Three of the following four number pairs are alike in a certain way and one is…

This item asks which of four number pairs breaks a shared numeric relationship. Three pairs will satisfy one common formula linking the two numbers, and the pair that violates it — even by a small margin — is the odd one out. The method is to derive the formula from the pairs that look regular, then test all four pairs against it.

1. Compute the ratio of the second number to the first number in each pair: 242 ÷ 22 = 11, 128 ÷ 16 = 8, 338 ÷ 26 = 13, and 96 ÷ 14 ≈ 6.86.

2. For three pairs the ratio equals exactly half the first number (22 ÷ 2 = 11, 16 ÷ 2 = 8, 26 ÷ 2 = 13), so the shared rule is: second number = first number2 ÷ 2.

3. Apply the rule to every pair: 222 ÷ 2 = 484 ÷ 2 = 242 (matches); 162 ÷ 2 = 256 ÷ 2 = 128 (matches); 262 ÷ 2 = 676 ÷ 2 = 338 (matches); 142 ÷ 2 = 196 ÷ 2 = 98, which does not match the given 96.

Cross-check by direct multiplication (first number × half of first number): 22 × 11 = 242, 16 × 8 = 128, and 26 × 13 = 338 all hold, but 14 × 7 = 98, not 96 — the same mismatch confirmed a second way.

So the pair 14 : 96 fails the shared first-number-squared-over-two relationship that the other three pairs satisfy, making it the odd pair out.