How to Answer 11+ Word Codes Questions

In a word codes question, every letter has been swapped for a digit — the same letter always becomes the same digit. The easy version tells you the key: "CAT is written 625", so C=6, A=2, T=5. The hard version is sneakier: four words, only three codes, the codes not written in the same order as the words, and one code missing. Before you can answer anything, you must match each code to its word.

That detective step is what makes word codes the hardest questions in Verbal Reasoning — but it always uses the same few clues, and every deduction below is one you can copy in the exam.

The golden rule that unlocks everything: same letter, same digit — every single time.

The method

1. Look for repeats. A double letter in a word means a double digit in its code, in the same spots. BALL needs a code ending in two matching digits.
2. Find two words that share letters — same ending, same start, or one letter apart — then hunt for two codes sharing digits in the same spots.
3. Check first and last positions first. They are the quickest to compare across all the words and codes.
4. Build your key one letter at a time — write each discovery down (T=4, R=6 …) and use it to identify the next code.
5. Spell out the target word in digits using your finished key, and find it in the options.

Worked examples

Example 1: the key is given

In a secret code, PIG is written 649 and SUN is written 852. What is the code for PIN?

A. 642 B. 462 C. 624 D. 246

1. The codes are in the same order as the words, so read the key straight off: P=6, I=4, G=9, S=8, U=5, N=2.
2. Spell PIN in digits: P=6, I=4, N=2.

Answer: A. 642

Example 2: shuffled codes, one missing

Three of these four words are given in code. The codes are not written in the same order as the words and one code is missing.

FINE MINE MEND MIND

6728 6825 3728

Find the code for MIND.

A. 6725 B. 6257 C. 7625 D. 2675 E. 6275

1. Hunt for a shared pattern. 6728 and 3728 end in the same three digits, 728. Which two words share their last three letters? FINE and MINE (-INE). So I=7, N=2, E=8.
2. The leftover code 6825 has 8 = E as its second digit. MEND has E second; MIND has I (7). So 6825 = MEND, giving M=6 and D=5.
3. M=6 means 6728 = MINE, so 3728 = FINE. The key is complete.
4. Spell MIND: M=6, I=7, N=2, D=5 → 6725.

Answer: A. 6725

Example 3: all four words use the same letters

Three of these four words are given in code. The codes are not written in the same order as the words and one code is missing.

STALE STEAL LEAST SLATE

25846 25684 46825

Find the code for SLATE.

A. 28456 B. 24586 C. 24856 D. 25486 E. 24865

1. All four words are made of the same five letters — so endings won't help. Look at first digits instead: two codes begin with 2 and one begins with 4.
2. Three words begin with S, and S cannot be 2 and 4 — so the odd code out, 46825, must be LEAST, the only word not starting with S. That gives L=4, E=6, A=8, S=2, T=5.
3. Check the key: 25846 spells STALE and 25684 spells STEAL — the key works.
4. Spell SLATE: S=2, L=4, A=8, T=5, E=6 → 24856.

Answer: C. 24856

The traps

• Assuming the codes line up with the words. The question says they don't. The first code sitting under the first word is a coincidence, not a clue — every match must be proved.
• Forgetting one code is missing. Often the word you're asked about is the one with no code — like MIND above. Crack the key from the three codes you do have.
• Stopping at the first match that "fits". Two words often share three letters, so a half-checked match can look right and be wrong. Confirm your key against every code before you answer.
• Right digits, wrong order. Every wrong option is built from the correct digits, shuffled. Spell the target word slowly, one letter at a time.

Try these yourself

In a secret code, BUS is written 543 and TEN is written 169. Which word is written 9631?

A. NEST B. BENT C. TUNE D. SENT

Three of these four words are given in code. The codes are not written in the same order as the words and one code is missing.

DARK RANK BARN BARK

9634 1693 5694

Find the code for BARK.

A. 6194 B. 9146 C. 4916 D. 1694 E. 9641

Three of these four words are given in code. The codes are not written in the same order as the words and one code is missing.

TRAIN TRACK CRACK CRANE

52841 52873 72873

Find the word that has the code 72873.

A. TRAIN B. TRACK C. CRACK D. CRANE E. CRICK

Answers

• 1: A — B=5, U=4, S=3, T=1, E=6, N=9, so 9631 spells N-E-S-T.
• 2: D — only 6 and 9 appear in every code, so they are A and R; no word starts with A, so R=9, A=6 — then 9634 = RANK, 1693 = BARN, 5694 = DARK, and BARK = 1694.
• 3: C — 52873 and 72873 differ only in their first digit, and TRACK/CRACK is the only word pair differing only in its first letter; the 5-codes are the T-words, so 7 = C and 72873 = CRACK.

Related

• The complete 11+ question-type guide
• VR: Codes — the simpler cousin: one word, one code, one jump
• VR: Letter Sums — more letters standing for numbers

All example questions come from the Brainblox question bank — practise this question type inside 15 arcade games, timed mock exams and focused practice. Brainblox is an independent app: not affiliated with, endorsed by or licensed by any exam board, school or assessment publisher, and it contains no past papers.