In a family photograph, a man points to a boy and says, "He is the son of my sister's mother's only son." How is the boy related to the man?

  • A. His son
  • B. His nephew
  • C. His brother
  • D. His cousin

Explanation

Substituting one link at a time, the sister's mother is the man's own mother, and her only son must be the man himself, so the boy is his son. The long chain is designed to sound like a description of someone else. Resolving each phrase before moving to the next is what prevents the trap.

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