Understanding Word Analogies

Word analogies test your ability to recognize the relationship between a pair of words and apply that same relationship to a different pair. The question asks for a word that completes the analogy: Contemporary : Historic ∷ ______ : Ancient.

Analyzing the First Pair: Contemporary : Historic

Let's look at the relationship between the words "Contemporary" and "Historic".

• Contemporary means belonging to or occurring in the present.
• Historic means famous or important in history, or belonging to the past.

These two words represent opposite ends of a timeline or a strong contrast between the present/recent past and the significant/distant past. They function as antonyms in this context, describing different periods in time.

Applying the Relationship to the Second Pair: ______ : Ancient

The second part of the analogy is "______ : Ancient". We need to find a word that has the same relationship with "Ancient" as "Contemporary" has with "Historic".

• Ancient means belonging to the very distant past, especially before the fall of the Western Roman Empire (AD 476).

Following the pattern from the first pair, the missing word should be an antonym or a word representing the opposite time period to "Ancient".

Evaluating the Options for the Analogy

Let's examine the given options to find the best fit:

• Past: This word is related to both Historic and Ancient but is not a direct opposite of Ancient in the way we need for this analogy.
• Classic: This means judged over a period of time to be of the highest quality and outstanding of its kind. It relates to enduring quality, not necessarily the opposite of Ancient in a temporal sense.
• Modern: This means relating to the present or recent times as opposed to the remote past. This is a strong antonym for Ancient, just as Contemporary is for Historic.
• Future: This refers to the time after the present. While it's not the past, "Modern" fits the direct temporal opposition to "Ancient" more closely, mirroring the Contemporary/Historic relationship which contrasts the present/recent past with the past.

Conclusion: Completing the Analogy

The relationship is one of temporal opposition or contrast. "Modern" is the most fitting opposite to "Ancient" among the options, mirroring the "Contemporary" vs. "Historic" pairing.

The completed analogy is: Contemporary : Historic ∷ Modern : Ancient.

Therefore, the word that completes the analogy is Modern.

Revision Table: Understanding Time Periods

Additional Information: Types of Analogies

Analogies can show various types of relationships between words. Understanding common relationship types can help solve analogy questions.

• Antonyms: Words with opposite meanings (e.g., Hot : Cold).
• Synonyms: Words with similar meanings (e.g., Happy : Joyful).
• Part to Whole: One word is part of the other (e.g., Finger : Hand).
• Cause and Effect: One word is the result of the other (e.g., Rain : Flood).
• Worker and Tool: A person and the tool they use (e.g., Carpenter : Hammer).
• Action and Object: An action performed on an object (e.g., Read : Book).
• Object and Characteristic: An object and its typical trait (e.g., Ice : Cold).

In this question, the relationship is primarily one of Antonyms, specifically contrasting time periods.