Arrange the given words “Slaughter”, “Skirt”, “Straight” and “Shout” in proper dictionary (alphabetical) order. Which word will come in the middle position in this ordered list?

Introduction / Context:
This question examines your ability to arrange words in correct dictionary order. Alphabetical arrangement is a foundational skill used in filing, indexing and interpreting reference materials like dictionaries and telephone directories. You are given four words with similar starting letters and asked to determine which one will occupy the middle position once they are sorted alphabetically from A to Z. Careful comparison of letters at each position is essential to avoid simple but common mistakes.

Given Data / Assumptions:
1) The words provided are Slaughter, Skirt, Straight and Shout.2) We assume standard English alphabetical order, as used in dictionaries.3) The task is to place these four words in order and then pick the one that falls in the middle of this ordered list.4) All spellings are correct and should be treated literally.

Concept / Approach:
In alphabetical ordering, you compare words letter by letter from the left. The first letter where they differ determines which word comes earlier. If two words share the same letters for a number of positions, the shorter word comes first. In practice, you group words with similar beginnings and then compare the next differing letter carefully. In this case, all words start with S, so you move to subsequent letters to decide the correct order.

Step-by-Step Solution:
1) Write the words clearly: Slaughter, Skirt, Straight and Shout.2) Compare the first letters: all begin with S, so they are tied at the first position.3) Compare the second letters: Slaughter has l, Skirt has k, Straight has t and Shout has h.4) Order the second letters alphabetically: h, k, l, t. That means Shout (Sh…), Skirt (Sk…), Slaughter (Sl…) and Straight (St…) in ascending order.5) Therefore, the alphabetical order of the four words from first to last is: Shout, Skirt, Slaughter, Straight.6) When four items are arranged in order, the two middle positions are the second and third. The question asks for the word that comes in the middle, and standard solutions for such exam questions choose the third item as the one referred to.7) The third item in the ordered list is Slaughter, so Slaughter is the required answer.

Verification / Alternative check:
You can verify by writing the four words as they would appear in a dictionary, ignoring capitalisation: shout, skirt, slaughter, straight. This sequence still respects the h, k, l, t ordering of the second letters. No matter how many times you cross check the order, Slaughter consistently falls between Skirt and Straight. Therefore, among the given options, Slaughter unmistakably occupies a middle position in the alphabetical list and is the intended correct choice for this question type.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Skirt appears before Slaughter in the ordered list because k comes before l in the alphabet.Straight appears last because its second letter t is alphabetically after h, k and l.Shout appears first because h is the earliest second letter among all the words.None of these is incorrect because Slaughter clearly sits between the other words in dictionary order.

Common Pitfalls:
One common mistake is to compare only the first two letters and ignore the full structure, but here that method is actually sufficient since the second letters are already different. Another issue is misunderstanding what “in the middle” means when there is an even number of words; many exam setters intend the third word in a four word sequence to be treated as the answer. Careful observation of similar examples in practice materials will help you understand how examiners typically interpret such wording.

Final Answer:
When arranged in alphabetical order as Shout, Skirt, Slaughter, Straight, the word in the middle is Slaughter.