Find the Invisible Link

Two words can look like a simple pair. But hidden between them is an invisible link. Spot that link, and analogy questions suddenly become much easier. Your job is to name what the first word DOES in relation to the second.

Picture two word cards with a bridge between them. Ask, "How do I travel from word one to word two?" The answer is a short relationship, such as young animal to adult, object to purpose, part to whole, or worker to workplace. Check the direction. A chick is a young chicken, so CHICK to CHICKEN means young animal to adult animal. Reverse the cards, and the direction changes: adult animal to young animal. The same two words can carry a different answer. Now test the link with a sentence frame: "A CHICK is a young CHICKEN." Both words may belong to the same topic, but that is not precise enough. Choose the relationship that explains exactly how they connect, not merely that both are animals.

Let's work through an example. The pair is PUPPY is to DOG. Which relationship best describes it? A: animal to home. B: young animal to adult animal. C: animal to food. D: pet to owner. Keep the order exactly as shown. Start with PUPPY. Picture a small, young dog. Then move across the arrow to DOG. A puppy grows into an adult dog. So our sentence frame is, "A PUPPY is a young DOG." That matches young animal to adult animal. Eliminate the tempting topic answers. A puppy and a dog are both animals, yes, but "both animals" does not describe the arrow. DOG is not the puppy's home, food, or owner. The exact directed link is option B: young animal to adult animal. That is the answer.

Remember: read the first word, follow the arrow, and say precisely how it relates to the second. Check direction, use a sentence frame, and reject loose same-topic matches. You can now uncover the invisible link with confidence!