Comparison Test of Reasoning

Friends, Comparison Test is one of the promising areas of Reasoning Section of Banking and other Competitive Exams. We are all good at Comparisons but problem is we often confuse while doing these type of problems. In this post we will try to help you solving comparison problems easily with some shortcut techniques. As all of you know, comparison is expressed in phrases like "is greater than", "is less than", "is equal to" etc. We have mathematical symbols to express the above mentioned comparisons.

Greater Than  ---------         >

Less Than       ---------         <

Equal to          ---------         =

You can avoid the confusion by using these symbols while dealing with the test of comparison. It not only reduces the confusion and saves the time, but also helps your mind to pick the correct answer quickly.

In my childhood I had a big confusion between the symbols > and <.   Which one is used for which. Then my uncle told me a technique to avoid confusion. That is., the bigger side represents the greater value.

See the symbols carefully. Its just appear like an Arrow head / tip >

The bigger side represents the greater number and the smaller side (tip) represents the smaller number. 

Now lets discuss some problems on Comparison Test. 

1. Vikas is taller than Shyam but shorter than Umesh. Umesh is taller than Rajitha but shorter than Ganesh. Shyam is taller than Rajitha. Now say who is the shortest person in the group ?

Solution :

To save time just pic the first letters of the names to perform operations,

Vikas is taller than Shyam, that means V > S

Vikas is shorter than Umesh, that means V < U

So, you can write them as U > V > S      -----------(1)

Umesh is taller than Rajitha, that means U > R

Umesh is shorter than Ganesh, that means U < G

 So, you can write them as G > U > R ------- (2)

Shyam is taller than Rajitha, that means S > R   ------ (3)

from 1, 2 and 3 you can say,

G > U > V > S > R

Here, R represents Rajitha. So, she is shorter.

Note : To make the concept clear and easy to understand, we made these many steps with equations. But this is very simple process. You just should take the decisions with a glance and should only write the final result on the paper. 

2. Five of my friends wrote IBPS PO Exam. 

• Alok got good rank than Suresh.
• Surech got good rank than Prakash.
• Alok's rank was not as good as Nikhil's.
• Kabir secured a rank between Alok and Suresh.

Now who has more chances for the selection ?

Solution :

1. A > S
2. S > P
3. A < N (or) N > A
4. K is in the middle of  A and S. But from statement 1 we know that A is greater than S. So,
• A > K > S

so finally, N > A > K > S > P

So,  Nikhil has good chances of selection.

3.  In a group of 5 girls, Kamini is the second tallest girl. Pooja is taller than Mounika. Roopa is tallest among all. Neelam is taller than Pooja. If we make them stand in ascending order (according to their heights), who stands at the second position ?

 Solution :

• K is 2nd tallest 
• P > M
• R > among all (so she is first, we already know that K is second)
• N > P

So, R > K > N > P > M

here K is in second position. So the answer is K, right? wrong. 

Read the question carefully. They've mentioned that the girls stand in ascending order (that means short to tall). But above we have arranged them tall to short. So the answer will be P

4. A is taller than B, C is taller than D. D is taller than B. So who is the tallest person in the group ?

Solution :

According to the given data, 

A > B

C > D

D > B  

so, A > B and C > D > B

here, we know that A is taller than B and C, D are also taller than B. 

But here A may be taller than C and D or shorter than Them. Or it may be between C and D. We can't make exact relation between the heights of A, C and D. So here we cant say the answer. 

5. Amit and Sumit are twins. Richa is younger than Sumit. Richa is younger than Jyothi but older than Sourabh. Sumit is younger than Jyothi. Who is the oldest among all ?

Solution :

Here, there are two names starting with the same letter S (Sumit and Sourabh). So to avoid confusion treat Sumit as Su and Sourabh as So. 

A and S are twins, so A = Su

According to the given data,  J > A = Su > R > So

So, Jyothi is oldest among all.

6. A group of friends have gold coins. Ramu has a gold coin which is heavier than Mohan's and Valuable than Ramesh. The  value of Naresh is more valuable than Ramu's. Naresh has a coin which is lighter than Yogesh. Mohan's coin is cheaper than Ramesh's. Who's coin is more valuable ?

Solution :

Note :  Here you have two similar names Ramu and Ramesh. Both are starting with letters Ram. So here you can take them as Rm and Rh

The main intention of the above problem is to make you confused. Some times they mentioned about weight and some times the value. But here the point is the value of the gold depends on its size. The more heavier the coin, the more value it gets. 

So, 

Rm > M

Rm > Rh

N > R

Y > N

Rh > M

according to above equations, 

you can say  Y > N > Rm > Rh > M

So, the coin of Yogesh is more valuable.

7.  P is heavier than T but lighter than M. N is lighter than S and T. Q is heavier than D but lighter than N. S is not heavier than M. Who is the heaviest among all ?

Solution :

Here we can arrange them in 3 ways,

M > P > T > S > N > Q > D  or

M > P > S > T > N > Q > D or

M > S > P > T > N > Q > D 

In all combinations, M is the heaviest among all. 

Note : If they ask you about the second  / third / fourth heaviest person in the group, you Can't say the answer.

8. Pooran has more bank balance than Sushma but lesser than Singh. If the bank balances of Pooran, Sushma and Singh are X, Y and Z, then which of the following equations is correct ?

1. X < Y < Z
2. Y < X < Z
3. Z < X < Y
4. X < Z < Y

 Solution :

2) Y < X < Z

9. Sita, Malathi, Reshma, Mary and Kamala are going on a safari. For every 5 Kilometers they planned to change the leader according to the Alphabetical Order. And planned to take a tea break for every 10 Kilometers. If they start with Kamala, then who will be the leader of the group after second tea break ?

Solution :



If we arrange their names in alphabetical order,



K              Mal              Mar              Re              Si 

1                2                  3                 4                 5



They start with Kamala as their leader. 



After 5 kilometers Malathi will be the leader. 



After 5 kilometers First Tea break (still Malathi is the leader)



After 5 kilometers Mary will be the leader



After 5 kilometers Second Tea break, (still Mary is the leader)



so the answer is Mary.



 10. Amar, Akbar, Antony and Peter are participating in a running race. Amar can run faster than Akbar, but cant run faster than Peter who cant run as fast as Antony. Now answer the following questions.

1. Who is the fastest runner among all ?
2. Who is slower among all ?
3. Who comes second in the race ?

Solutions :

According to the given data, 

An > Pe > Am > Ak

1. Antony

2. Akbar

3. Peter

That's all for now friends. You can read more reasoning shortcut techniques from here. Happy Reading :)