Blood Relation for Bank Exams – Concept and Important Tips

The concept of Blood Relation is one of the most important topics under the Logical Reasoning Section and is important for various bank and government exams like SBI PO, SBI Clerk, IBPS PO, IBPS RRB, IBPS Clerk, RBI Grade B, RBI Assistant, etc. Every year a decent number of questions are asked from this topic in preliminary and mains examinations. It requires a logical approach and an understanding of family relations. In this article, we will help you to get acquainted with this topic by sharing the concept and important tips on Blood Relation.

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1. Important Blood Relation Terminologies.

It is essential to have a piece of knowledge about what are the different terminologies used for different family relations.

The important terminologies used for blood relations are listed below:

Brother: Son of mother or father

Sister: Daughter of mother or father

Sibling: Brother or sister

Grandfather: Father of mother or father

Grandmother:  Mother of mother or father

Uncle: Brother of mother or father/husband of aunt

Aunt: Sister of mother or father/wife of uncle

Cousin: Son or daughter of uncle or aunt

Nephew: Son of brother or sister

Niece: Daughter of brother or sister

Spouse: Husband or Wife

Father-in-law: Father of the spouse

Mother-in-law: Mother of the spouse

Son-in-law: Husband of daughter

Daughter-in-law: Wife of son

Brother-in-law: Brother of spouse/husband of the sister

Sister-in-law: Sister of spouse/wife of brother

Maternal: Related through the mother’s side of the family

Paternal:  Related through the father’s side of the family

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2. Blood Relation – Family diagrams.

Family diagrams/trees play an essential role in understanding the flow of a family. Various symbols and notations are used for schematic representations of a family tree.

2.1 Symbols and Notations:

The following will familiarize you with the symbols and notations:

2.2 Schematic Representation of a Family Tree.

The following is an example of a schematic representation of a family tree.

Here, from this representation of a family tree, we can say that,

• C is A’s husband
• G is E’s wife
• F is the daughter of C and A both
• B and H are sons of E and G both
• F is the daughter-in-law of E and G both
• B is the son-in-law of C and A both
• C is the maternal grandfather of D
• E is the paternal grandfather of D
• A is the maternal grandmother of D
• G is the paternal grandfather of D
• H is the paternal uncle of D
• H is the brother-in-law of F
• F is the sister-in-law of H
• D is the niece of H
• D is the granddaughter of C, A, E, and G

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3. Types of Blood Relation Questions.

There are mainly four types of questions asked which are mentioned below,

• Based on conversations/statements
• Coded Blood Relation
• Puzzle based on Blood Relation

3.1 Based on Conversations/Statements

In this type, usually, conversations between family members or statements by family members are given and are followed up by questions. Given below is an example of this type along with the common solution and tips to solve such questions.

Question Type 1:

Introducing a person, A said, ” He is the son of my husband’s only brother’s wife”. How is A related to that person?

a) Uncle

b) Mother

c) Aunt

d) Father

e) Grandfather

Correct option: c) – Aunt

Solution:

To solve such questions the method you are required to follow is ‘backtracking’.

The backtracking method is, as the word suggests, to start from the end. You need to focus on the last part of the statement or conversation first and start decoding it from backward.

Here in this example, the conversation is,  ” He is the son of my husband’s only brother’s wife”

Wife, brother, husband, and son are mentioned in the sentence.

Let us assume that person A is introducing is B.

A says that B is the son of her husband’s only brother’s wife. This indicates that A is a female and B is a male and B is the son of her husband’s only brother’s wife which means B is A’s nephew.

 

The family diagram is,

 

Hence, A is B’s aunt.

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3.2 Coded Blood Relations

In this type of question, symbols are used to denote a relationship between family members and are followed up by questions. Given below is an example of this type along with the common solution and tips to solve such questions.

Question Type 2:

A # B means B is A’s wife

A % B means B is A’s sister

A $ B means B is A’s mother

A & B means B is A’s father

Which of the following means W is the aunt of X?

a) W $ X # Y % Z

b) X & Y # Z % W

c) Y & Z % X $ W

d) W # Z % Y & X

e) X # Y % W & Z 

Correct option: b) X & Y # Z % W

Solution:

To solve such questions symbols need to be decoded and the solution should be figured out.

The most logical approach for such questions is to go through options and the ‘trial and error’ method.

Option a: W $ X means X is W’s mother hence option a is not correct.

Option b: X & Y means Y is X’s father.

Going further, Y # Z means Z is Y’s wife. Hence, Z is X’s mother.

Z % W means W is Z’s sister. Hence, W is X’s aunt.

Option b) is correct.

Even when you find the right option, it is a wise decision to check other options also.

Option c: X $ W, the direct relation between X and W is given and it means W is X’s mother. Hence option c is not correct.

Option d: W # Z which means Z is W’s wife. This indicates W is male. Hence option d is not correct.

Option e: Y % W which means W is Y’s sister. Hence option e is not correct.

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3.2 Puzzle Based on Blood Relations

In this type, a set of information is given and is followed by a set of questions. This type is more likely to appear in examinations than other types. Given below is an example of this type along with the common solution and tips to solve such questions.

Question Type 3:

In a family, there are six members – A, B, C, D, E, and F. There are only two married couples in the family.  A is the wife of E has only two children. C is D’s uncle.

F is the daughter-in-law of E. How is B related to C?

a) Sister

b) Brother

c) Mother

d) Father

e) Father-in-law

Correct option: b) Brother

Solution:

The method to solve such type of problems is with the help of family diagrams using symbols and notations. Every statement in the puzzle defines a relationship between two or more family members. Using that information you need to draw a diagram. Then, combining all the diagrams of all statements, you will get a family tree that will help you to define blood relations.

Here, it is given that,

A is the wife of E has only two children. We do not know the genders of their children.

F is the daughter-in-law of E.

There are only two married couples in the family.

Hence, we can accommodate F in the above diagram.

 

 

C is D’s uncle. Hence, C is the son of E and A and D is the child of F.

Now, only B remains; consequently, B can only be F’s husband.

Hence, the family tree is,

Hence, B is C’s brother.

Being one of the important topics of the logical reasoning section, much importance should be given to blood relations. Candidates can master this topic by practicing more such questions of different difficulty levels. Candidates should also note the fact that the types can be combined with each other to form mixed or miscellaneous blood relations questions which increase the difficulty level of the topic. Practicing such questions will be of great help to prepare for various examinations.

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