SSC CGL Reasoning · Free notes
Alphabet and Number Tests: SSC CGL Reasoning
Alphabet and Number Tests has 180 questions in the SSC CGL Tier I bank: 98 from the 2025 shifts, 43 from the 2023 shifts and 39 from the 2024 shifts. None is HARD and 152 are EASY, so the chapter is a source of quick marks, and Tier I gives you about 36 seconds a question. Two habits carry almost all of it. Know each letter's number without counting (A is 1, Z is 26, and the anchors E, J, O, T, Y are 5, 10, 15, 20, 25), and write a word or row out once, numbered, before you answer anything about it. The fast routes on these pages lean on the options to save time, and each one says when it is safe to use.
The handout has every subtopic, worked example, formula and trap with answers shown. The formula sheet is the chapter’s formulas and traps alone, on one page.
Subtopic notes
Letter Position and Alphabet Test
19 PYQsQuestions about where a letter sits in the alphabet, how far apart two letters are, how a word changes when its letters are shifted, and which item stands at a given place in a word, sentence or series.
Arranging Letters and Digits
55 PYQsA word's letters, or a number's digits, are put in order, and the question asks how many keep their place or how far apart two of the new places are.
Dictionary Order
41 PYQsFive or six words are put in the order an English dictionary lists them, by comparing them letter by letter from the left, and the option with that order is chosen.
Word Formation
21 PYQsQuestions that test which words a set of letters can or cannot make: words formed from a longer word, jumbled letters turned into a word, and counts of the words some picked letters can spell.
Address and Data Matching
44 PYQsAn address or a list of entries is compared character by character, and the copy that matches the original exactly, or the entries that match each other, is chosen.
Formula & revision sheet
2 formulas · 27 gotchas across all subtopics — the exam-eve cheat-sheet
Formula & revision sheet
2 formulas · 27 gotchas across all subtopics — the exam-eve cheat-sheet
Watch out for (6)
- Counting the end letters as 'between'→ Letter positions, reverse positions and opposite letters
- Using 26 minus n for the reverse position→ Letter positions, reverse positions and opposite letters
- Counting places in the old word after a sort→ Shifting vowels and consonants, then counting a gap
- Forgetting the wrap at A and Z→ Shifting vowels and consonants, then counting a gap
- Starting 'every 2nd word' at the first word→ Counting places in a word, a sentence or a series
- Counting from the wrong end→ Counting places in a word, a sentence or a series
Watch out for (6)
- Dropping a repeated letter→ Letters that keep their place after sorting
- Answering 'unchanged' when the stem asks 'change'→ Letters that keep their place after sorting
- Mixing places in the cluster with places in the alphabet→ Sorting, then counting the letters between two picks
- Counting the gap with both ends→ Sorting, then counting the letters between two picks
- Arranging before changing the digits→ Digit tests: arranging, summing and checking numbers
- Reading 'last five from the right' as the five largest→ Digit tests: arranging, summing and checking numbers
Watch out for (5)
- Looking past the first difference→ Comparing words letter by letter
- Picking the order instead of the option→ Comparing words letter by letter
- Putting the longer word first→ Long shared beginnings and a word inside a word
- Losing count in a long shared beginning→ Long shared beginnings and a word inside a word
- Answering the first word when the second is asked→ Finding one place in the order
Watch out for (6)
- Checking letters but not counts→ Checking the letter supply
- Judging by meaning instead of letters→ Checking the letter supply
- Taking a near-anagram→ Rearranging letters into a word
- Changing more than one letter→ Rearranging letters into a word
- Using a letter twice→ Counting the words that picked letters can make
- Picking the letters from the wrong places→ Counting the words that picked letters can make
Watch out for (4)
- Reading for meaning→ Checking an address part by part
- Stopping after the first part that matches→ Checking an address part by part
- Comparing every entry with entry 1 when asked 'to each other'→ Matching inside a numbered list
- Overlooking a dropped full stop→ Matching inside a numbered list
PYQ weightage by concept
14 concepts · 180 PYQs — where the marks actually sit, so you know what to drill first
PYQ weightage by concept
14 concepts · 180 PYQs — where the marks actually sit, so you know what to drill first
| Concept | PYQs | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Shifting vowels and consonants, then counting a gap | 8 | 4% |
| Counting places in a word, a sentence or a series | 7 | 4% |
| Letter positions, reverse positions and opposite letters | 4 | 2% |
| Concept | PYQs | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Letters that keep their place after sorting | 28 | 16% |
| Sorting, then counting the letters between two picks | 20 | 11% |
| Digit tests: arranging, summing and checking numbers | 7 | 4% |
| Concept | PYQs | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Long shared beginnings and a word inside a word | 29 | 16% |
| Comparing words letter by letter | 9 | 5% |
| Finding one place in the order | 3 | 2% |
| Concept | PYQs | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Rearranging letters into a word | 9 | 5% |
| Checking the letter supply | 8 | 4% |
| Counting the words that picked letters can make | 4 | 2% |
| Concept | PYQs | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Checking an address part by part | 31 | 17% |
| Matching inside a numbered list | 13 | 7% |
Test yourself on Alphabet and Number Tests
20 past SSC CGL questions from this chapter, timed at 12 minutes and marked the way the exam marks it. You see your score and every answer the moment you finish. Free to start.