If KFWHJ represents FARCE, what does INXRFQ stand for?
2024
If KFWHJ represents FARCE, what does INXRFQ stand for?
- A.
DISMAL
- B.
DECMAL
- C.
DISLAM
- D.
DECLAM
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: A
Concept: This is a letter-shift (Caesar-shift) substitution cipher — every letter of the coded word is obtained by moving a fixed number of places forward in the alphabet from the corresponding letter of the plain word. To decode a new coded word, first find this fixed shift from the given example, then apply the reverse shift to every letter of the new code.
Application:
Note the alphabet position of each letter in the example pair KFWHJ (code) and FARCE (plain): K=11↔F=6, F=6↔A=1, W=23↔R=18, H=8↔C=3, J=10↔E=5.
Subtract the plain-letter position from the code-letter position at each spot: 11-6=5, 6-1=5, 23-18=5, 8-3=5, 10-5=5 — every letter is shifted forward by exactly 5 places, so the fixed shift is 5.
Apply the same shift to INXRFQ by subtracting 5 from each letter's position: I(9)-5=4=D, N(14)-5=9=I, X(24)-5=19=S, R(18)-5=13=M, F(6)-5=1=A, Q(17)-5=12=L.
Reading the results in order gives D, I, S, M, A, L.
Cross-check: Re-encoding this result by adding 5 to each letter regenerates the original code exactly — D+5=I, I+5=N, S+5=X, M+5=R, A+5=F, L+5=Q — i.e. INXRFQ, confirming the decoding. It is also the only one of the four options that is an actual English word.