In a certain code, ‘256’ means ‘red colour chalk’, ‘589’ means ‘green colour flower’ and ‘254’ means ‘white colour chalk’. The digit in the code that indicates ‘white’ is
Answer & explanation
Answer: (b) 4
'Colour' is the only word in all three phrases and 5 the only digit in all three codes. 'Chalk' is shared by the first and third phrases, whose codes also share 2. That leaves 4 for 'white' in 254.
- 'colour' is in all three phrases and 5 is in all three codes, so colour = 5.
- 'chalk' is in 256 and 254; apart from 5 they share 2, so chalk = 2.
- 254 = white colour chalk, so white = 4.
- Check: 256 then gives red = 6, and 589 splits green and flower between 8 and 9.
Remember · In word-to-digit codes, match the word common to two phrases with the digit common to their codes, and eliminate step by step.
Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2017, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). ·