Blood Relations – Important Notes for Competitive Exams
Introduction
Blood Relations is a common topic in the Reasoning Ability section of competitive exams such as SSC, Banking, Railway, Defence, and State-level exams. Questions from this topic test a candidate’s ability to understand family relationships using given information.
Common Family Relationships
1. Basic Relations
- Father / Mother – Parent
- Son / Daughter – Child
- Brother / Sister – Siblings
2. Extended Relations
- Grandfather / Grandmother – Parent of father or mother
- Grandson / Granddaughter – Child of son or daughter
- Uncle – Brother of father or mother
- Aunt – Sister of father or mother
- Cousin – Child of uncle or aunt
3. In-Law Relations
- Father-in-law / Mother-in-law – Parents of spouse
- Son-in-law / Daughter-in-law – Spouse of child
- Brother-in-law / Sister-in-law – Sibling of spouse or spouse of sibling
Gender Identification Rules
- Words like father, son, brother, husband, uncle → Male
- Words like mother, daughter, sister, wife, aunt → Female
- If gender is not mentioned, do not assume
Important Keywords Used in Questions
- Only son / only daughter → No other siblings
- Pointing to a photograph → Indicates relationship, not direction
- Introducing someone → Relationship must be deduced logically
- My father’s only son → Self or brother (check gender)
Common Question Patterns
1. Single Statement Questions
Based on one sentence describing a relationship.
2. Multiple Statement Questions
More than one relation is given; all must be linked correctly.
3. Puzzle-Based Questions
Require step-by-step family tree formation.
4. Photograph-Based Questions
Relationship must be identified using indirect references.
- Pointing to a photograph, a man said, “She is the daughter of my grandfather’s only son.” How is the girl related to the man?
- A is the brother of B. C is the mother of B. D is the father of C. How is D related to A?
- If P is the sister of Q, Q is the son of R, and R is the wife of S, how is P related to S?
- Pointing to a boy, a woman said, “He is the son of my son’s only sister.” How is the boy related to the woman?
- A is the father of B. C is the sister of B. D is the daughter of C. How is D related to A?
- Introducing a man, a woman said, “He is the husband of the only daughter of my mother.” How is the man related to the woman?
- If A is the brother of B, B is the sister of C, and C is the father of D, how is A related to D?
- Pointing to a photograph, a person said, “She is my father’s wife’s mother.” How is the woman in the photograph related to the person?
- X is the son of Y. Y is the brother of Z. Z is the mother of P. How is X related to P?
- A is the mother of B. B is the brother of C. C is the daughter of D. How is D related to A?
- Pointing to a man, Ramesh said, “His mother is the only daughter of my mother.” How is the man related to Ramesh?
- P is the father of Q. Q is the brother of R. R is the daughter of S. How is S related to P?
- Introducing a girl, a boy said, “She is the daughter of the only son of my grandfather.” How is the girl related to the boy?
- A is the sister of B. B is the father of C. D is the mother of C. How is A related to D?
- Pointing to a woman, a man said, “She is the wife of my mother’s only son.” How is the woman related to the man?
- M is the brother of N. N is the wife of O. O is the father of P. How is M related to P?
- A is the daughter of B. B is the brother of C. C is the mother of D. How is A related to D?
- Pointing to a boy, a girl said, “He is the son of the only son of my grandmother.” How is the boy related to the girl?
- P is the sister of Q. Q is the son of R. R is the brother of S. How is P related to S?
- A is the father of B. B is the mother of C. D is the brother of B. How is D related to C?
- Pointing to a man, a woman said, “His father is my father’s son.” How is the man related to the woman?
- X is the wife of Y. Y is the brother of Z. Z is the father of P. How is X related to P?
- A is the son of B. B is the daughter of C. How is C related to A?
- Pointing to a photograph, a man said, “She is my wife’s brother’s mother.” How is the woman related to the man?
- P is the brother of Q. Q is the sister of R. R is the mother of S. How is P related to S?
Answer
Q1. Sister
Q2. Grandfather
Q3. Daughter
Q4. Grandson
Q5. Granddaughter
Q6. Brother-in-law
Q7. Uncle
Q8. Grandmother
Q9. Cousin
Q10. Husband
Q11. Son
Q12. Mother
Q13. Sister
Q14. Sister-in-law
Q15. Daughter-in-law
Q16. Uncle
Q17. Cousin
Q18. Cousin
Q19. Niece
Q20. Uncle
Q21. Brother
Q22. Aunt
Q23. Grandparent
Q24. Mother-in-law
Q25. Uncle