11+ · Topic guide

Hidden Four-Letter Word: Practice Set 2

Hidden Four-Letter Word: Practice Set 2 is a second practice round for the same question type as Hidden Four-Letter Word, where a common four-letter word is hidden across the join between two neighbouring words in a sentence, using the end letters of the first word and the start letters of the second. This set uses fresh sentences and hidden words not used in the first set, so the join must be found again from scratch each time.

Year 5-6 (11+)Verbal ReasoningGL AssessmentCEM

Before you start

Make sure you're comfortable with these topics first:

Method

  1. Read the sentence once for meaning, then read it again focusing only on the letters, ignoring what the words mean.
  2. Work along the sentence one word-join at a time, checking the last one or two letters of each word against the first one or two letters of the next word.
  3. At each join, try combining 1+3, 2+2 and 3+1 letter splits to see whether a real four-letter word appears.
  4. Remember the hidden word can never use the very first letter of the sentence or the very last letter, and it is never split by a comma or full stop.
  5. Once you find a match, check it against the five options given rather than assuming it is definitely the answer.
  6. If more than one join looks promising, check both against the options; only one will actually appear in the list.

Worked example

A four-letter word is hidden between two words that are next to each other in this sentence. Which word is hidden? 'Despite being a complete amateur, she won the race.' A) TEAM B) DUST C) LAMP D) MEAL E) RATE

  1. Scan each word join in turn: DESPITE/BEING, BEING/A, A/COMPLETE, COMPLETE/AMATEUR, and so on.
  2. COMPLETE ends in the letters TE, and AMATEUR begins with the letters AM.
  3. Joining the last two letters of COMPLETE to the first two letters of AMATEUR gives TE + AM = TEAM, which is a real word.
  4. Check this does not use the very first or very last letter of the sentence, and is not split by punctuation; it passes both checks.
  5. Compare TEAM against the five options: it matches option A exactly, and none of the other joins in the sentence spell a real word that also appears in the list.
  6. Final answer: A) TEAM.

Practice questions

Try each question, then tap to reveal the answer.

Q1A four-letter word is hidden between two words that are next to each other in this sentence. Which word is hidden? 'She practised yoga terribly at first but improved with time.' A) DUST B) GATE C) LAMP D) MEAL E) RATEShow answer

Answer: B) GATE - YOGA ends in GA and TERRIBLY begins TE, so GA + TE = GATE

Got it right?
Q2A four-letter word is hidden between two words that are next to each other in this sentence. Which word is hidden? 'The busy disco attracted dancers from every town.' A) COAT B) MEAL C) RATE D) LAMP E) DUSTShow answer

Answer: A) COAT - DISCO ends in CO and ATTRACTED begins AT, so CO + AT = COAT

Got it right?
Q3A four-letter word is hidden between two words that are next to each other in this sentence. Which word is hidden? 'The opera terrified the young pianist backstage.' A) MEAL B) LAMP C) RATE D) DUST E) COATShow answer

Answer: C) RATE - OPERA ends in RA and TERRIFIED begins TE, so RA + TE = RATE

Got it right?
Q4A four-letter word is hidden between two words that are next to each other in this sentence. Which word is hidden? 'The warm welcome always included a hug and fresh bread.' A) DUST B) RATE C) COAT D) MEAL E) LAMPShow answer

Answer: D) MEAL - WELCOME ends in ME and ALWAYS begins AL, so ME + AL = MEAL

Got it right?
Q5A four-letter word is hidden between two words that are next to each other in this sentence. Which word is hidden? 'The final amplified chorus filled the entire hall.' A) RATE B) LAMP C) MEAL D) COAT E) DUSTShow answer

Answer: B) LAMP - FINAL ends in L and AMPLIFIED begins AMP, so L + AMP = LAMP

Got it right?
Q6A four-letter word is hidden between two words that are next to each other in this sentence. Which word is hidden? 'The recipe always altered slightly depending on the cook.' A) LAMP B) MEAL C) SALT D) RATE E) COATShow answer

Answer: C) SALT - ALWAYS ends in S and ALTERED begins ALT, so S + ALT = SALT

Got it right?

Exam-style questions

Written in the style of a 11+ exam paper, with a full mark scheme.

Q1[2 marks]

A four-letter word is hidden between two words that are next to each other in this sentence. Which word is hidden, and which two words does it join? 'Their purpose attained real meaning after months of practice.' A) SEAT B) POST C) DEAL D) RIDE E) WIND (2 marks)

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Q2[3 marks]

A four-letter word is hidden between two words that are next to each other in this sentence. Explain fully how it is formed. 'The town parade always attracted a huge crowd of visitors.' A) POST B) DEAL C) RIDE D) WIND E) SEAT (3 marks)

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Q3[4 marks]

A four-letter word is hidden between two words that are next to each other in this sentence. Explain fully how it is formed and confirm it follows the rules for this question type. 'The song tempo started to increase near the end.' A) SEAT B) DEAL C) RIDE D) POST E) WIND (4 marks)

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Free printable worksheet

Want more practice on paper? Download the hidden four-letter word: practice set 2 worksheet pack - 11 pages of exam-style questions with a full mark scheme. One email opens every download in this browser for 14 days - no account, no card. Print it for personal and classroom use.

This topic is chapter 18 of 11+ Verbal Reasoning Workbook 2, the whole course as one free printable PDF.

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