Solve: STOP : ? :: FLOW : WOLF

Correct — A.
Rule: write the word backwards.

FLOW = F L O W
Reversed: W O L F = WOLF, which matches the pair.

STOP = S T O P
Reversed: P O T S = POTS → option (a).

Why the others are wrong

• (b)
  TPOS — TPOS takes letters 2, 4, 3, 1 of STOP. The rule reverses the word, 4, 3, 2, 1, which starts with P, not T.
• (c)
  PSOT — PSOT starts with P correctly but then takes S. Reversing STOP gives P, then O, then T, then S.
• (d)
  TSOP — TSOP swaps only the first two letters of STOP and leaves O and P in place. WOLF reverses FLOW, so every letter changes position.

In letter analogies, number the letters of the given pair to find the rule. FLOW is F1 L2 O3 W4, and WOLF reads W4 O3 L2 F1, so the second word is the first written backwards.

Apply the same order, 4-3-2-1, to STOP: P, O, T, S. The answer happens to be a real word, POTS, but the position order is what decides it.

Key facts

• Reversing a four-letter word maps positions 1, 2, 3, 4 to 4, 3, 2, 1.
• FLOW reversed is WOLF, and STOP reversed is POTS.

Common traps

• Picking an option that starts with the right letter without checking the rest of the order
• Looking for a meaning link between the words instead of the letter positions

No directly related past PYQ was found.