Direction & Distance
🔒 Log in to trackShadow questions
🔒 Log in to trackThe sun fixes the direction of every shadow. In the morning the sun is in the East, so shadows point West. In the evening the sun is in the West, so shadows point East. Turn the shadow words into a sentence about which way the person faces, then finish the question.
The sun points the shadow
A shadow always falls away from the sun. So the sun does the pointing for you.
| Time | Sun is in the | Shadow points |
|---|---|---|
| Morning (sunrise) | East | West |
| Evening (sunset) | West | East |
At noon in India, the shadow points roughly North. Most questions avoid noon.
Rule: Write "morning: shadow West" or "evening: shadow East" before you read anything else.
Where the shadow falls on the body
A person faces some direction. The shadow can fall in front, behind, on the left or on the right.
- Shadow in front: he faces the same way as the shadow.
- Shadow behind: he faces the opposite way.
- Shadow on the left or right: he faces a direction at right angles to the shadow.
Example: morning, shadow falls in front of him. The shadow points West, so he faces West. If it falls behind him, he faces East.
Left and right shadows
Use the body map. It tells you what lies on the left and right for each facing.
| He faces | Left is | Right is |
|---|---|---|
| North | West | East |
| South | East | West |
| East | North | South |
| West | South | North |
Example: morning, shadow falls on his right. The shadow points West. West is on his right when he faces South. So he faces South.
Tip: For a morning shadow, left means facing North and right means facing South. For an evening shadow, left means South and right means North.
Two people, back to back
Back to back means the two people face opposite ways. Find one person's facing from the shadow. The other faces the opposite way.
Example: evening, Rohit's shadow falls on his left. The shadow points East. So Rohit faces South. His partner stands back to back with him, so he faces North.
Four pictures to learn
Most questions use only these four. Learn them by heart.
| Time | Shadow falls | He faces |
|---|---|---|
| Morning | in front | West |
| Morning | behind | East |
| Evening | in front | East |
| Evening | behind | West |
The left and right cases follow from the body map above.
Shadow and then a movement
Some questions add a walk or a turn. Do it in three steps.
- Turn the shadow into a compass direction for that time.
- Turn "towards" or "away from the shadow" into a plain direction.
- Finish with quarter-turns on the circle North, East, South, West.
Example: evening, a man walks away from his shadow. The shadow points East, so he walks West. He then turns 90 degrees anticlockwise and faces South.
Watch: The shadow is not the direction he faces. Read which of the two the question asks for.
Question types you will see
Each type: how to recognise it, the method step by step, and one question to try.
Morning shadow
The time is early morning or sunrise. The shadow is in front, behind, left or right of a person.
Write: morning, shadow West.
Front means he faces West. Behind means he faces East.
Left means he faces North. Right means he faces South.
The shadow is a fixed compass arrow. The person turns to put it on the stated side.
At sunrise, a man's shadow falls exactly behind him. Which way is he facing?
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Morning: the shadow points West.
The shadow is behind him, so he faces the opposite way.
Opposite of West is East.
East
Evening shadow
The time is evening or sunset. The shadow is in front, behind, left or right of a person.
Write: evening, shadow East.
Front means he faces East. Behind means he faces West.
Left means he faces South. Right means he faces North.
It is the same rule as morning, with the shadow arrow turned around.
One evening, Ramesh's shadow falls exactly in front of him. Which way is he facing?
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Evening: the shadow points East.
The shadow is in front, so he faces the same way.
East
Left or right shadow to facing
The shadow falls to the left or right of the person, and his facing is asked.
Write the shadow direction for that time.
Look at the body map. Find the facing that puts that direction on the stated side.
Check by holding out your hand.
Only one of the four facings puts the shadow on the stated side.
In the evening, Neha's shadow falls on her left. Which way is she facing?
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Evening: the shadow points East.
When she faces South, her left is East.
So she faces South.
South
Shadow, then a walk or a turn
The person walks towards or away from the shadow, or turns by 90 or 180 degrees, and the final direction is asked.
Turn the shadow into a compass direction.
Turn 'towards' or 'away' into a direction. Away means the opposite.
Finish the turns with quarter-turns.
After the first step, it is an ordinary final-facing question.
In the evening, Kiran walks away from his shadow. He then turns 90 degrees anticlockwise. Which way does he face now?
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Evening: the shadow points East.
Away from it means he walks West.
Anticlockwise from West is South.
South
Two people back to back
Two people stand back to back, and one shadow position is given. The other person's facing or shadow side is asked.
Find the first person's facing from his shadow.
Back to back means the other person faces the opposite way.
Use the body map to place the shadow for the second person.
Back to back fixes the second person's facing at once.
In the evening, Rohit and Mohit stand back to back. Rohit's shadow falls on his left. Which way does Mohit face?
Show solutionHide solution
Evening: the shadow points East. East is on Rohit's left when he faces South.
Mohit faces the opposite way to Rohit.
Opposite of South is North.
North
Shortcuts that save time
Before any other step, rewrite the sentence as a facing sentence. Morning and shadow behind him means he faces East. Evening and shadow in front means he faces East.
In the morning, a boy's shadow falls on his left. Which way does he face?
Show solutionHide solution
Morning shadow points West.
West is on his left when he faces North.
North
Mistakes to avoid
Where most students lose marks on this subtopic.
Using the evening shadow direction in a morning question.
Write 'morning: shadow West' or 'evening: shadow East' first.
Giving the shadow's direction when the question asks the person's facing.
The shadow and the facing are two different arrows. Answer the one asked.
Forgetting that left and right change when the facing changes.
Use the body map for each facing.
Treating back to back as facing the same way.
Back to back means the two people face opposite ways.
Treating 'away from the shadow' as the shadow's direction.
Away from it means the opposite direction.
Quick revision
Read this the night before the exam.
Morning: sun East, shadow West. Evening: sun West, shadow East.
Shadow in front: same direction. Shadow behind: opposite direction.
Morning: shadow left means facing North. Shadow right means facing South.
Evening: shadow left means facing South. Shadow right means facing North.
Back to back: the two facings are opposite.
Turn the shadow into a facing, then solve the rest as a normal direction question.
Practice: 12 questions
Sets of 10, mixed across the question types above. Every answer has a step-by-step explanation.
Topic test · 12 questions
Suggested time 9 min · wrong answers go to your mistake notebook automatically.