Arrange the words Scarf, Scene, Shell, Survey and Stream as per dictionary order and choose the correct sequence.

Introduction / Context:
This problem asks you to arrange five words in dictionary order: Scarf, Scene, Shell, Survey and Stream. Many of these words share the initial letters “Sc” and “S”, so you must carefully compare each position in the words to determine the correct alphabetical sequence. Dictionary ordering is a fundamental verbal reasoning skill and appears frequently in exams where similar looking words are tested for precise ordering.

Given Data / Assumptions:
Index mapping:
1: Scarf
2: Scene
3: Shell
4: Survey
5: Stream
Options are sequences of these indices, such as 1, 2, 3, 5, 4.
We assume standard English alphabetical rules and that all words are written correctly without abbreviations.

Concept / Approach:
To place words in dictionary order, compare letter by letter. Start from the first letter and move rightwards. When letters are the same, continue until a difference appears. The word whose letter comes earlier in the alphabet at the first point of difference will come first. When groups of words share the same prefix, focus closely on the next distinct letter to break ties. In this question, Sc words must be compared among themselves, and S words starting with other second letters must be placed correctly relative to them.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Look at the first two letters. Scarf (1) and Scene (2) begin with “Sc”. Shell (3), Survey (4) and Stream (5) begin with “Sh”, “Su” and “St” respectively. Alphabetically, Sc comes before Sh, which comes before St, which comes before Su, because c < h < t < u. So all “Sc” words come first, then Shell, then Stream, then Survey. Step 2: Order Scarf (1) and Scene (2). Both start with “Sc”. Compare the next letters. Scarf has “a” as the third letter, Scene has “e”. Since a comes before e, Scarf (1) comes before Scene (2). Step 3: Position Shell (3), Stream (5) and Survey (4). Shell begins with “Sh”, Stream begins with “St”, Survey begins with “Su”. Following alphabetical order of second letters, h < t < u, so Shell (3) comes next, followed by Stream (5), then Survey (4). Step 4: Combine all positions. Final dictionary order: Scarf (1), Scene (2), Shell (3), Stream (5), Survey (4). This is represented by the sequence 1, 2, 3, 5, 4.

Verification / Alternative check:
To verify, list the words explicitly in the determined order: Scarf, Scene, Shell, Stream, Survey. If we quickly compare any alternative arrangement, we will see that moving Survey earlier would violate the second letter ordering because “Su” comes after “St” and “Sh”. Likewise, placing Scene before Scarf would ignore the “a” versus “e” comparison. Thus the sequence 1, 2, 3, 5, 4 is the only one that accurately reflects dictionary order.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Any option that positions Scene before Scarf ignores that “Sca” comes before “Sce”.
Options that place Survey before Shell or Stream fail to respect that “Su” should follow both “Sh” and “St”.
Sequences that move Shell after Stream also break the alphabetical rule h < t.
Therefore, all other provided sequences contradict one or more letter by letter comparisons required by dictionary order.

Common Pitfalls:
Some examinees mentally group words by rough familiarity rather than precise spelling and may place Stream or Survey earlier because they sound more common or familiar. Others compare only the first two letters and miss crucial differences at later positions. To avoid such errors, always perform a careful left to right comparison at the first point of difference and remember that even the third or fourth letter can decide order when earlier letters are identical.

Final Answer:
The correct dictionary order is Scarf, Scene, Shell, Stream, Survey, which corresponds to the sequence 1, 2, 3, 5, 4.