One of the topics from which questions are repeatedly asked in RRB NTPC exam is Odd One Out. This is what makes Odd One Out an important topic of General Intelligence and Reasoning section. Not only RRB NTPC exam, but questions from this topic also appear in other government exams like SSC CHSL etc. What’s more! This topic is easy to prepare for and you can easily answer these questions after understanding the concept well and after doing sufficient practice. In this article, we will explain the concept of Odd One Out with the help of examples and we will also provide some useful tips to help you answer these questions quickly.
RRB NTPC Exam Update
Before moving forward, let’s have an update about the upcoming RRB NTPC 2019 Stage 1 exam. With the exam scheduled on December 15, 2020, there are only 25 days left. Now is the time when you need to leave everything else and start putting your best efforts towards the preparation of the exam. This exam has been kept getting postponed for a long time and now that it’s going to be held, there is going to be a lot of competitors for these 35,000 vacancies. The only way to be ahead of the competition is to keep practising and reviewing as many topics as possible. Also, you should keep practising mock tests where you will get the hang of taking the exam in a restricted environment. By taking mock tests, not only you get your All India Rank but you also get the list of topics which need more focus & practice. So we strongly recommend you to take mock tests to clear RRB NTPC exam.
RRB NTPC has 3 stages: Stage 1, Stage 2 and Computer Based Aptitude Test or Typing Skill Test. Let’s now have a look at the exam pattern of RRB NTPC Stage 1 which is going to take place on December 15, 2020.
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RRB NTPC 2019 Stage 1 Exam Pattern
| Sections | No. of Questions | Total Marks |
| Mathematics | 30 | 30 |
| General Intelligence and Reasoning | 30 | 30 |
| General Awareness | 40 | 40 |
| Total | 100 | 100 |
Total time allowed for the exam is 90 minutes.
What’s Odd One Out?
In Odd One Out questions, you will be provided with items which follow a pattern and you need to identify the item which doesn’t follow that pattern and stands out. Identifying the pattern which other items are following is the main trick here. If you have successfully identified the pattern in less time, you can easily answer the question. Let’s have a look at an example for a better understanding:
Example 1: Select the odd word from the given alternatives.
- Bat
- Umpire
- Stump
- Bail
On quick observation, it can be seen that bat, stump & bail are objects with the help of which cricket is played whereas umpire is an official who watches a game or match closely to enforce the rules and arbitrate on matters arising from the play. So obviously, umpire is the odd one out here and therefore b is the correct option.
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Types of Odd One Out Classifications
Let’s now have a look at different types of odd one out classification from which questions can be asked.
Alphabet Classification
In these kinds of questions, there will be groups of alphabets. Each group will generally have 3-4 alphabets which will follow a pattern. You need to analyse these alphabets and find out that pattern. Once you have understood the pattern, you can easily answer the questions. Let’s understand it with an example.
Example 2: Find the odd word/letters/number pair from the given alternatives.
- P Q R P
- D F E D
- X J L K J
- G I H G
So in this question, it all looks jumbled but on close observation, you can see that 1st and last alphabets are similar in all the 4 cases. Then in the last 3 cases, the pattern is Alphabet, Alphabet +2, Alphabet +1, Alphabet. But in the first case, the pattern is Alphabet, Alphabet +1, Alphabet +2, Alphabet. Therefore the pattern of option a is different from others and a is the answer.
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Word Classification
To answer a question based on this type of classification, you need to have a good knowledge of the meaning and usage of simple words. Here, you will be given 4 words and 3 of them will share a common characteristic. You need to figure that out and answer that option which doesn’t share that common feature. Let’s understand this with the help of an example:
Example 3: Find the odd word/letters/number pair from the given alternatives.
- Volume
- Size
- Large
- Shape
In this question, volume, size and shape are nouns whereas large is an adjective. So the correct option is c.
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Number Classification
In questions based on number classification, you will be given grouped numbers which follow a pattern except one. You have to quickly identify the common pattern and pick that option as an answer which doesn’t follow the pattern. The pattern can be based on anything like primary numbers, even numbers or a combination of these etc. Let’s have a look at an example.
Example 4: Three of the following four are alike in a certain way and so form a group. Which is the one that does not belong to that group?
- 65
- 26
- 9
- 82
This is a bit tricky question. After a bit of observation, it’s difficult to find anything common. But if you check again, 65, 26 & 82 are numbers obtained by adding 1 to the perfect squares.
8^2 + 1 = 65
5^2 +1 = 26
9^2 + 1 = 82
This isn’t the case with 9 and therefore c is the odd one out.
Odd One Out Tips
- The most important point in odd one out questions is finding out the pattern. And it goes without saying that the more practice you do before the exam, the quickly and easily you can identify the pattern. So practising is of utmost importance to answer these questions quickly.
- Look and analyze all the options carefully before selecting the right answer.
- Keep taking mock tests and review the odd one out questions you answered incorrectly or skipped and check the detailed solution
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This is all we have in this article. We hope that you find the above information useful in your preparation. Wishing you good luck with your preparation!
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