SSC Notes / Reasoning / Chapter 15
Chapter 15 of 18

Non-Verbal Reasoning (Mirror Image, Water Image, Paper Folding, Figure Completion)

Visualising transformations of figures — mirror reflection, water reflection, paper folding/cutting, and completing a figure's missing piece.

📖 ~14 min read 🧩 SSC Reasoning

Introduction

Non-Verbal Reasoning tests spatial visualisation rather than verbal/numerical logic — mirror and water images, paper folding/cutting, and figure completion are the four most common question types.

Mirror Image

Diagram — Mirror Image (Left-Right Flip Across a Vertical Line)
F Original F Mirror Image

A mirror placed vertically (to the right) flips the figure left-to-right — like looking at "F" in a mirror.

Rule
Vertical mirror (mirror on the right/left side) → flips the image left-right
Left and right get interchanged; up-down orientation stays the same

Water Image

Diagram — Water Image (Up-Down Flip, Inverted)
F water surface F

Water (horizontal surface below the figure) flips the image top-to-bottom, like a reflection in a pond.

Rule
Water image = figure flipped upside-down (vertical/up-down inversion), placed below the original
Left-right orientation stays the same; only up-down is inverted

Paper Folding & Cutting

Diagram — Paper Folded Once, Then a Hole Punched
fold line Step 1: Fold Step 2: Punch hole Step 3: Unfold → 2 holes

Folding creates a mirrored duplicate of any punched hole on the opposite side once unfolded — the number of holes doubles with each fold (before punching).

💡 Key Rule: When a folded paper is punched and then unfolded, each hole appears in mirror-symmetric positions across every fold line — count the number of folds to predict the total number of holes (2ⁿ holes for n folds, if one hole is punched through all layers at once).

Figure Completion

These questions show an incomplete figure with a missing piece and ask you to select the piece that completes the pattern — always check line continuity (do lines/curves match up exactly at the boundary) and pattern consistency (shading, symbol repetition) between the given figure and each option.

✅ Practice Focus: Mirror image = left-right flip only · Water image = up-down flip only · Paper folding hole-count and mirror-position doubling · Figure completion via line-continuity and pattern matching.

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