Naked Pair

Easy

Two cells in a unit share exactly two candidates; those digits are eliminated from all other cells in the unit.

How It Works

When exactly two cells in a unit (row, column, or box) share exactly the same two candidates (e.g. {3,7} and {3,7}), those two digits must occupy those two cells. Therefore 3 and 7 can be eliminated from all other cells in that unit.

This relies on the "locking" principle: two values occupy two cells.

Example

395874621
124356789
678129345
24
19
5638
19
7
536
79
8
17
2
19
4
79
8
179
249
49
12
536
41
27
267
359
67
8
85
279
24679
49
27
1
67
3
79
63
79
18452
Key cells of the techniqueCells where elimination is appliedCandidate to be placedEliminated candidate (crossed out)

Practice with a Real Puzzle

This 9×9 puzzle is solver-verified to require this technique on its solution path.

Easy32 givensStrict