In a certain code '253' means "books are old", '546 means "man is old" and '378' means "buy good book". What stands for "are" in that code?

Appeared in: RRB Staff Nurse Delhi-2015

Explanation

The code for 'are' is found by comparing the given statements and eliminating common words and their corresponding numbers.
Comparing 'books are old' (253) and 'man is old' (546), the common word 'old' corresponds to the common number '5'.
Comparing 'books are old' (253) and 'buy good book' (378), the common word 'book(s)' corresponds to the common number '3'.
In the statement 'books are old' (253), since '5' is 'old' and '3' is 'books', the remaining number '2' must stand for the remaining word 'are'.

Option B: The number '4' is part of the code '546' for 'man is old'. After establishing '5' means 'old', '4' could mean either 'man' or 'is', but not 'are'.
Option C: The number '5' is the code for 'old', as it is the common digit in the codes for 'books are old' (253) and 'man is old' (546).
Option D: The number '6' is part of the code '546' for 'man is old'. After establishing '5' means 'old', '6' could mean either 'man' or 'is', but not 'are'.

Visual 1: Flowchart - A flowchart demonstrating the step-by-step elimination process. It would show the comparison of statements 1 & 2 to isolate 'old' -> 5, then statements 1 & 3 to isolate 'books' -> 3, and finally deducing 'are' -> 2 from statement 1.

Clinical Relevance

Nursing practice connection: This is primarily an exam-oriented knowledge point with limited direct bedside application, so retain Coding-Decoding by comparison as background academic context rather than a clinical decision trigger.
This question assesses logical reasoning and pattern recognition, which are general aptitude skills required for nursing entrance exams.
These skills are foundational for problem-solving in any field, including nursing, where a nurse must quickly analyze patient data, identify patterns, and make logical deductions for effective care.
What if? - If the first statement was '253' means 'books are new', then '5' would no longer be a common digit between the first two statements. The entire decoding logic would change, and we would need to find a new commonality to start the process.

How to Approach the Question

First, carefully write down all the coded statements and their corresponding phrases to visualize the data.
Look for pairs of statements that have a common word.
Identify the common number in the codes for those statements. This number represents the common word.
Repeat this process of finding common words and numbers to decode as many words as possible.
Finally, use the process of elimination within a single statement. Once you have decoded some words, the remaining number must correspond to the remaining word.
Cross-check your decoded values with all statements to ensure consistency before selecting the final answer.

Concept Tested & Keywords

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Practise the full RRB Staff Nurse Delhi-2015

Attempt every question from this paper in a timed mock, then review the full solution for each one.