Select the option that can replace the question mark (?) in the following series. BH14, CJ17, DL20, EN23, ?

Correct — A. Read the term as three separate series printed side by side.

Rule: first letter +1, second letter +2, number +3.

B → C → D → E → F
H → J → L → N → P
14 → 17 → 20 → 23 → 26

Reassembling the three gives FP26 → option (a).

Why the others are wrong

• (b)
  GO24 — GO24 fails on the number: 23 + 3 = 26, not 24. Its G also skips a place past F.
• (c)
  GP26 — GP26 gets the second letter and the number right, then takes the first letter two steps from E instead of one.
• (d)
  FO24 — FO24 stalls on the second track. N + 2 = P, and O is only one step on from N.

A mixed letter-number term is three independent series sharing a slot. Solve each on its own and reassemble at the end — reading the term as a whole teaches you nothing.

Convert letters to positions when the step is not obvious. B2, C3, D4, E5 gives +1, while H8, J10, L12, N14 gives +2. The number track usually carries the simplest step of the three, and here it is +3.

Key facts

• B, C, D, E advance one place each, so the fifth term starts with F.
• H, J, L, N advance two places each, so the fifth second letter is P.
• 14, 17, 20, 23 advance by 3, so the fifth number is 26.

Common traps

• Carrying the first letter's +1 step across to the second letter
• Stopping as soon as one track matches an option
• Adding 1 to the number because the first letters add 1

No directly related past PYQ was found.