📖Definition
In these questions you need to work out the connection between two pairs of letters that are given to you and then apply the same rule to another pair of letters. The questions are usually in the form:
** is to ** as ** is to ____ and you have to fill in the blank with a pair of letters.
✏️Example
Find the pair of letters that completes the statement in the best way:
GM is to JL as YE is to (___)
Knowledge Required
You really need to know your alphabet forwards AND backwards!
Know where the middle of it is (between M and N) and be able to count accurately in either direction along the alphabet and through each end of the alphabet.
Diagram
You'll always be given an alphabet as above but, if possible, learn the mirror pairs in the table below. A good way to do this is to make up memorable word pairs.
A list is given but you might find it helpful to make up your own. If you can make a word pair that you can picture in your head, that will help you to remember them.
Failing that, write out the mirror table in the exam.
And don't forget, Mirror Pairs work both ways, that is, BY and YB are both mirror pairs.
Diagram
✅How To Answer
First you need to work out how the first pair of letters in the example is transformed into the second pair. Then you have to apply that rule to the two letters you've been given to make the missing pair.
There are two basic types of Letter Connection question. One type uses Mirror Pairs and the other doesn't! ALWAYS, ALWAYS check for Mirror Pairs first.
Method 1
In the question above, GM is to JL as YE is to (___)
First, look for any mirror pairs.
To do this, write down the mirror partners for the first two letters in the example ie. for G and M.
G's mirror partner is T and M's is N. Neither T nor N appear in the first or second pair of letters in the example so we're not dealing with mirror pairs here.
So now, we need to get counting. In the example, GM to JL, see how the first letters of each pair are linked and then how the second letters in each pair are linked.
Diagram
We've gone forward 3 places in the alphabet to get from G to J and back one place to get from M to L.
That is the rule we must apply to the pair YE to get our answer.
And, this is where we need to be able to count around the end of the alphabet.
Thinking of the alphabet as a circle of letters can help.
Diagram
In the exam, you don't need to write the whole of the alphabet out in a circle, just write the letters near the beginning and the end, for example, V W X Y Z A B C D E
So, counting 3 letters forward from Y, we get to B and, one letter back from E, we get D.
So, our answer is BD
✏️Example
Find the pair of letters that completes the statement in the best way:
DW is to FU as IR is to (___)
Method 2
Method 2 starts the same as Method 1. Look for Mirror Pairs.
To do this, write down the mirror partners for the first two letters in the example ie. for D and W.
D's mirror partner is W and W's is D so the first pair itself is a Mirror Pair.
Look at the second pair in the example, FU. That too is a Mirror Pair so we've definitely got a Mirror Pair question to solve.
And, looking at the pair we've been given, IR, that, as you'd expect, is also a Mirror Pair.
To get from the first letter of the first pair, D, to the first letter of the second pair, F, we count forward 2 in the alphabet.
So, for our answer, take the first letter of the pair, I, and count forward 2 to K. Now, to complete this pair, we need K's mirror partner, P.
Our answer is therefore KP.
Variances
There's a sneaky form of Mirror Pair question that you might come across. Look at this example to see how to solve it.
✏️Example
Find the pair of letters that completes the statement in the best way:
VH is to SE as ZJ is to (___)
As ever, start off by looking for Mirror Pairs.
Find the mirror partners for the letters in the first pair. V's partner is E and H's partner is S.
Now, these are the letters in the second pair but they've been swapped with the first letter of the first pair being the mirror partner of the second letter of the second pair.
Diagram
Looking at the pair we've been given, ZJ, Z's mirror partner is A and J's mirror partner is Q.
Now you have to be careful to get them in the right order. Don't forget that the mirror partner of the first letter in the first pair becomes the second letter in the second pair.
Look at the diagram to see how it works.
Diagram
That means our answer is QA.