A substitution language: good boys play — Aptitude Question
A substitution language: good boys play: In a certain language: 'nik ka pa' means 'you are good' 'ka la ma' means… Answer and worked solution on CodeKairo.
- Topic: Coding & Decoding
- Section: Logical Reasoning
- Difficulty: Medium
- Time target: 90 seconds
Question
In a certain language:
- 'nik ka pa' means 'you are good'
- 'ka la ma' means 'good boys play'
- 'pa ni ma' means 'you play cricket'
Which word means 'play'?
Options
- ka
- la
- ma
- pa
Show the answer and the worked solution
Correct answer: C. ma
Worked solution
- Sentences 2 and 3 share exactly one code word, ma, and exactly one English word, play.
- Therefore ma = play.
- (For confirmation: 'ka' is shared by sentences 1 and 2, whose only common word is 'good'.)
Answer: ma.
The idea
Intersect the code words of two sentences and intersect their meanings. When each intersection has exactly one member, the pairing is settled.
Shortcut. 'play' appears only in sentences 2 and 3, and the one code word those two share is 'ma'. Sentence 1 is not needed at all.
Common trap. "pa" — pa appears in sentences 1 and 3, whose shared English word is 'you', not 'play'; picking it comes from intersecting the wrong pair of sentences.