Printable worksheet for practicing analogies, featuring a definition, example, and ten fill-in-the-blank questions.

Let's solve each analogy step by step and explain the reasoning behind each answer.

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1. up is to down as over is to ________

- Options: under, along, above
- Analysis: "Up" and "down" are opposites (antonyms). Similarly, "over" is opposite to "under."
- Answer: under

> ✔ *Explanation:* The relationship is antonym (opposite). So, just as "up" is the opposite of "down," "over" is the opposite of "under."

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2. big is to small as full is to ________

- Options: filled, empty, blank, drain
- Analysis: "Big" and "small" are opposites. So, "full" should be paired with its opposite.
- Answer: empty

> ✔ *Explanation:* "Full" is the opposite of "empty," just as "big" is the opposite of "small."

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3. platoon is to soldier as team is to ________

- Options: teacher, student, player
- Analysis: A platoon is made up of soldiers; similarly, a team is made up of players.
- Answer: player

> ✔ *Explanation:* This is a part-to-whole relationship: a soldier is a member of a platoon, and a player is a member of a team.

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4. rock is to heavy as feather is to ________

- Options: light, fast, rich
- Analysis: A rock is typically heavy; a feather is typically light. So, the relationship is characteristic or attribute.
- Answer: light

> ✔ *Explanation:* The analogy is based on physical properties: rocks are heavy, feathers are light.

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5. tree is to climb as ocean is to ________

- Options: big, swim, fish
- Analysis: You climb a tree — what do you do in an ocean? You swim in it.
- Answer: swim

> ✔ *Explanation:* The action associated with the object: "climb" is the action done on a tree; "swim" is the action done in an ocean.

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6. smile is to happy as frown is to ________

- Options: sad, injury, pain
- Analysis: A smile expresses happiness; a frown expresses sadness.
- Answer: sad

> ✔ *Explanation:* This is an expression-emotion relationship. Smile → happy; frown → sad.

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7. stripes is to zebra as giraffe is to ________

- Options: fur, hair, spots
- Analysis: Zebras have stripes; giraffes have spots.
- Answer: spots

> ✔ *Explanation:* This is a pattern-feature relationship: zebras are known for their stripes, giraffes for their spots.

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8. spaghetti is to pasta as ketchup is to ________

- Options: sauce, condiment, pulp
- Analysis: Spaghetti is a type of pasta; ketchup is a type of sauce.
- Answer: sauce

> ✔ *Explanation:* This is a category relationship: spaghetti is a subset of pasta, and ketchup is a subset of sauce.

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9. wind is to windmill as sun is to ________

- Options: solar panel, engine, hammer
- Analysis: Wind turns a windmill to generate energy; sunlight powers a solar panel.
- Answer: solar panel

> ✔ *Explanation:* This is a source-to-device relationship: wind powers a windmill, sun powers a solar panel.

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10. nice is to kind as pretty is to ________

- Options: ugly, beautiful, smart
- Analysis: "Nice" and "kind" are synonyms (both describe positive personality traits). Similarly, "pretty" and "beautiful" are synonyms (both describe appearance).
- Answer: beautiful

> ✔ *Explanation:* The relationship is synonymy: "nice" = "kind", so "pretty" = "beautiful".

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✔ Final Answers:

1. under
2. empty
3. player
4. light
5. swim
6. sad
7. spots
8. sauce
9. solar panel
10. beautiful

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Let me know if you'd like this formatted into a printable answer key!