aiko. If a statement only repeats known facts, skip it; if two orders were possible, the correct answer would be “cannot be determined”.

Question 3 · Easy

Mara is taller than Omar. Omar is taller than Lena. Who is the shortest?

Reveal the answer

The answer is D — Lena.

Show why — the worked reasoning

Sketch the order as a chain while reading, placing each person relative to the others. The statements pin down: Mara > Omar > Lena (reading “>” as “taller”). So the answer to “Who is the shortest?” is Lena. If a statement only repeats known facts, skip it; if two orders were possible, the correct answer would be “cannot be determined”.

Question 4 · Easy

Lena is lighter than Aiko. Priya is lighter than Lena. Who is the lightest?

Reveal the answer

The answer is B — Priya.

Show why — the worked reasoning

Sketch the order as a chain while reading, placing each person relative to the others. The statements pin down: Aiko > Lena > Priya (reading “>” as “heavier”). So the answer to “Who is the lightest?” is Priya. If a statement only repeats known facts, skip it; if two orders were possible, the correct answer would be “cannot be determined”.

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Questions people ask

Will logical deduction questions be on the free test?

Maybe. The free test gives verbal & logic 5 of its 20 questions, spread across 11 different question types, so any one test may or may not include this kind.

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