Question

213 , 314 , 253 , 327 , _____

• A. 315
• B. 426
• C. 572
• D. 514

Answer 1

Answer:

C. 572

Another elegant and much simpler way to solve this series is by looking at the sum of the digits of each number.

When you add the individual digits of each term together, they follow a continuous sequence of increasing even numbers:

• 1st term (213): $2 + 1 + 3 =$ 6

• 2nd term (314): $3 + 1 + 4 =$ 8

• 3rd term (253): $2 + 5 + 3 =$ 10

• 4th term (327): $3 + 2 + 7 =$ 12

Finding the Missing Number

Following this exact rule (6, 8, 10, 12...), the digits of the next missing number must add up to 14.

Among the official multiple-choice options for this exam question (315, 426, 572, 514):

• 572 is the correct answer because: $5 + 7 + 2 = 14$

The missing term is 572.