A + B means 'A is mother of B'
A - B means 'A is husband of B'
A × B means 'A is son of B'
A ÷ B means 'A is brother of B'
If Q ÷ U × K × H - D + J, then how is K related to J?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → Brother
In a coded relation, each symbol stands for one relation. The expression is broken into pairs of letters joined by a symbol, and each pair is read as “the letter on the left is the … of the letter on the right”.
The codes given in the question:
A + B means A is the mother of B
A − B means A is the husband of B
A × B means A is the son of B
A ÷ B means A is the brother of B
The expression Q ÷ U × K × H − D + J breaks into five pairs:
Q ÷ U — the symbol ÷ means “is the brother of”. So Q is the brother of U.
U × K — the symbol × means “is the son of”. So U is the son of K.
K × H — × again. So K is the son of H. This is the pair that tells us K is male.
H − D — the symbol − means “is the husband of”. So H is the husband of D, and K is the son of both H and D.
D + J — the symbol + means “is the mother of”. So D is the mother of J; J is a child of H and D, like K.
K and J are children of the same parents and K is male, so K is J’s brother. J’s own gender is not given, but it is not needed for K’s relation to J.
Tip: The symbols mean only what the question defines for them. Here × is “son of” and + is “mother of”; in another paper the same signs may stand for other relations, so read the codes afresh every time.