Seating Arrangement Puzzles — MCQs with Answers (Set 1)

Room I has 1 free slot, room II has 2, and room III has 3. Placing P and Q in different rooms gives 3 x 2 = 6 ways. Placing both in the same room works only for room II or room III, adding 2 more ways. Total: 8.

Seven friends sit around a circular table, facing the centre, in seven positions numbered 1 to 7 clockwise. Place Ekant at position 1. Faiz sits second to the right of Ekant, so Faiz is at position 3. Gopal sits immediately to the left of Ekant, so Gopal is at position 7. Hina does not sit next to Ekant, so Hina cannot be at position 2 (position 7 is already Gopal). Ishaan sits immediately to the right of Hina. Testing the open positions for Hina, only Hina at position 4 lets every remaining clue fit: Ishaan then sits at position 5. Jamuna does not sit next to Gopal at position 7, so Jamuna cannot be at position 6. That leaves position 2 for Jamuna and position 6 for Kartik. Kartik does not sit next to Faiz, and position 6 is not next to Faiz’s position 3, so this fits too. The full circle, clockwise from Ekant, is: Ekant, Jamuna, Faiz, Hina, Ishaan, Kartik, Gopal. Kartik is at position 6, and position 7 is immediately to his right. Gopal sits at position 7. So Gopal sits immediately to the right of Kartik.

Six friends sit around a circular table, and everyone faces away from the centre, outward. Number the seats 1 to 6 clockwise, starting from Vinod’s seat as seat 1. Facing outward flips the usual rule: a person’s right hand now points to the next seat clockwise. Their left hand points to the previous seat, going clockwise. Yashika sits immediately to the right of Vinod, one seat forward from seat 1. So Yashika sits in seat 2. Anjali sits directly opposite Vinod. In a 6-seat circle, opposite means 3 seats away. So Anjali sits in seat 4. Bipin sits second to the left of Vinod, two seats back from seat 1. Moving back twice from seat 1 wraps around to seat 5. So Bipin sits in seat 5. Only seats 3 and 6 are left, for Devendra and Charul. Charul does not sit next to Anjali. The seats next to Anjali’s seat 4 are seat 3 and seat 5. Seat 5 is already taken, so this rule means Charul cannot be in seat 3. So Charul sits in seat 6, and Devendra sits in seat 3. Every seat is filled: Vinod 1, Yashika 2, Devendra 3, Anjali 4, Bipin 5, Charul 6. Second to the left of Charul means two seats back from seat 6. Moving back twice from seat 6 lands on seat 4. Anjali sits in seat 4. So Anjali sits second to the left of Charul.

Six students sit around a circular table, and everyone faces away from the centre, outward. Number the seats 1 to 6 clockwise, starting from Gaurav’s seat as seat 1. Facing outward flips the usual rule: a person’s right hand now points to the next seat clockwise. Their left hand points to the previous seat, going clockwise. Himani sits immediately to the right of Gaurav, one seat forward from seat 1. So Himani sits in seat 2. Indira sits directly opposite Gaurav. In a 6-seat circle, opposite means 3 seats away. So Indira sits in seat 4. Jagdish sits second to the left of Gaurav, two seats back from seat 1. Moving back twice from seat 1 wraps around to seat 5. So Jagdish sits in seat 5. Only seats 3 and 6 are left, for Latika and Kamla. Kamla does not sit next to Indira. The seats next to Indira’s seat 4 are seat 3 and seat 5. Seat 5 is already taken, so this rule means Kamla cannot be in seat 3. So Kamla sits in seat 6, and Latika sits in seat 3. Every seat is filled: Gaurav 1, Himani 2, Latika 3, Indira 4, Jagdish 5, Kamla 6. Immediately to Himani’s left, since everyone faces outward, is the previous seat, seat 1. Gaurav sits in seat 1. So Gaurav sits immediately to the left of Himani.

Six friends sit around a circular table, and everyone faces away from the centre, outward. Number the seats 1 to 6 clockwise, starting from Neelam’s seat as seat 1. Facing outward flips the usual rule: a person’s right hand now points to the next seat clockwise. Their left hand points to the previous seat, going clockwise. Parul sits second to the right of Neelam, two seats forward from seat 1. So Parul sits in seat 3. Raghav sits immediately to the left of Neelam, one seat back from seat 1. Moving back once from seat 1 wraps around to seat 6. So Raghav sits in seat 6. Suman sits directly opposite Neelam. In a 6-seat circle, opposite means 3 seats away. So Suman sits in seat 4. Only seats 2 and 5 are left, for Urvashi and Tejas. Tejas does not sit next to Neelam. The seats next to Neelam’s seat 1 are seat 6 and seat 2. Seat 6 is already taken, so this rule means Tejas cannot be in seat 2. So Tejas sits in seat 5, and Urvashi sits in seat 2. Every seat is filled: Neelam 1, Urvashi 2, Parul 3, Suman 4, Tejas 5, Raghav 6. Opposite Tejas’s seat 5, three seats away, is seat 2. Urvashi sits in seat 2. So Urvashi sits directly opposite Tejas.

Six colleagues sit around a circular table, facing the centre. Number the seats 1 to 6 clockwise, starting from Nidhi’s seat as seat 1. Facing the centre means a person’s left hand points to the next seat clockwise, and their right hand points to the previous seat. Onkar sits directly opposite Nidhi. In a 6-seat circle, opposite means 3 seats away. So Onkar sits in seat 4. Padma sits immediately to the left of Nidhi, one seat forward from seat 1. So Padma sits in seat 2. Quresh sits second to the left of Nidhi, two seats forward from seat 1. So Quresh sits in seat 3. Only seats 5 and 6 are left, for Sameer and Ritika. Ritika does not sit next to Onkar. The seats next to Onkar’s seat 4 are seat 3 and seat 5. Seat 3 is already taken, so this rule means Ritika cannot be in seat 5. So Ritika sits in seat 6, and Sameer sits in seat 5. Every seat is filled: Nidhi 1, Padma 2, Quresh 3, Onkar 4, Sameer 5, Ritika 6. Count from Padma’s seat, moving left, which is clockwise, round to Sameer’s seat. From seat 2, the next seats clockwise are seat 3, then seat 4, then seat 5. Seat 5 is Sameer’s seat, so seats 3 and 4 sit between them. Seat 3 is Quresh, and seat 4 is Onkar. So exactly 2 people sit between Padma and Sameer, counting this way.

Five friends sit around a circular table, facing the centre. Number the seats 1 to 5 clockwise, starting from Ishwar’s seat as seat 1. Facing the centre means a person’s left hand points to the next seat clockwise, and their right hand points to the previous seat. Leela sits immediately to the left of Ishwar, one seat forward from seat 1. So Leela sits in seat 2. Kunal sits immediately to the right of Ishwar, one seat back from seat 1. Moving back once from seat 1 wraps around to seat 5. So Kunal sits in seat 5. Jaya sits second to the right of Ishwar, two seats back from seat 1. Moving back twice from seat 1 lands on seat 4. So Jaya sits in seat 4. Only seat 3 is left, so Manoj sits in seat 3. This also matches the last clue: Manoj sits immediately to the right of Jaya, landing on seat 3. Every seat is filled: Ishwar 1, Leela 2, Manoj 3, Jaya 4, Kunal 5. The seat immediately to Manoj’s left is the next seat clockwise from seat 3, seat 4. Jaya sits in seat 4. So Jaya sits immediately to the left of Manoj.

Six relatives sit around a circular table, facing the centre. Number the seats 1 to 6 clockwise, starting from Chandan’s seat as seat 1. Facing the centre means a person’s left hand points to the next seat clockwise, and their right hand points to the previous seat. Deepa sits directly opposite Chandan. In a 6-seat circle, opposite means 3 seats away. So Deepa sits in seat 4. Eshwar sits immediately to the left of Chandan, one seat forward from seat 1. So Eshwar sits in seat 2. Falguni sits second to the right of Chandan, two seats back from seat 1. Moving back twice from seat 1 wraps around to seat 5. So Falguni sits in seat 5. Only seats 3 and 6 are left, for Hema and Girish. Girish does not sit next to Deepa. The seats next to Deepa’s seat 4 are seat 3 and seat 5. Seat 5 is already taken, so this rule means Girish cannot be in seat 3. So Girish sits in seat 6, and Hema sits in seat 3. Every seat is filled: Chandan 1, Eshwar 2, Hema 3, Deepa 4, Falguni 5, Girish 6. The seat immediately to Falguni’s right is the one just before seat 5, seat 4. Deepa sits in seat 4. So Deepa sits immediately to the right of Falguni.

Five students sit around a circular table, facing the centre. Number the seats 1 to 5 clockwise, starting from Waseem’s seat as seat 1. Facing the centre means a person’s left hand points to the next seat clockwise, and their right hand points to the previous seat. Yamini sits immediately to the right of Waseem, one seat back from seat 1. Moving back once from seat 1 wraps around to seat 5. So Yamini sits in seat 5. Zubin sits second to the right of Waseem, two seats back from seat 1. Moving back twice from seat 1 lands on seat 4. So Zubin sits in seat 4. Only seats 2 and 3 are left, for Bela and Aakash. Aakash does not sit next to Waseem. The seats next to Waseem’s seat 1 are seat 5 and seat 2. Seat 5 is already taken, so this rule means Aakash cannot be in seat 2. So Aakash sits in seat 3, and Bela sits in seat 2. Every seat is filled: Waseem 1, Bela 2, Aakash 3, Zubin 4, Yamini 5. Second to the left of Yamini means two seats forward from seat 5. Moving forward twice from seat 5 wraps around to seat 2. Seat 2 is Bela’s seat. So Bela sits second to the left of Yamini.

Six friends sit around a circular table, facing the centre. Number the seats 1 to 6 clockwise, starting from Qadir’s seat as seat 1. Facing the centre means a person’s left hand points to the next seat clockwise, and their right hand points to the previous seat. Sarita sits immediately to the left of Qadir, one seat forward from seat 1. So Sarita sits in seat 2. Ramesh sits second to the right of Qadir, two seats back from seat 1. Moving back twice from seat 1 wraps around to seat 5. So Ramesh sits in seat 5. Tanvi sits directly opposite Qadir. In a 6-seat circle, opposite means 3 seats away. So Tanvi sits in seat 4. Umesh sits immediately to the right of Tanvi, one seat back from seat 4. So Umesh sits in seat 3. Only seat 6 is left, so Vidya sits in seat 6. Every seat is filled: Qadir 1, Sarita 2, Umesh 3, Tanvi 4, Ramesh 5, Vidya 6. Count from Sarita’s seat, moving left, which is clockwise, round to Ramesh’s seat. From seat 2, the next seats clockwise are seat 3, then seat 4, then seat 5. Seat 5 is Ramesh’s seat, so seats 3 and 4 sit between them. Seat 3 is Umesh, and seat 4 is Tanvi. So exactly 2 people sit between Sarita and Ramesh, counting this way.

Five players sit around a circular table, facing the centre. Number the seats 1 to 5 clockwise, starting from Lalit’s seat as seat 1. Facing the centre means a person’s left hand points to the next seat clockwise, and their right hand points to the previous seat. Madhavi sits second to the left of Lalit, two seats forward from seat 1. Moving forward twice from seat 1 lands on seat 3. So Madhavi sits in seat 3. Nikhil sits immediately to the right of Lalit, one seat back from seat 1. Moving back once from seat 1 wraps around to seat 5. So Nikhil sits in seat 5. Only seats 2 and 4 are left, for Omkar and Poonam. Omkar does not sit next to Nikhil. The seats next to Nikhil’s seat 5 are seat 4 and seat 1. Seat 1 is already taken, so this rule means Omkar cannot be in seat 4. So Omkar sits in seat 2, and Poonam sits in seat 4. This also matches the last clue: Poonam sits second to the left of Omkar, landing on seat 4. Every seat is filled: Lalit 1, Omkar 2, Madhavi 3, Poonam 4, Nikhil 5. The seat immediately to Nikhil’s left is the next seat clockwise from seat 5, seat 1. Lalit sits in seat 1. So Lalit sits immediately to the left of Nikhil.

Six colleagues sit around a circular table, facing the centre. Number the seats 1 to 6 clockwise, starting from Firoz’s seat as seat 1. Facing the centre means a person’s left hand points to the next seat clockwise, and their right hand points to the previous seat. Geeta sits directly opposite Firoz. In a 6-seat circle, opposite means 3 seats away. So Geeta sits in seat 4. Harish sits second to the right of Firoz, two seats back from seat 1. Moving back twice from seat 1 wraps around to seat 5. So Harish sits in seat 5. Ila sits second to the left of Geeta, two seats forward from seat 4. Moving forward twice from seat 4 lands on seat 6. So Ila sits in seat 6. Only seats 2 and 3 are left, for Kiran and Jyoti. Jyoti does not sit next to Firoz. The seats next to Firoz’s seat 1 are seat 6 and seat 2. Seat 6 is already taken, so this rule means Jyoti cannot be in seat 2. So Jyoti sits in seat 3, and Kiran sits in seat 2. Every seat is filled: Firoz 1, Kiran 2, Jyoti 3, Geeta 4, Harish 5, Ila 6. The seat immediately to Ila’s right is the one just before seat 6, seat 5. Harish sits in seat 5. So Harish sits immediately to the right of Ila.

Five friends sit around a circular table, facing the centre. Number the seats 1 to 5 clockwise, starting from Anil’s seat as seat 1. Facing the centre means a person’s left hand points to the next seat clockwise. So a person’s right hand points to the previous seat, going clockwise. Charu sits immediately to the left of Anil, one seat clockwise from seat 1. So Charu sits in seat 2. Bharat sits second to the right of Anil, two seats back from seat 1. Moving back twice from seat 1 wraps around to seat 4. So Bharat sits in seat 4. Deepak sits second to the right of Charu, two seats back from seat 2. Moving back twice from seat 2 lands on seat 5. So Deepak sits in seat 5. Ekta sits second to the right of Deepak, two seats back from seat 5. Moving back twice from seat 5 lands on seat 3. So Ekta sits in seat 3. Every seat is now filled: Anil 1, Charu 2, Ekta 3, Bharat 4, Deepak 5. The seat immediately to Anil’s right is the one just before seat 1, seat 5. Deepak sits in seat 5. So Deepak sits immediately to the right of Anil.

Four cousins sit in a row of 4 positions, numbered 1 to 4 from the left. Aarav sits at the rightmost position, so Aarav is at position 4. Bina sits immediately to the left of Aarav, so Bina is at position 3. Only positions 1 and 2 remain, for Zoya and Chirag. Position 2 sits immediately next to Bina’s position 3. Zoya does not sit immediately next to Bina, so Zoya is not at position 2. So Zoya sits at position 1, and Chirag sits at position 2. The full row is: Zoya, Chirag, Bina, Aarav. In a row of four, second from the right is position 3. Bina is the one sitting at position 3. So Bina sits second from the right.

Five neighbours sit in a row of 5 positions, numbered 1 to 5 from the left. Varun sits exactly in the middle, so Varun is at position 3. Yash sits at the leftmost position, so Yash is at position 1. Uday sits immediately to the right of Varun, so Uday is at position 4. Only positions 2 and 5 remain, for Wasim and Tarun. Wasim does not sit at the rightmost position, so Wasim is not at position 5. So Wasim sits at position 2, and Tarun sits at position 5. The full row is: Yash, Wasim, Varun, Uday, Tarun. Yash is at position 1, and Uday is at position 4. Positions 2 and 3 sit between them, held by Wasim and Varun. So exactly 2 people sit between Yash and Uday.

Four friends sit in a row of 4 positions, numbered 1 to 4 from the left. Rohit sits at the leftmost position, so Rohit is at position 1. Priya sits immediately to the left of Qasim, so the two sit as one pair. This pair fits only at positions 2-3, or at positions 3-4. Sunita does not sit immediately next to Rohit, so Sunita cannot be at position 2. If the pair sat at 3-4, Sunita would be forced into position 2. That is not allowed, so the pair sits at positions 2 and 3 instead. Priya is at position 2, and Qasim is at position 3. Only position 4 remains, so Sunita sits at position 4. The full row is: Rohit, Priya, Qasim, Sunita. The rightmost position, position 4, is held by Sunita.

Five students sit in a row of 5 positions, numbered 1 to 5 from the left. Om sits exactly in the middle, so Om is at position 3. Meera sits second from the right end, so Meera is at position 4. Naveen sits immediately to the left of Om, so Naveen is at position 2. Kavya sits at the leftmost position, so Kavya is at position 1. Only position 5 remains, so Lokesh sits at position 5. The full row is: Kavya, Naveen, Om, Meera, Lokesh. Om sits at position 3, and position 4 is immediately to his right. Meera is the one sitting at position 4. So Meera sits immediately to the right of Om.

Four colleagues sit in a row of 4 positions, numbered 1 to 4 from the left. Hemant sits immediately to the right of Gita, so the two sit side by side. Isha sits immediately to the right of Hemant, so the three form one block. This block must read Gita, then Hemant, then Isha, across three straight positions. The block fits only at positions 1-2-3, or at positions 2-3-4. Gita does not sit at the left end, so the block cannot start at position 1. So the block sits at positions 2, 3 and 4. Gita is at position 2, Hemant is at position 3, and Isha is at position 4. Only position 1 remains, and Jatin sits at one of the row’s two ends. Position 1 is an end, so Jatin sits there. The full row is: Jatin, Gita, Hemant, Isha. Second from the left is position 2, held by Gita.

Five people sit in a row of 5 positions, numbered 1 to 5 from the left. Divya sits exactly in the middle, so Divya is at position 3. Chetan sits immediately to the right of Divya, so Chetan is at position 4. Farhan sits immediately to the left of Divya, so Farhan is at position 2. Only positions 1 and 5 are left, for Bhavna and Esha. Esha does not sit at the left end, so Esha is not at position 1. This means Esha sits at position 5, and Bhavna sits at position 1. The final row is: Bhavna, Farhan, Divya, Chetan, Esha. Farhan is at position 2, and Esha is at position 5. Positions 3 and 4 sit between them, held by Divya and Chetan. So exactly 2 people sit between Farhan and Esha.