Chessboard - Basics Terminologies & Practice Questions

Chess is a famous game as well as a good topic to be asked in the exam.

Basic Terminologies of Chess:

• This is a two-player game that moves their pieces alternatively on a square board.
• It has an 8×8 grid of 64 equal squares (32 black and 32 white ).
• Horizontal lines are called ranks.
• Vertical lines are called Files.

• Chess pieces are of two colors black and white, each player has 16 pieces.
• 8 pawns- Pawns only  move forward, and attack only diagonally it can move only one step
• 2 Rooks- Rooks moves in a continuous line in forwarding, backward, and side to side
• The Player has 2 knights- Knights are the only piece that jumps over another piece, it moves in a shape of L, Two spaces in the forward, backward or side to side and one space right or left.
• 2 Bishops: It can move in a continuous diagonal direction.
• 1 Queen: It moves in continuous diagonal, forward, backward, and side to side.
• 1 King: It can move in any direction one square at a time, it is the most important piece on the board.
• Putting an opponent king in checkmate is the only way to win the game.

Practice Questions:

Lets's try some question to understand the topic:

Question 1. If the queen is at c5, and the other pieces at position c2,g1,g3,g5, and a3, how many are under attack by the queen? There is no other piece on the board.

Solution: The given question can be visualized as

We know, 1 Queen can move in continuous diagonal, forward, backward, and side to side.

So, the number of pieces under attack is 4.

Question 2. On the chessboard queen is the only piece on the board and its position is at d5. In how many positions can another piece be placed on the board such that it is safe from the attack from the queen?

Solution: A Queen can attack in continuous diagonal, forward, backward, and side to side.

So, all the pieces must be saved from diagonal, forward, backward, side to side.

Therefore the number of saving positions for other pieces is 36.

Question 3. If the other pieces are only at positions a1, a3, b4, d7, h7, h8 then from how many positions the queen cannot attack any of the pieces? 

Solution: A Queen can attack in continuous diagonal, forward, backward, and side to side.

So, all the pieces must be saved from diagonal, forward, backward, side to side.

e2,f2,g2.g5 are the position left for the queen i.e.,

Only 4 positions left are safe for the pieces.

Question  4. If the other pieces are at positions a1, a3, b4, d7, h7, and h8. Then which of the position of the queen results in the maximum number of pieces being under attack?

Solution: A Queen can attack in continuous diagonal, forward, backward, and side to side.

So, the pieces can be attacked from diagonal, forward, backward, side to side.

Out of a7,c1,d3,f8 it is observed f8 is the position where a maximum number of pieces are under attack.

Question 5. A standard 8×8 chessboard has two diagonally opposite corners removed, leaving 62 squares. Is it possible to place 31 rectangles of size 2×1 to cover the 62 squares?

Solution: After removing two diagonally opposite corners of the chessboard as shown

One rectangle will cover 1 light and 1 dark square

So, 31 dominoes will cover 31 light and 31 dark squares i.e.; the number of the light square must be equal to the number of the dark square

but after removing two light color squares there will be 32 dark square and 30 light square, which is impossible to be covered by a rectangle of size 2×1.

Fun Fact: The second book ever printed in the English language was about chess.