VII. Writing Relationship Sentences
Section 1 Introduction
The problems in this chapter are very similar to those in the last chapter except that you must write the relationship sentences yourself. Here is an example.
paper is to trees as iron is to ore
A good problem solver who read and thought aloud as she attempted to write a relationship sentence for this analogy responded as follows: “Paper is to trees as iron is to ore. I think you get iron from ore. And I guess you also get paper from trees. So that’s the analogy. Paper is produced from trees and iron is produced from ore.”
The problem solver wrote her ideas in two separate sentences so that she could see them clearly and compare them. Then she wrote the relationship sentence with blanks.
Sentence 1. Paper is produced from trees.
Sentence 2. Iron is produced from ore.
Relationship Sentence: __________ is produced from __________.
Formulate a relationship sentence which explains why the analogy below holds true. Follow the steps used by the problem solver in the last section.
First write two separate sentences—one sentence showing the relationship between the first pair of words in the analogy, and a second sentence showing the relationship between the second pair of words.
Then write the relationship sentence with blanks to accommodate either pair of words.
If you are using this book in a class, one student should solve the problem aloud and write the sentences on the chalkboard.
mouth is to talk as hand is to grasp
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
Here is the analogy you were presented with in section 2.
mouth is to talk as hand is to grasp
In writing the relationship sentence, you may have begun by saying “A mouth can be used to talk, and a hand can be used to grasp.”
A mouth can be used to talk.
A hand can be used to grasp.
Then you might have written the core of these sentences with blanks, allowing either word pair to be substituted correctly.
A __________ can be used to __________.
The relationship sentence that you wrote may have been a little different than this one. For example, here are two equally good variations.
The__________ is used to __________.
A person employs his __________ to __________.
Any relationship sentence which shows why the analogy holds is fine.
In working the problems in this chapter, there is only one restriction to keep in mind. Write the relationship sentence so that the word pairs remain in the same order as they occur in the original analogy. For instance, consider the relationship sentence.
You can __________ with your __________.
Notice that in order to place the word pairs (mouth-talk and hand-grasp) meaningfully into the blanks you must reverse their order. For example, you must change “mouth-talk” to “talk-mouth.”
You can talk with your mouth.
You can grasp with your hand.
In working the problems in this chapter, avoid writing relationship sentences which invert word order. Instead, always write the relationship sentence in a way which allows you to place the words into the blanks in the same order that they occurred in the original analogy. This will make it easier to check whether the relationship sentence is totally correct. You will see how important this is in subsequent chapters when you begin analyzing more complex analogies.
Relationship sentences are very much like mathematical equations. For example, consider this number analogy:
6 is related to 2 as 21 is related to 7
A satisfactory relationship sentence is:
__________ is three times __________.
If you know a little algebra, you will recognize that this relationship sentence is equivalent to the following algebraic equation.
This is true because:
A relationship sentence is written in common language (such as standard English)—and can show a connection either between words, or between numbers. On the other hand, an algebraic equation is written in mathematical symbols, and can only show a connection between numbers.
Let’s look at a few more facts about number analogies. Consider this one:
70 is related to 30 as 35 is related to 15
At first sight, it might occur to you that 70 is 40 more than 30, and you might consider writing this relationship sentence:
__________ is 40 more than __________.
But when you check this against the second half of the analogy, you see that 35 is not 40 more than 15. You would then discard your first conclusion, and work your way to the correct relationship.
__________ is 7/3 of __________.
By way of contrast, consider another analogy.
50 is related to 10 as 110 is related to 70
In this case it is true that for both the first pair of numbers and the second pair of numbers, the difference is 40. With this analogy a good relationship sentence is:
__________ is 40 more than __________.
This relationship sentence can also be written as an algebraic equation:
We check it by substituting the numbers from the analogy:
The close connection between relationship sentences and algebraic equations shows something very important. When you practice writing relationship sentences (with blanks into which either pair of words can be substituted) you are sharpening the same analytical skill that you depend on in understanding and manipulating all algebraic expressions. Strange as it may sound, by practicing verbal analogies you can increase your strength in mathematical problem solving.
Homework Assignment
Make up several analogies. For each analogy write one sentence showing the relationship between the first pair of words, another sentence showing the relationship between the second pair of words, and a relationship sentence.
The following problems involve writing relationship sentences for analogies. Work in pairs, and do all your reading and thinking aloud. Also, to guide your thinking and make it more visible to your partner, please use this procedure:
1. Examine the analogy, reading and thinking aloud.
2. When you have discovered the common relationship, write two separate sentences: One sentence using the common relationship and the first pair of words, and another sentence using the common relationship and the second pair of words.
3. As your final step, write the relationship sentence with the blanks—and check that it is entirely correct.
Here is an example:
legs are to chair as wheels are to car
Sentence 1. Legs support a chair.
Sentence 2. Wheels support a car.
Relationship Sentence: __________ support a __________.
Problems
1. arrive is to depart as find is to lose
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
2. books are to library as paintings are to museum
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
3. pen is to typewriter as horse is to automobile
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
4. key is to typewriter as steering wheel is to automobile
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
5. author is to book as mother is to child
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
6. electricity is to motor as ambition is to human
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
7. artist is to talent as athlete is to coordination
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
8. roots are to plant as mouth is to animal
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
9. hand is to shoulder as foot is to hip
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
10. peacock is to bird as tuxedo is to suit
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
11. verdict is to jury as sentence is to judge
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
12. hound is to fox as lion is to zebra
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
Note: For the next five problems, do not use the relationship sentence “__________ is smaller/larger than __________.” Instead, write one which describes the relationship more fully, such as “ __________is 25 more than __________.”
13. 30 is related to 10 as 45 is related to 15
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
14. 10 is related to 40 as 80 is related to 110
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
15. 10 is related to 30 as 40 is related to 120
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
16. 50 is related to 20 as 90 is related to 60
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
17. 50 is related to 20 as 25 is related to 10
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
18. roots are to plant as foundation is to building
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
19. earth is to sun as moon is to earth
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
20. fishes are to school as wolves are to pack
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
21. lamp is to light as furnace is to warmth
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
22. warm is to hot as cool is to cold
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
23. always is to often as never is to seldom
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
24. antidote is to poison as teacher is to ignorance
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
25. cube is to square as cylinder is to circle
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
26. threat is to punch as growl is to bite
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
27. itinerary is to trip as table of contents is to book
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
28. horns are to gore as bombs are to level
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
29. peninsula is to ocean as bay is to land
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
30. idea is to action as seed is to flower
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
31. sun is to moon as bulb is to reflector
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
32. depressed is to economy as incapacitated is to person
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence:
33. bi is to two as pent is to five
Sentence 1.
Sentence 2.
Relationship Sentence: