Verbal Reasoning · Applying a word transformation rule
Applying a Word Transformation Rule
SHELL became HELLS, and STING became TINGS. Work out what happened to the letters, then do the same thing to HEART.
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Why this works
The rule here is to move the first letter to the end, which is why SHELL became HELLS, and why HEART becomes EARTH. The way to find a rule like that is to number the positions rather than to stare at the word: put the two words one above the other, and track where each numbered letter went. Once you can say the move as a sentence about positions, applying it to a new word is mechanical. Notice that the rule was fixed before the question was asked, so what matters is the move, not whether the result reads well. Doing the move and reading the result afterwards is faster and safer than guessing an answer and checking it backwards.
Helping a child through Applying a Word Transformation Rule
Hints, least revealing first
- Write the two words one above the other and number the letters. Ask where letter 1 of the first word ended up, then letter 2, and so on.
- The letters are only ever moved around, never changed or thrown away, so the answer uses exactly the same letters as the word you start from.
When they finish it: “Rule found and applied!”
11+ skill this exercise practises
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Applying a Word Transformation Rule practises one skill. Verbal Reasoning has 26 of them
A free diagnostic covers every verbal reasoning skill and the other three subjects, and comes back with a shortlist rather than a list.