SSC CGL 2025 Tier-I · 20 September 2025, Shift 1 · General Intelligence and Reasoning · Question 12 of 100

We transcribed this text from the pictures on a candidate's response sheet for this shift; the answer is the key SSC colour-marked on that sheet. Solution last reviewed 13 September 2026.

Where this paper and its answers come from

SSC does not publish CGL question papers or a public answer key. From 2025 the candidate response sheet prints every question and option as a picture, so the text here is transcribed from those pictures for this shift and checked against them independently; where the layout carries meaning, the picture is shown as well. Each answer is the key SSC colour-marked on that sheet. SSC released a tentative key for challenge and later its final one, both only to candidates behind a login, and the sheet does not say which of the two it carries. The solutions are written by UnlockIAS.

If DESIGN is written as FGVKIQ, how is VISION written?

(a)XKYKQP
(b)XKZLQP
(c)XKVKQQ
(d)YKYLPP

Answer

Why

Correct — C.
Rule: +2, +2, +3, then repeat, by position in the word.

DESIGN → FGVKIQ: D+2 = F, E+2 = G, S+3 = V, I+2 = K, G+2 = I, N+3 = Q.

VISION: V+2 = X, I+2 = K, S+3 = V
I+2 = K, O+2 = Q, N+3 = Q
→ XKVKQQ, option (c).

Why the others are wrong

(a)
XKYKQP — Y in third place is S+6, and P in sixth is N+2. The code needs S+3 = V and N+3 = Q there.
(b)
XKZLQP — Z, L and P in places three, four and six are S+7, I+3 and N+2. The code gives V, K and Q there.
(d)
YKYLPP — Y first is V+3, but the first letter moves +2 (D to F), so V becomes X.

Concept

In letter-shift coding, find how far each letter moves by comparing the word with its code position by position. Alphabet positions make it quick: A = 1 through Z = 26.

DESIGN moves +2, +2, +3, +2, +2, +3. Apply the same moves to the same positions in VISION. The pattern belongs to the positions, not to the letters.

A shortcut: S, I and N sit third, fourth and sixth in both DESIGN and VISION, so they must code to V, K and Q in those places. Options (a), (b) and (d) all miss the V in third place.

Key facts

DESIGN → FGVKIQ moves +2, +2, +3, +2, +2, +3.
VISION under the same moves is XKVKQQ.
E = 5, J = 10, O = 15, T = 20, Y = 25 are quick anchors for letter positions.

Study next

Codes with a uniform shift, such as −1 for every letterCodes with a repeating three-step shift such as +1, −2, 0Codes that combine a shift with reversing the word

Common traps

Applying +2 to every letter, which gives XKUKQP, not an option
Counting D to F as +3 by including the starting letter

15 Sep 2025, 12:30, Reasoning Q.18 also repeats a three-step shift: FOLDER → GMLECR is +1, −2, 0, so MARKET → NYRLCT (keyed a).

21 Sep 2025, 16:00, Reasoning Q.20 uses one uniform shift: SNAKE → RMZJD is −1 throughout, so ZEBRA → YDAQZ (keyed a).

Related PYQs

No directly related past PYQ was found.

Topic: Coding & de-coding — all 138 SSC CGL questions on it, every solved shift.