Pattern Completion (NNAT3 Level B)
Pattern Completion asks you to look at a picture with a missing part and choose the piece that completes the design. In Level B, designs use colored shapes, lines, and simple repeating layouts. The correct answer must fit both the empty space and the overall rule.
What the item looks like
A large pattern has one blank square or region. The answer choices show small pieces. Only one piece matches the pattern at the gap.
Core rules
- Read the whole pattern first: identify the unit that repeats, such as shape, color, size, or direction.
- Check rows and columns separately. Many Level B patterns repeat across rows or down columns.
- Match edges: the missing piece must continue lines and colors that touch the gap.
- Use symmetry only when the design actually shows it. Do not assume it.
Worked example
A 3-by-3 grid contains a triangle, circle, and square in each row, but the order shifts. Row 1 is triangle-circle-square; row 2 is circle-square-triangle; row 3 is square-triangle-?. The missing bottom-right cell must be a circle. Reasoning: each row contains one of each shape, and each column also contains one of each shape. The bottom row already has a square and a triangle, so the missing shape is the circle. The answer choice must show the same color and size as the other circles in the grid, not just any circle.
Traps
- Picking the right shape but the wrong color or orientation.
- Matching only the hole's outline, not the pattern inside.
- Ignoring the pattern at the edges of the gap.
- Assuming a pattern is symmetrical when it is actually repeating.