Symbols become relationships
Some questions hide the relation words behind symbols: A + B might mean "A is the mother of B". In this lesson you turn each symbol into a plain sentence, draw the family, and only then answer, using only the genders the symbols really give.
Guess first
In a code, P @ Q means "P is the father of Q" and P # Q means "P is the sister of Q". If A @ B # C, how is C related to A?
Show answer
Correct answer: A
A @ B: A is B's father. B # C: B is C's sister, so B and C share their parents, and A is C's father too. C is A's child. No symbol has C on its left, so C's gender is not given: son or daughter.
Option B: B # C says B is a sister. It says nothing about C; reading it as "C is B's sister" turns the pair around.
Option C: That treats # as another "father of" link. # joins B and C as brother and sister, on the same rung.
Option D: Father is A as seen from C: the reverse question.
Hint: Write each pair as a sentence: "left is the ... of right".
The symbol # told you about B, not about C. That one habit, reading each pair from the left, decides most coded questions.
A code is a small dictionary
A coded relation is a sentence written in a code you are handed with the question.
The code key a small dictionary
says what each symbol means
One symbol between two names one fact
links only the two names beside it
The name on the left the subject
the symbol gives this person's gender
Writing the pairs as sentences decoding
done before any drawing
Unless a question gives its own key, the questions in this lesson use this one:
| Symbol | Meaning |
|---|---|
| A + B | A is the mother of B |
| A − B | A is the brother of B |
| A × B | A is the husband of B |
| A ÷ B | A is the daughter of B |
See it: one expression, three facts
Take P + Q − R. Split it at each symbol and read every pair from the left:
Decode P + Q − R:
- P + Q: P is the mother of Q. (P is a woman.)
- Q − R: Q is the brother of R. (Q is a man.)
- Brothers and sisters share their parents, so P is R's mother too.
- R stands on the right of every symbol, so R's gender is not given.
flowchart TD P["P: mother"] --> Q["Q: brother of R"] P --> R["R: gender not given"]
So P is R's mother, and R is P's child: a son or a daughter, the code does not say which.
Try it on paper. Make your own key with three symbols. Write one expression about your own family and ask someone at home to decode it.
Find the rule
Using the key above, which statement is certain from K ÷ L + M?
Show answer
Correct answer: A
K ÷ L: K is L's daughter. L + M: L is M's mother. So K and M are both L's children, and K is a woman: K is M's sister.
Option B: M is on the right of every symbol, so M's gender is not given. M may be K's brother.
Option C: + makes L a mother, not a father.
Option D: K ÷ L says K is L's daughter. This reads the pair backwards.
Hint: Which names stand on the left of a symbol? Only their genders are given.
Using the key above, if P − Q + R, how is P related to R?
Show answer
Correct answer: A
P − Q: P is Q's brother. Q + R: Q is R's mother. So P is the brother of R's mother: R's maternal uncle, मामा.
Option B: The link runs through R's mother Q, so the uncle is on the mother's side.
Option C: This reads Q + R backwards, as "R is Q's mother". Then P would be R's son.
Option D: P is Q's brother. The question asks about R, one rung below Q.
Hint: Decode both pairs, then climb from R.
Name the rule
Translate, then draw.
- Each symbol joins only the two names beside it.
- Read every pair as "left is the ... of right".
- A symbol gives the gender of the left person only.
- Brothers and sisters share their parents: link them before you answer.
- Draw the family, then answer from the person after "related to".
Symbols carry no meaning of their own, so the mind fills gaps with guesses: it reads a pair the wrong way round, or gives a gender to the wrong person. Writing each pair as a plain sentence takes a few seconds and keeps every fact in its place.
Worked, half-done, solo
Question
Using the key above, if M + N − O × P, how is M related to P?
Solution
- Decode each pair
M + N: M is N's mother. N − O: N is O's brother. O × P: O is P's husband.
- Link the family
N and O are brothers, so M is O's mother too. O is married to P.
- Climb from P
P's husband is O, and O's mother is M. The husband's mother is the mother-in-law.
Answer: M is P's mother-in-law, सास.
Watch out: N is in the expression but not on the path. He only tells you that M is O's mother.
Now finish one that is half done.
Using the key above, if A ÷ B + C, how is C related to A? Decode: A is B's daughter, and B is C's mother. So A and C share their mother B. No symbol has C on its left. So C is A's ...
Show answer
Correct answer: A
A and C are both B's children, so they are siblings. C's gender is never given, so the exact answer is "brother or sister".
Option B: Nothing says C is a woman. A is the daughter; C stands on the right of every symbol.
Option C: Nothing says C is a man either.
Option D: This reads B + C backwards, as "C is B's mother". Then C would be A's grandmother.
Hint: Whose gender does each symbol give?
And one on your own.
In a code, A ∆ B means "A is the father of B", A % B means "A is the sister of B" and A & B means "A is the mother of B". If W ∆ X % Y & Z, how is W related to Z?
Show answer
Correct answer: A
W ∆ X: W is X's father. X % Y: X is Y's sister, so W is Y's father too. Y & Z: Y is Z's mother. So W is the father of Z's mother: Z's maternal grandfather, नाना.
Option B: The link runs through Z's mother Y, so the grandfather is on the mother's side.
Option C: W is Y's father. Z is one rung lower.
Option D: Mother is Y, Z's mother. This stops one link before W.
Hint: Decode the three pairs, then climb from Z.
The traps
- A pair read backwards: "A + B" is "A is the mother of B", never "B is the mother of A".
- A gender from the wrong side: "B # C" (B is C's sister) says B is a woman. It says nothing about C.
- Names that are not neighbours: each symbol joins only the two names beside it.
- Brothers and sisters left unlinked: if P + Q − R, then P is R's mother too.
- Symbols mixed up: look at the key once more before you choose.
Using the key above, G + H − K. Asha said: "K is G's son." What went wrong?
Show answer
Correct answer: A
G + H: G is H's mother. H − K: H is K's brother, so G is K's mother too. K is G's child, but no symbol gives K's gender: son or daughter. The − sign describes H, the name on its left.
Option B: Read backwards, G + H would make H the mother of G; but H is a brother, so that reading breaks down. Asha's answer does not come from it.
Option C: The reverse would describe G as seen from K: mother.
Option D: "Son" needs K to be a man, and nothing says so.
Hint: Which name stands on the left of the − sign?
Mixed check
Rakesh's father and Sunita's father are brothers. Sunita is a girl. Which Hindi word names Sunita for Rakesh?
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Correct answer: A
The two fathers are brothers, so the lines meet at the fathers' parents: two up, two down, a cousin. The first rung is Rakesh's father, and the middle sibling is a brother: चचेरी बहन.
Option B: फुफेरी बहन is the daughter of the father's sister. Here the father's sibling is a brother.
Option C: ममेरी बहन is on the mother's side. Rakesh's link starts with his father.
Option D: Rakesh and Sunita have different fathers, so they are cousins, not brother and sister.
Hint: Lesson 8: find the meeting point, then take the side from the first rung.
Using the key above, in P + Q − R + S, how many generations above S is P?
Show answer
Correct answer: A
P is Q's mother, and Q is R's brother, so P is R's mother too. R is S's mother. From S: R is one rung up, P two.
Option B: Three is the number of symbols. The − link (brother) adds no rung.
Option C: This misses one rung: P is above R, and R is above S.
Option D: Every pair is decoded, so the count is fixed.
Hint: Lesson 7: decode, then count only the parent steps.
Quick reference
Coded relations
- Split
- one symbol joins only its two neighbours P + Q − R: P with Q, Q with R
- Read
- left is the ... of right A + B: A is the mother of B
- Gender
- only the left person's, from the symbol B # C (sister): B is a woman, C unknown
- Link
- brothers and sisters share parents P + Q − R: P is R's mother too
- Answer
- draw, then climb from the person after "related to" name it with lessons 1 to 8
Why it works: a code only renames the relation words. Once each pair is a plain sentence, the question is an ordinary family question.
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