Alphabet Positions, Rearranged Alphabets, Dictionary Order and Letter Pairs
Alphabet Positions, Rearranged Alphabets, Dictionary Order and Letter Pairs
Alphabet questions reward knowing letter positions by heart. Counting "to the right" means moving towards Z, "to the left" towards A. NTPC asks positions counted from either end, alphabets written in a changed order, dictionary order of words, and letter pairs with the same gap in a word as in the alphabet.
1. Position Rules
Position from the right end = 27 − position from the left end
k-th to the right of the n-th letter from the left = letter (n + k); k-th to the left = letter (n − k)
The n-th letter from the right is letter 27 − n
Anchors: EJOTY = 5, 10, 15, 20, 25; the middle pair is M (13) and N (14)
| Changed alphabet | Letter at position i |
|---|---|
| Whole alphabet reversed | Letter 27 − i |
| First half (A to M) reversed, rest unchanged | Letter 14 − i for i ≤ 13 |
Dictionary order: compare letter by letter; a shorter word that is the start of a longer one comes first (Pen before Pencil)
Letter pairs: two letters of a word with as many letters between them in the word as in the alphabet (count both forward and backward; adjacent letters like ST count)
✗ 7th to the right of L (12) is 12 − 7 = E | ✓ To the right means towards Z: 12 + 7 = 19, S
✗ Pencil comes before Pen in a dictionary | ✓ Pen is the start of Pencil, so Pen comes first
हिंदी नोट: अक्षर की दाएँ से स्थिति = 27 − बाएँ से स्थिति। "दाएँ" का अर्थ Z की ओर, "बाएँ" का अर्थ A की ओर। शब्दकोश क्रम में अक्षर-दर-अक्षर तुलना कीजिए; छोटा शब्द जो लंबे का आरंभ हो, पहले आता है।
Exam Pointer: Verified NTPC patterns: positions counted in the English alphabet (January 2021 CBT-1) and letters at a position after the alphabet is rearranged (January 2021 CBT-1). Dictionary order and letter-pair counting had no verified NTPC shift in our check and are tagged syllabus-based.
Pariksha Pattern: Every Way NTPC Asks This Topic
Pattern 1: Positions from either end
[PYQ: NTPC CBT-1 8-Jan-2021 Shift-2]
EXAM LEVEL
Q. Which letter is 7th to the right of the 12th letter from the left end of the English alphabet?
12 + 7 = 19, which is S.
Answer: S
EXAMATLAS LEVEL
Q. Which letter is 5th to the left of the 9th letter from the right end?
The 9th from the right is letter 27 − 9 = 18 (R). Five to the left is 18 − 5 = 13, M.
Answer: M
Pattern 2: Rearranged alphabets
[PYQ: NTPC CBT-1 19-Jan-2021 Shift-1]
EXAM LEVEL
Q. If the first thirteen letters of the alphabet are written in reverse order and the rest stay as they are, which letter is 10th from the left?
In the reversed first half, position i holds letter 14 − i. Position 10 holds letter 4, D.
Answer: D
EXAMATLAS LEVEL
Q. If the whole alphabet is written in reverse order, which letter is 8th to the right of the 15th letter from the left?
In the reversed alphabet, position i holds letter 27 − i. The 15th position from the left holds L (12); 8th to its right is position 23, which holds letter 27 − 23 = 4, D.
Answer: D
Pattern 3: Dictionary order
[Pattern: syllabus-based, PYQ-style]
EXAM LEVEL
Q. Arrange in dictionary order: Pencil, Paper, Pen, Pebble, Peach.
After P, compare the second letter: a comes before e, so Paper is first. Among Pe-words, compare the third letter: a (Peach), b (Pebble), n (Pen, Pencil); Pen comes before Pencil.
Answer: Paper, Peach, Pebble, Pen, Pencil
EXAMATLAS LEVEL
Q. Which word comes third in dictionary order: Station, Statue, Statement, Static, Stationery?
All begin with Stat. Fifth letters: e (Statement), i (Static, Station, Stationery), u (Statue). Among Stati-words: Static (c) before Station and Stationery (o); Station is the start of Stationery, so it comes first. Order: Statement, Static, Station, Stationery, Statue.
Answer: Station
Pattern 4: Letter pairs with the same gap as in the alphabet
[Pattern: syllabus-based, PYQ-style]
EXAM LEVEL
Q. How many pairs of letters in the word PRIDE have as many letters between them in the word as in the alphabet?
Checking every pair, only D and E qualify: they are next to each other in the word and in the alphabet.
Answer: 1
EXAMATLAS LEVEL
Q. How many such pairs are there in the word STRONG?
S and T are next to each other in both (S 19, T 20). O and N are next to each other in the word and in the alphabet (backward, 15 and 14). No other pair has a matching gap.
Answer: 2
60-Second Revision
- Right means towards Z; position from right = 27 − position from left.
- In a reversed alphabet, position i holds letter 27 − i.
- Dictionary order: letter by letter; the shorter word that starts a longer one comes first.
- Letter pairs: check both directions; adjacent pairs count.