Direction Sense

Reasoning · 4 min read · Sunitha Rao

Turns, displacement and shortest distance.

Direction questions become easy once you fix north at the top of your page and draw every movement to rough scale. A right turn while facing north points you east; two right turns face you south.

Net displacement often needs Pythagoras. Walking 3 km east and then 4 km north puts you 5 km from the start, because 3 squared plus 4 squared is 25.

Watch for turns described relative to the walker rather than the compass: "turn left" depends on the direction currently faced.

Important points

  • Draw the path with north at the top of the page.
  • Two consecutive right turns reverse your direction.
  • Use Pythagoras for shortest distance from the start.
  • Left and right are relative to the current facing.

Examples

  1. 3 km east then 4 km north leaves you 5 km from the starting point.

Practise Direction Sense questions →