🔍 Key Concepts

• Square (reef) knot and how it looks when properly tied • What a granny knot / thief’s knot is (a mis-tied square knot) • How a bend between two ends of a line is drawn compared to hitches around an object

💭 Think About

• First, decide which of F, M, R, or W is intended to be the square (reef) knot when it is tied correctly in the illustration. • Eliminate any options that are clearly hitches around a post or hook, since a granny/thief’s knot results from mis-tying a bend between two rope ends, not from a hitch. • Compare the remaining options and look for the one that shows two ends of the same line tied together in a flat, symmetrical pattern, the basic form of a square knot.

✅ Before You Answer

• Make sure the knot you pick is a bend joining two standing parts, not securing to a spar, hook, or object. • Verify that in the illustration, the working ends exit the knot on opposite sides but in line with the standing parts, which is characteristic of a square (reef) knot. • Confirm that seamanship texts describe the granny or thief’s knot as simply a faulty version of the square (reef) knot—so you are really looking for the picture of the proper square knot.