Q.Pointing to a photograph, Rita said, 'He is the son of my grandfather's only son.' How is the man in the photograph related to Rita?
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Blood-relation questions test whether you can decode family links from a description and name a target relationship. CA sets them as plain statements, coded relations (symbols standing for links), or self-referential "photograph" clues.
Build a small top-down family tree from the clues, mark gender only where stated, then read off the asked relationship — never assume a gender or a side of the family.
How it works
Every statement describes one edge of a family tree — a couple, or a parent-to-child link. Translating each phrase into an edge and stacking the edges by generation turns a confusing sentence into a picture you can simply read.
Coded forms replace words with symbols (e.g. A+B = "A is father of B", A×B = "A is brother of B"). Convert one symbol at a time into a tree edge before combining. Photograph clues are self-referential: unpack them from the innermost phrase outward.
Use a fixed notation: a horizontal link for a married couple, a downward branch for parent-to-child, and +/− or M/F tags for gender. Consistency prevents mid-problem confusion.
Building the tree
- Draw generations top to bottom (elders on top).
- Convert each clue into one edge and place it.
- Tag gender wherever the clue states it.
- Trace from the last-named person toward the subject, exactly as the question asks.
Quick example
Pointing to a photograph, a man says, "She is the daughter of my grandfather's only son." How is she related to him? …
Work out who 'my grandfather's only son' refers to first, then identify the son of that person.
Rita's grandfather's ONLY son must be Rita's own father, so the man is Rita's father's son — her brother. …
Start with the innermost part of the clue: 'my grandfather's only son.' Since Rita's grandfather has only ONE son, and Rita herself is a descendant of this grandfather (through one of his children), that only son must be Rita's own father — there is no other son of the grandfather it could be. …
Missing the significance of the word 'only' is the key trap here — without it, the grandfather could have several sons, and 'a son of my grandfather's son' could refer to a cousin rather than …
Showing the 12 most recent of 30 on this concept.
- CA Foundation 2026Set jan-20261 markMCQQ.A is the son of C; C and Q are sisters; Z is the mother of Q and P is the son of Z. Which of the following statements is true? (A) P is the maternal uncle of A (B) P and A are cousins (C) C and P are sisters (D) Q is maternal grandfather of A
›Reveal solutionSolution
Z is mother of Q and C (sisters), and P is Z's son, so P is brother of C; A is C's son, making P A's maternal uncle.
Step 1 — the parents
C and Q are sisters; Z is the mother of Q, so Z is the mother of C too. P is the son of Z, so P is the brother of C and Q.
Step 2 — A's side
A is the son of C, so C is A's mother.
Step 3 — relate P to A
P is the brother of A's mother (C) ⇒ P is A's maternal uncle. …
- CA Foundation 2026Set jan-20261 markMCQQ.'A + B' means A is the father of B. 'A – B' means A is the wife of B. 'A × B' means A is the brother of B. 'A / B' means A is the daughter of B. If it is given D × E + F, which of the following is true? (A) D is the father of F (B) D is the grandfather of F (C) D is the uncle of F (D) D is the brother-in-law of F
›Reveal solutionSolution
D×E = D is brother of E; E+F = E is father of F; so D is the brother of F's father, i.e. F's uncle.
Step 1 — apply the operators in D×E+F
× means 'is the brother of', so D is the brother of E. + means 'is the father of', so E is the father of F.
Step 2 — combine
D is the brother of E, and E is F's father. The brother of one's father is one's uncle.
Step 3 — conclusion
D is the uncle of F. …
- CA Foundation 2026Set jan-20261 markMCQQ.Pointing to a photograph of a boy Suresh said, "He is the son of the only son of my mother." How is Suresh related to that boy? (A) Brother (B) Grandfather (C) Father (D) Son
›Reveal solutionSolution
Suresh (a male) is the only son of his mother, so 'the son of the only son of my mother' is Suresh's own son; Suresh is the father.
Step 1 — identify 'the only son of my mother'
Suresh is speaking and is male; his mother's only son is Suresh himself.
Step 2 — identify the boy
The boy is the son of that only son, i.e. the son of Suresh.
Step 3 — the relation
Suresh is the father of the boy. …
- CA Foundation 2026Set jan-20261 markMCQQ.A and B are sisters, B is the wife of C, D is the son of E, F is the daughter of B, G is the husband of A, E is the father of B. Who is the brother of B? (A) C (B) D (C) E (D) F
›Reveal solutionSolution
E is the father of B, and D is the son of E, so D and B share the same father — D is B's brother.
Step 1 — B's parent
E is the father of B.
Step 2 — D's parent
D is the son of E, so D is also E's child.
Step 3 — relate D and B
Both D and B are children of E, and D is male (son), so D is the brother of B. (C is only B's husband, E is her father — neither is her brother.) …
- CA Foundation 2026Set may-20261 markMCQQ.Sharma points to a girl and says "She is the mother of my son's wife's daughter". What is the relation of the girl with Sharma? (A) Mother (B) Daughter (C) Sister (D) Daughter-in-law
›Reveal solutionSolution
The mother of Sharma's son's daughter is Sharma's son's wife — his daughter-in-law.
Step 1 — Unpack the statement inside-out
Sharma says the girl is "the mother of my son's wife's daughter."
- My son's wife = Sharma's daughter-in-law.
- My son's wife's daughter = the daughter of Sharma's son and daughter-in-law = Sharma's granddaughter.
Step 2 — Identify the girl
The girl is the mother of that granddaughter. The mother of Sharma's son's daughter is that son's wife.
Step 3 — State the relation to Sharma
Sharma's son's wife is his daughter-in-law. …
- CA Foundation 2026Set may-20261 markMCQQ.Dr. Madhu said, "The engineer who is my brother is the son of the only Professor in our family." If the Professor is Mr. Murli, how is Mr. Murli related to Dr. Madhu? (A) Uncle (B) Father (C) Brother (D) Cousin
›Reveal solutionSolution
The Professor is the father of Madhu's brother, hence Madhu's father — Mr. Murli.
Step 1 — Identify the engineer
Dr. Madhu's statement: "The engineer who is my brother is the son of the only Professor in our family." So the engineer = Madhu's brother.
Step 2 — Place the Professor
The engineer is the son of the Professor. The father of Madhu's brother is the same person as the father of Madhu (siblings share a father).
Step 3 — Name the relation
The Professor is Mr. Murli, a male. As the parent of Madhu and Madhu's brother, Mr. Murli is Madhu's father. …
- CA Foundation 2026Set may-20261 markMCQQ.A is brother of B. P is the sister of Q. B is the son of P. How is A related to P? (A) Brother (B) Son (C) Father (D) Uncle
›Reveal solutionSolution
A is B's brother and B is P's son, so A is P's son.
Step 1 — Use the parent clue
B is the son of P, so P is B's parent.
Step 2 — Use the sibling clue
A is the brother of B. Brothers share the same parents, so A is also a child of P — and being a brother, A is male.
Step 3 — State the relation
A is therefore the son of P.
Why the other options are wrong: (A) Brother, (C) Father and (D) Uncle would place A in the same or an older generation than P, but A belongs to B's generation, one below P — a son. (The detail that P is the sister of Q is a distractor.) …
- CA Foundation 2025Set jan-20251 markMCQQ.L is wife of N, P is son of N, K is brother of N and father of O. What is the relationship of P and O? (A) Uncle (B) Brother (C) Cousin (D) Nephew
›Reveal solutionSolution
P (child of N) and O (child of K) are children of brothers N and K → cousins.
Step 1 — Read the relations
- L is wife of N → N and L are a couple.
- P is son of N.
- K is brother of N and father of O.
Step 2 — Build the family tree
- N and K are brothers.
- P is N's child; O is K's child.
Step 3 — Relate P and O
Children of two brothers are cousins, so P and O are cousins. …
- CA Foundation 2025Set jan-20251 markMCQQ.C is sister of B. D is father of A. A is brother of B. D and E are married couple. How is C related to E? (A) Daughter (B) Son (C) Mother (D) Father
›Reveal solutionSolution
A, B, C are siblings; D is their father and E (D's wife) their mother → C is E's daughter.
Step 1 — Group the siblings
- A is brother of B.
- C is sister of B.
So A, B and C are brothers/sisters (one sibling set).
Step 2 — Identify the parents
- D is father of A → D is father of all three siblings.
- D and E are married → E is the mother.
Step 3 — Relate C to E
C is a female child ("sister of B") of E, so C is E's daughter. …
- CA Foundation 2025Set jan-20251 markMCQQ.B is daughter of A. C is brother of B. C is the only son of D. C and E are married couple. F is the only son of E. Then how is F related to A? (A) Grandson (B) Father (C) Brother (D) Uncle
›Reveal solutionSolution
F is the son of C (A's son), so F is A's grandson.
Step 1 — Place C in A's family
- B is daughter of A.
- C is brother of B → C is a son of A.
- C is the only son of D → A and D are C's parents (a couple).
Step 2 — Go down one generation
- C and E are married → E is C's wife.
- F is the only son of E → F is the son of C and E.
Step 3 — Relate F to A
F is C's son, and C is A's son, so F is A's grandson. …
- CA Foundation 2025Set jan-20251 markMCQQ.Given that X is mother of Y. Z is son of X. A is brother of B. B is daughter of Y. Who is grandmother of A? (A) X (B) Y (C) A (D) B
›Reveal solutionSolution
A is a child of Y, and Y is a child of X → X is A's grandmother.
Step 1 — Place A under Y
- B is daughter of Y.
- A is brother of B → A is also a child of Y.
Step 2 — Go up to X
- X is mother of Y → Y is X's child.
Step 3 — Relate X to A
X is Y's mother and A is Y's child, so X is the grandmother of A. Among the options, that is X. …
- CA Foundation 2025Set jan-20251 markMCQQ.U is father of W, X is son of V, Y is brother of U. If W is sister of X, how is X related to Y? (A) Father (B) Sister-in-law (C) Nephew (D) Grandson
›Reveal solutionSolution
X is U's child and Y is U's brother, so Y is X's uncle → X is Y's nephew.
Step 1 — Place X in U's family
- U is father of W.
- W is sister of X → X and W are siblings, so X is a child of U.
- X is son of V → V is U's spouse (X's mother).
Step 2 — Bring in Y
- Y is brother of U → Y is the uncle of U's children, including X.
Step 3 — Relate X to Y
X is male ("son of V") and is the child of Y's brother, so X is Y's nephew. …
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