Select the option in which the given figure is embedded without rotation.
2026
Select the option in which the given figure is embedded without rotation.
Attempted by 52 students.
Show answer & explanation
Concept
An embedded-figure question is solved by preserving the target’s exact line connectivity, turn sequence, and relative placement. Extra lines in the host figure may be ignored, but when rotation is disallowed, the target must occur in the same orientation.
Application
Trace the target from the upper end of its left vertical side: move right along the short top segment, down through the step, right along the longer horizontal segment, diagonally down-right to the pointed vertex, and then diagonally down-left to the lower end of the original vertical side.
In the panel with a large square at the upper left and a smaller square at the lower right, this outline is formed by the left outer vertical edge, the short connector into the upper-left square, the square’s left and bottom edges, the diagonal from its lower-right corner to the centre, and the diagonal from the centre to the lower-left corner.
The circle beside the lower-left diagonal lies on the same side of that diagonal as in the target, and the stepped top and pointed vertex keep their original orientation.
Contrast
The panel with a large square at the lower left and a smaller square at the right does not provide the same connected top-step-to-left-vertical trace.
The panel with two overlapping squares on the left and a large square at the upper right changes the required step-and-diagonal connectivity.
The panel with two overlapping squares on the left and a large square at the lower right also lacks the complete target trace in the original orientation.
Cross-check
Ignore the unused lines and retrace only the selected edges. The extracted outline reproduces every turn of the target without rotation, and the nearby circle remains below the relevant diagonal.
Therefore, the embedded figure is the panel with a large square at the upper left, a smaller square at the lower right, one circle near the upper centre, and one circle beside the lower-left diagonal.