In a certain code language, ‘FACED’ is written as ‘GZDDE’ and ‘VACAY’ is written as ‘WZDZZ’. How will ‘LABOR’ be written in that language?

Correct — B. Rule: the letters shift +1, −1, +1, −1, +1 by position.

FACED → GZDDE: F+1=G, A−1=Z, C+1=D, E−1=D, D+1=E
VACAY → WZDZZ: V+1=W, A−1=Z, C+1=D, A−1=Z, Y+1=Z

The alphabet is treated as a ring, so A stepped back one place wraps to Z.

LABOR takes the same run: L+1 = M, A−1 = Z, B+1 = C, O−1 = N, R+1 = S.

That spells MZCNS → option (b).

Why the others are wrong

• (a)
  MBCPS — Positions 2 and 4 move forward here, giving B and P. The shift alternates, so those two positions must fall back one letter, to Z and N.
• (c)
  MBDPS — The second letter moves forward to B where the pattern moves it back to Z, and the third letter D sits two places past B rather than one.
• (d)
  MADMS — The second letter is left unchanged as A and the fourth drops two places to M. Every step in this code moves exactly one place.

A coding item is solved by setting the plaintext above the ciphertext and reading the shift at each position, never by looking for a story about the word.

Both given pairs agree on the same run: +1, −1, +1, −1, +1. Two worked examples are what let you trust a position-dependent rule rather than a single constant shift across the word.

Watch the wrap. A − 1 is Z, because the alphabet closes into a ring; the same rule would send Z + 1 to A. A candidate who stalls at A and writes A or a blank loses the item on one letter.

Key facts

• In FACED to GZDDE the five shifts are +1, −1, +1, −1 and +1.
• A shifted back one place gives Z, the alphabet being treated as a ring.
• LABOR under the same shifts becomes M, Z, C, N, S.

Common traps

• Fixing the rule from one example and missing that the shift alternates.
• Treating A minus one as A or as a blank instead of wrapping it to Z.
• Shifting the whole word forward because the first letter moved forward.

No directly related past PYQ was found.