Which of the following words will appear in second place when they are arranged alphabetically as per in an English dictionary?

Appeared in: AIIMS BHOPAL NO- 2018( Shift-2nd)

Explanation

To find the word in the second position, all words must be arranged in standard English alphabetical (lexicographical) order.
All words share the common prefix 'Admi'. The sorting decision begins at the fifth letter.
Comparing the fifth letters: 'r' (in Admiral, Admire) comes before 's' (in Admission), which comes before 't' (in Admit).
This places 'Admiral' and 'Admire' as the first two words. To order them, their sixth letters are compared: 'a' (in Admiral) comes before 'e' (in Admire).
The final, correct order is: 1. Admiral, 2. Admire, 3. Admission, 4. Admit.
Therefore, the word in the second position is 'Admire'.

Option A: Admiral is the first word in the alphabetical sequence. Its sixth letter 'a' comes before the sixth letter 'e' in 'Admire', placing it at the top of the list.
Option B: Admit is the last word in the sequence. Its fifth letter 't' comes alphabetically after the fifth letters of all other options ('r' and 's').
Option D: Admission is the third word in the sequence. Its fifth letter 's' comes after 'r' (in Admiral, Admire) but before 't' (in Admit).

Clinical Relevance

Nursing practice connection: This is primarily an exam-oriented knowledge point with limited direct bedside application, so retain Alphabetical ordering of words (lexicographical order) as background academic context rather than a clinical decision trigger.
While not a clinical question, the underlying skill of systematic analysis and attention to detail is critical in nursing. Errors in reading medication names that are spelled similarly (e.g., hydroxyzine vs. hydralazine) can have severe consequences.
Alphabetical filing and data retrieval are common administrative tasks in healthcare settings. Understanding lexicographical order is fundamental for efficiently managing patient records and other documentation.
What if the words were 'Admit' and 'Admittance'? In that case, 'Admit' would come first. When one word is a prefix of another, the shorter word is listed first in alphabetical order.

How to Approach the Question

First, identify the core task: find the word that will be in the second position when arranged alphabetically.
Scan all the words to find the common starting letters (the prefix). In this case, all words start with 'Admi'.
Move to the first letter that is different among the words. Here, it's the fifth letter: 'r', 't', 'r', 's'.
Mentally group the words based on this letter's alphabetical order. The 'r' words ('Admiral', 'Admire') come first, followed by the 's' word ('Admission'), and finally the 't' word ('Admit').
For words in the same group ('Admiral', 'Admire'), proceed to the next letter (the sixth) to break the tie. Compare 'a' and 'e'. Since 'a' comes before 'e', the order is 'Admiral', then 'Admire'.
Construct the final sorted list (Admiral, Admire, Admission, Admit) to confirm which word is in the second position.

Concept Tested & Keywords

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