From the given alternatives, select the word which cannot be formed using the letters of the word Corporate, assuming that no letter is used more times than it appears in the original word.

Introduction / Context:
This word formation question is based on the base word Corporate. You need to identify which option cannot be formed from its letters given that each letter can only be used as many times as it appears in Corporate. This checks your attentiveness to letter presence and frequency and is a standard pattern in verbal reasoning tests.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• Base word: Corporate.
• Letters available: C, O, R, P, O, R, A, T, E (two Os, two Rs, and one each of C, P, A, T, E).
• Options: Poor, Rate, Cat, Prove.
• We cannot add letters that do not appear in Corporate.

Concept / Approach:
We list out the letters from Corporate and then check each option to see whether all its letters appear in the base word without exceeding the available counts. Any option containing a letter not present in Corporate is impossible to form and must be the answer. Suspect letters include V and other characters that are not obviously part of Corporate.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Create the letter set from Corporate: {C, O, R, P, A, T, E} with O and R repeated. Step 2: Check Poor: P, O, O, R are needed. The base word has P, two Os and at least one R, so Poor can be formed. Step 3: Check Rate: R, A, T, E all appear in Corporate, so Rate can be formed. Step 4: Check Cat: C, A, T are in the base word, so Cat can be formed. Step 5: Check Prove: P, R, O, V, E require the letter V. The letter V does not occur anywhere in Corporate, making Prove impossible to form from the given letters.

Verification / Alternative check:
For a quick verification, note that Corporate does not contain the letter V. When you scan the options, Prove is the only word that includes V. This single mismatch is enough to show that Prove cannot be made from Corporate. Poor, Rate and Cat, by contrast, consist only of letters clearly present in the base word, confirming that they are all valid formations.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Poor uses only P, O and R, which Corporate provides in sufficient quantity. Rate uses R, A, T and E, all of which appear exactly as needed in Corporate. Cat uses C, A and T, which are all present. Since these words can be constructed from the base letters, they do not satisfy the condition of being impossible to form and therefore are not correct answers.

Common Pitfalls:
Some candidates see the visual similarity between Prove and Corporate and assume it is easily formed. Others forget to check for V or misread R as V under time pressure. To avoid such mistakes, always derive the exact set of letters from the base word and then explicitly look for any new letters in each option. Focusing deliberately on unusual letters like V or L often reveals the correct answer quickly.

Final Answer:
The word that cannot be formed from Corporate is Prove, so Prove is the correct answer.