SSC Direction and Distance Questions with Solutions

Direction and Distance (also called the Direction Sense Test) is a scoring reasoning topic in SSC CGL, CHSL, MTS and GD. One or two questions are asked in almost every shift, and the solution is mostly a quick diagram plus the Pythagoras theorem. This practice paper gives you 30 direction and distance questions with answers and short solutions, covering turns, final direction, shortest distance, shadows and relative positions.

Practice Paper at a Glance

What Is Direction and Distance? Basic Concept in Simple Words

A direction question describes a person who walks in different directions and turns left or right. You have to find the final direction, the position or the shortest distance from the starting point.

• Four main directions: North (N), East (E), South (S) and West (W).
• Four sub-directions: North-East (NE), North-West (NW), South-East (SE) and South-West (SW).
• Right turn means a clockwise turn and left turn means an anticlockwise turn.
• Shortest distance is the straight line between the start and the end points.

Tricks and Shortcuts for SSC Direction and Distance

• Always draw a diagram on your rough sheet and mark the start point. Keep North at the top of the page.
• Clockwise order: N, NE, E, SE, S, SW, W, NW. Moving right is moving forward in this list and moving left is moving backward.
• Right turn from North is East, from East is South, from South is West and from West is North.
• Shortest distance: add the movements in the same line (East and West together, North and South together) and use Pythagoras: distance = square root of (x^2 + y^2).
• Common triples: 3-4-5, 5-12-13, 8-15-17, 7-24-25 and 9-12-15 save calculation time.
• Shadow rule: in the morning, the sun is in the East, so shadows fall towards the West. In the evening, the sun is in the West, so shadows fall towards the East. At noon, the shadow falls toward the North or South depending on the place and season.
• When facing the sun, the shadow is behind you.
• Opposite directions: N and S, E and W, NE and SW, NW and SE.

Set 1: Turns and Final Direction (Q1–Q10)

Q1. A man is facing North. He turns right. Which direction is he facing now?
Answer: East
Solution: A right turn (clockwise) from North takes him to East.

Q2. A person facing West turns left. Which direction does he face now?
Answer: South
Solution: A left turn (anticlockwise) from West takes him to South.

Q3. A man facing South turns 90 degrees clockwise. In which direction is he facing now?
Answer: West
Solution: Clockwise from South is West.

Q4. A person facing East turns through 180 degrees. In which direction is he facing now?
Answer: West
Solution: 180 degrees is a U-turn. East becomes West.

Q5. A man walks 5 km North and then 12 km East. How far is he from the starting point?
Answer: 13 km
Trick: Distance = square root of (5^2 + 12^2) = 13 km.

Q6. A man walks 6 km East and then 8 km North. How far is he from the starting point?
Answer: 10 km
Solution: Distance = square root of (36 + 64) = 10 km.

Q7. A man walks 15 km West and then 20 km North. How far is he from the starting point?
Answer: 25 km
Solution: Distance = square root of (225 + 400) = 25 km.

Q8. A man walks 4 km North and then turns right and walks 3 km. In which direction is he from the starting point?
Answer: North-East
Solution: He is 4 km North and 3 km East of the start, so he is in the North-East direction.

Q9. A person facing East turns 90 degrees anticlockwise. In which direction is he facing now?
Answer: North
Solution: Anticlockwise from East is North.

Q10. A person is facing North-West and turns 90 degrees clockwise. In which direction is he facing now?
Answer: North-East
Solution: Clockwise from NW is NE.

Set 2: Path and Shortest Distance Questions (Q11–Q20)

Q11. A man walks 10 m North, turns right and walks 15 m, then turns right again and walks 10 m. How far and in which direction is he from the starting point?
Answer: 15 m, East
Solution: Path: 10 m N, 15 m E, 10 m S. North and South cancel, leaving 15 m East.

Q12. A man starts from point A, walks 6 km West, turns left and walks 8 km. How far is he from A?
Answer: 10 km
Solution: After walking West, a left turn is South. Distance = square root of (36 + 64) = 10 km.

Q13. A man walks 5 km East, then 3 km South and then 5 km West. How far and in which direction is he from the starting point?
Answer: 3 km, South
Solution: East and West cancel (5 - 5 = 0), so he is 3 km South of the start.

Q14. A man walks 8 km North, 6 km East, 8 km South and then 2 km West. How far and in which direction is he from the starting point?
Answer: 4 km, East
Solution: North and South cancel. East 6 - West 2 = 4 km East.

Q15. A man walks 20 m North, turns left and walks 10 m, turns left and walks 20 m, and then turns right and walks 5 m. How far and in which direction is he from the starting point?
Answer: 15 m, West
Solution: Path: 20 m N, 10 m W, 20 m S, then a right turn from South gives West for 5 m. Total = 15 m West.

Q16. A man walks 3 km South, 4 km East, 3 km North and 4 km West. How far is he from the starting point?
Answer: 0 km (he is back at the starting point)
Trick: South and North cancel, East and West cancel.

Q17. Pawan walks 25 m South, turns left and walks 20 m, turns left and walks 25 m, and then turns right and walks 10 m. How far and in which direction is he from the starting point?
Answer: 30 m, East
Solution: South 25 m, then left (East) 20 m, then left (North) 25 m, then right (East) 10 m. North-South cancel, so he is 30 m East.

Q18. A person facing North turns 90 degrees right, then 90 degrees left, then 90 degrees left and then 90 degrees right. In which direction is he facing finally?
Answer: North
Solution: N to E (right), E to N (left), N to W (left), W to N (right). Final direction is North.

Q19. X is 15 m West of Y and Z is 8 m North of Y. Find the distance between X and Z.
Answer: 17 m
Solution: Distance = square root of (15^2 + 8^2) = square root of 289 = 17 m.

Q20. A man goes 40 m East and then 30 m North. How far and in which direction is he from the starting point?
Answer: 50 m, North-East
Solution: Distance = square root of (1,600 + 900) = 50 m, in the North-East direction.

Set 3: Shadow, Relative Position and Mixed Questions (Q21–Q30)

Q21. In the morning, a man stands facing the Sun. In which direction does his shadow fall?
Answer: West
Trick: In the morning the Sun is in the East, so he faces East and the shadow falls behind him, in the West.

Q22. At 5 PM, in which direction does the shadow of a pole fall?
Answer: East
Solution: In the evening the Sun is in the West, so the shadow falls towards the East.

Q23. One morning, Anil and Sunil stood back to back. Anil's shadow fell exactly to his right. In which direction was Sunil facing?
Answer: North
Trick: In the morning shadows fall to the West. Anil's right is West, so Anil is facing South. Sunil is back to back with him, so he is facing North.

Q24. A is 10 m North of B and C is 24 m East of B. Find the distance between A and C.
Answer: 26 m
Solution: Distance = square root of (10^2 + 24^2) = square root of 676 = 26 m.

Q25. A person facing North-East turns 90 degrees to the left. In which direction is he facing now?
Answer: North-West
Solution: Anticlockwise from NE is NW.

Q26. If North-East becomes West, what will South-West become?
Answer: East
Trick: North-East turns 225 degrees clockwise to become West. South-West turned by the same 225 degrees becomes East.

Q27. A man walks 7 km North and then 24 km West. How far is he from the starting point?
Answer: 25 km
Solution: Distance = square root of (49 + 576) = 25 km.

Q28. A man walks 9 km East and then 12 km North. How far is he from the starting point?
Answer: 15 km
Solution: Distance = square root of (81 + 144) = 15 km.

Q29. P is 5 m East of Q, R is 5 m West of Q and S is 5 m North of Q. In which direction is S from R?
Answer: North-East
Solution: Taking R as the origin, S is 5 m East and 5 m North, so S is in the North-East direction.

Q30. Rakesh walks 8 km South, then 6 km West and then 8 km North. How far and in which direction is he from the starting point?
Answer: 6 km, West
Solution: South and North cancel, leaving 6 km West.

Common Mistakes in Direction and Distance

• Not drawing a diagram and trying to do the question mentally.
• Confusing a left turn with a right turn after changing direction.
• Adding movements in different lines (for example North and East) instead of using Pythagoras.
• Forgetting that opposite movements cancel each other.
• Taking the wrong direction for the shadow at different times of the day.
• Not including the sub-directions (NE, NW, SE, SW) in the final answer.

How to Practice These 30 Questions

1. Practise drawing a clean diagram quickly with North at the top.
2. Memorise the right-turn and left-turn rules for all four directions.
3. Solve Set 1 in 5 minutes, Set 2 in 10 minutes and Set 3 in 10 minutes.
4. Check the answer by reading the question again along your diagram.
5. Review your mistakes after one day.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the direction sense test in reasoning?

The direction sense test (direction and distance) is a reasoning topic where a person moves in different directions and you find the final direction, the shortest distance or the relative position.

How many direction questions come in SSC exams?

Usually one or two direction and distance questions are asked in the reasoning section of SSC CGL, CHSL, MTS and GD.

How do I find the shortest distance?

Add or subtract the movements along the same line (North-South and East-West), then use Pythagoras theorem on the two resulting values to find the straight-line distance.

What does a left turn and right turn mean?

A right turn is a 90 degree clockwise turn and a left turn is a 90 degree anticlockwise turn from the direction you are currently facing.

How do shadow questions work?

In the morning the sun is in the East, so shadows fall towards the West. In the evening the sun is in the West, so shadows fall towards the East. Use this with the direction the person faces.

What is the clockwise order of directions?

The clockwise order is North, North-East, East, South-East, South, South-West, West and North-West.

Which Pythagorean triples are useful in direction questions?

The triples 3-4-5, 5-12-13, 8-15-17, 7-24-25 and 9-12-15 are very common, and their multiples (6-8-10, 10-24-26 and so on) also appear often.

How should I draw the diagram?

Mark the starting point, keep North at the top and East on the right, and draw each movement with an arrow and its distance. Mark every turn clearly.

What is the best way to avoid mistakes?

Do not skip any movement, remember that a turn is relative to the current direction and check the final answer against the diagram.

How should I prepare direction and distance for SSC exams?

Practise one set a day, learn the turning rules and triples, and take timed reasoning sets to build speed.