Question
Question: If in a certain code, AUGUST is written as 26-19-4-17-14-14, then how would JANUARY be written as? ...
If in a certain code, AUGUST is written as 26-19-4-17-14-14, then how would JANUARY be written as?
(A). 11-2-15-22-2-19-26
(B). 9-25-11-22-6-17-1
(C). 11-2-15-22-2-5-16
(D). 9-25-11-17-22-12-18
Solution
This particular question belongs to verbal reasoning. In this problem, we’ll try to find the code by writing the alphabet a to z and numbering them 1 to 26. We try to find the code and then in the same code we can write January.
Complete step-by-step answer :
First of all, we’ll try to get the code. For this, we’ll write all the alphabets from a to z and give them numbers from 1 to 26. It means we are actually assigning a particular number to a particular alphabet.
| A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 |
For example, if we want to mention H then we’ll say 8. That’s how this coding works. Now, we’ll use the given information to get the rule. The rule says AUGUST is written as 26-19-4-17-14-14.
Now to get the rule we’ll compare the actual positions of their alphabet and the given code as follows.
| Sr. no. | Alphabet | Given position | Actual position | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | A | 26 | 1 | -1 |
| 2 | U | 19 | 21 | -2 |
| 3 | G | 4 | 7 | -3 |
| 4 | U | 17 | 21 | -4 |
| 5 | S | 14 | 19 | -5 |
| 6 | T | 14 | 20 | -6 |
Here, the difference represents the direction of movement. For example, G has an actual position as 7 and it’s coded as 4 which is actual -3. We are coming 3 steps back. It would have coded 9 then we would have written +2. Also, it’s circular addition or subtraction like a clock. If we add 1 in 26 then it’ll be 1, not 27. That’s why A has an actual position as 1 and mentioned as 26. Because if we come 1 step back from 1 then it’ll be 26.
By observing from the above table, we can say, first place is coming 1 step back, second place is coming 2 steps back, and so on.
Now we’ll give code to the required word and that is JANUARY.
| Sr. no. | Alphabet | Actual Position | Rule | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | J | 10 | Actual -1 | 9 |
| 2 | A | 1 | Actual -2 | 25 |
| 3 | N | 14 | Actual -3 | 11 |
| 4 | U | 21 | Actual -4 | 17 |
| 5 | A | 1 | Actual -5 | 22 |
| 6 | R | 18 | Actual -6 | 12 |
| 7 | Y | 25 | Actual -7 | 18 |
Hence, the code for JANUARY will be 9-25-11-17-22-12-18.
So, Option (D) is the correct option.
Note : Many students make mistakes to understand circular subtraction or addition. We would recommend students to visualize these numbers like a clock mentioned below and then proceed for further calculations. This image is just for understanding that’s why we only focus on 26 and 1 steps.
