SSC CGL 2024 Tier-I · 24 September 2024, Shift 1 · General Intelligence and Reasoning · Question 12 of 98

Text as printed on a candidate's response sheet for this shift; answer per SSC's tentative key as marked on that sheet. Solution last reviewed 10 September 2026.

Where this paper and its answers come from

SSC does not publish CGL question papers or a public answer key. The questions and options here are reproduced as printed on a candidate's own response sheet for this shift — the Commission's text, unchanged. Each answer is SSC's tentative key as marked on that sheet; SSC allowed challenges to it and never publishes a final key. The solutions are written by UnlockIAS.

In a certain code language, 'PUPIL' is written as '162116912' and 'PURGE’ is written as '16211875'. How will 'PURSE' be written in that language?

(a)162118159
(b)126118195
(c)162111895
(d)162118195

Answer

Why

Correct — D. Rule: each letter becomes its position in the alphabet, and the numbers are written one after another with nothing between them.

PUPIL is P16 U21 P16 I9 L12, which runs together as 162116912.
PURGE is P16 U21 R18 G7 E5, which runs together as 16211875.

Both given codes match exactly, so nothing is added, doubled or reversed. Apply it to PURSE:

P16 U21 R18 S19 E5 = 162118195 → option (d).

Why the others are wrong

(a)
162118159 — 162118159 has P, U and R right and then writes 159 where 19 and 5 belong. S is 19 and E is 5, so the tail has to read 195.
(b)
126118195 — 126118195 opens 126 instead of 1621. The digits of P (16) and U (21) have been shuffled, so the first two letters no longer decode.
(c)
162111895 — 162111895 has the right digits in the wrong order: its tail reads 11895 where 18-19-5 gives 18195. The 8 and the 1 after it have traded places, so 19 for S cannot be read.

Concept

The code here is simply A = 1 through Z = 26, with the numbers concatenated and no separator.

Verify on both given words before coding the target. PUPIL comes to nine digits and PURGE to eight, and both match their positions exactly, which proves no extra operation is hiding inside the code.

Because the digits run together, a code is readable only if you know where each letter's number begins. That is exactly what the wrong options attack: they are the right digits placed in the wrong order.

All four options here are made from the same nine digits, so nothing can be settled by glancing at which digits are present. Only the order separates them, which is why writing the five numbers out separately before joining them is worth the extra second.

Key facts

P = 16, U = 21, R = 18, S = 19 and E = 5.
PURGE is coded 16211875, which is 16-21-18-7-5 run together.
PURSE therefore codes as 16-21-18-19-5, or 162118195.

Study next

Alphabet positions A = 1 to Z = 26, forwards and backwardsCodes that write the positions in reverse orderCodes that double the vowels or add a constant to every position

Common traps

Splitting the digit string wrongly and reading 1-6-2-1 where 16-21 is meant.
Assuming an extra operation such as doubling or reversal without testing both given words.
Losing the order of two-digit numbers when 18 and 19 sit next to each other.

The same A = 1 code is dressed up two ways elsewhere. At 11 Sep 2024, 16:00, Reasoning Q.14 the positions of BRING are written back to front, so 7149182 reads G N I R B. At 11 Sep 2024, 09:00, Reasoning Q.25 the vowels are doubled, so DEMAND becomes 4-10-13-2-14-4.

Related PYQs

No directly related past PYQ was found.

Topic: Coding & de-coding — all 77 SSC CGL questions on it, every solved shift.