Difficulty: Medium
Correct Answer: QNTV
Explanation:
Introduction / Context:
This question belongs to the verbal reasoning area where letter sequences hide a numerical pattern based on positions in the English alphabet. You are asked to find which group of four letters does not follow the same transformation rule. Recognizing such patterns is important in many competitive exams because it tests both observation and logical thinking about sequences.
Given Data / Assumptions:
The four letter groups given are IFMN, DAHI, ROVW and QNTV.
We interpret each group as a sequence of four letters from left to right.
We use A = 1, B = 2, C = 3, and so on up to Z = 26.
We will examine the step or difference between consecutive letters inside each group.
Concept / Approach:
A systematic way to solve alphabet pattern questions is to convert letters into their numeric positions and compute the differences between consecutive letters. If most groups follow the same pattern of differences, for example minus 3, plus 7 and plus 1, and one group does not, then that group is the odd one out. Here, three of the groups share the same sequence of shifts, while one group breaks that rule.
Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: For IFMN, the positions are I = 9, F = 6, M = 13 and N = 14. The differences are 9 - 6 = 3 backward, 13 - 6 = 7 forward from F to M, and 14 - 13 = 1 forward from M to N. So the pattern is -3, +7, +1.
Step 2: For DAHI, the positions are D = 4, A = 1, H = 8 and I = 9. The differences are 4 - 1 = 3 backward, then from A to H is +7, and from H to I is +1. Again the pattern is -3, +7, +1.
Step 3: For ROVW, the positions are R = 18, O = 15, V = 22 and W = 23. The moves are 18 to 15 which is -3, 15 to 22 which is +7 and 22 to 23 which is +1. So this group also follows -3, +7, +1.
Step 4: For QNTV, the positions are Q = 17, N = 14, T = 20 and V = 22. Here the moves are 17 to 14 which is -3, 14 to 20 which is +6 and 20 to 22 which is +2. The pattern is -3, +6, +2 which does not match -3, +7, +1.
Step 5: Since IFMN, DAHI and ROVW all share the pattern -3, +7, +1, while QNTV does not, QNTV is the odd letter group.
Verification / Alternative check:
Rechecking quickly, we can observe that in the first three groups, after moving three steps backward, we always move seven steps forward, and then one more step forward.
In QNTV, after the initial backward move, the next forward moves are of size 6 and 2, which clearly differ from 7 and 1.
No other simple adjustment can make QNTV conform to the same pattern, which confirms that it is the intended odd group.
Why Other Options Are Wrong:
IFMN is not the odd group because its sequence of alphabetic differences exactly follows -3, +7, +1.
DAHI is not the odd group since its internal pattern is also -3, +7, +1.
ROVW is not the odd group because its moves from letter to letter again match -3, +7, +1.
QNTV is the only group where the second and third shifts are +6 and +2 instead of +7 and +1, so it breaks the shared rule.
Common Pitfalls:
A common mistake is to look only at the first and last letters of each group instead of examining every shift.
Another pitfall is to forget to use consistent numeric positions for letters, which can lead to arithmetic errors when computing differences.
To avoid such issues, always write down the numeric positions clearly and check the pattern of differences for each group in the same systematic way.
Final Answer:
The letter group that does not follow the -3, +7, +1 alphabetic shift pattern and is therefore the odd one out is QNTV.
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