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Geometric Analogy
A is to B as C is to ? — apply the same transformation to predict D.
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A is to B as C is to ? — apply the same transformation to predict D.
Geometric analogy puzzles show a 2×2 grid: top row has cells A → B (where some single-attribute transformation is applied), bottom row has C → ?. The transformation that maps A onto B must be the same one that maps C onto ?. The user picks D from four candidates. The format dates to early-20th-century intelligence testing — Spearman cited analogy tests as a primary measure of g (general intelligence) around 1923, and similar items appear throughout WAIS, WISC, and many subsequent batteries.
T(A) = B ∧ T(C) = D where T is a single-attribute transformation
- size: small circle → large circle :: small triangle → large triangle
- fill: empty pentagon → half pentagon :: empty diamond → half diamond
- rotation: triangle 0° → triangle 90° :: pentagon 0° → pentagon 90°
- color: primary square → secondary square :: primary hexagon → secondary hexagon
How to recognize it
- Compare A and B — what single attribute changed?
- That attribute is the transformation; everything else stays the same
- Apply the same change to C to find D
Common mistakes
- Picking C unchanged (forgot to apply the transformation)
- Picking D with A's shape instead of C's (mixed up which cell is the starting point)
- Picking the right axis of change but the wrong destination value
Step-by-step walkthrough
A: empty pentagon. B: half pentagon. C: empty triangle. D: ?
- Compare A and B: only the fill changed (empty → half)
- Apply the same change to C
- Pick the answer that matches: half triangle (everything else identical to C)
Answer: Half-filled triangle