Arranging Words in Dictionary Order

To arrange words in the order they appear in an English dictionary, we compare them letter by letter from left to right. If the letters at a certain position are the same, we move to the next letter. The word with the letter that comes earlier in the alphabet is placed first.

Let's look at the given words:

1. Sorting
2. Solitary
3. Solution
4. Sophisticate
5. Solvent

Step-by-Step Dictionary Order Arrangement

We will compare the words letter by letter:

• All words start with 'S'.
• All words continue with 'o'.
• Now, let's look at the third letter:
  • Sorting: 'r'
  • Solitary: 'l'
  • Solution: 'l'
  • Sophisticate: 'p'
  • Solvent: 'l'
• In the alphabet, 'l' comes before 'p' and 'r'. So, words 2 (Solitary), 3 (Solution), and 5 (Solvent) will come before words 1 (Sorting) and 4 (Sophisticate).
• Let's order Solitary, Solution, and Solvent. They all start with 'Sol'. We look at the fourth letter:
  • Solitary: 'i'
  • Solution: 'u'
  • Solvent: 'v'
• Comparing 'i', 'u', and 'v', the order in the alphabet is 'i', then 'u', then 'v'. So, the order is Solitary (2), then Solution (3), then Solvent (5).
• Now let's order the remaining words, Sophisticate (4) and Sorting (1). Both start with 'So'. The third letters are 'p' and 'r'.
  • Sophisticate: 'p'
  • Sorting: 'r'
• In the alphabet, 'p' comes before 'r'. So, Sophisticate (4) comes before Sorting (1).

Combining the ordered groups, the final arrangement in dictionary order is:

1. Solitary (2)
2. Solution (3)
3. Solvent (5)
4. Sophisticate (4)
5. Sorting (1)

The correct sequence of the original numbers is 2, 3, 5, 4, 1.

The sequence corresponding to the dictionary order arrangement is 2, 3, 5, 4, 1.

Revision Table: Dictionary Ordering

Additional Information: Alphabetical Arrangement Basics

Understanding alphabetical order is fundamental for using dictionaries, indexes, and sorted lists. The English alphabet consists of 26 letters, arranged from A to Z. When arranging words:

• Uppercase and lowercase letters are typically treated the same (e.g., 'Apple' comes before 'Banana').
• Spaces and punctuation are usually ignored or handled by specific rules depending on the context (e.g., in indexing).
• Short words with common beginnings come before longer words that start with the same sequence of letters followed by more letters (e.g., 'Car' comes before 'Carpet'). This is because after 'r' in 'Car', there are no more letters, which is treated as coming before any letter in 'Carpet' after 'r'.

Practicing with different sets of words helps improve speed and accuracy in dictionary ordering tasks.