Question

Please Explain

Tim, Paco, Maria, and Jenny are standing in line for lunch. Jenny is standing between Paco and Maria, and Paco’s position in line is an odd number. Tim is not standing on either end of the line, and he is in front of Jenny.

Which friend is standing third in line?

Answer 1

Answer: Jenny

Explanation:

Tim will not be in positions 1 or 4, as 1 and 4 represent the ends of the line.

Jenny cannot be in positions 1 or 4, as she is between two people.

Paco will not be in positions 2 or 4, as he is only in an odd numbered position.

Based on this, you can conclude that Maria will be in position 4, as none of the other three can be at position 4.

Paco will be in position 1, as Tim and Jenny cannot be at position 1.

The two positions left are 2 and 3. We'll assume that 1 represents the front of the line. Since Tim has to be in front of Jenny, he will take the position with the lower number, which is 2. This leaves Jenny with 3.

In order from 1 to 4, the line is as follows:

Paco, Tim, Jenny, Maria