Sentence Completion
Sentence completion requires you to find specific words from the passage and copy them exactly. The rules are strict — word limit, word form, and spelling all affect whether your answer is marked correct or not.
The Word Limit Rule — Read It Every Time
Every sentence completion task comes with an instruction like:
Non-negotiable rule:
Exceeding the word limit is an automatic zero — even if your answer contains the correct word. “the industrial revolution” is three words. If the limit is two words, this is wrong. Check the word count of every answer before moving on.
Predict the Grammar Type Before Scanning
Before you scan the passage, read the sentence carefully and determine what grammatical category the missing word must belong to. This narrows your search significantly and helps you identify the right word when you find the relevant section.
“The experiment was conducted in a __________ environment.”
Predicted type: Noun (or noun phrase) — the blank follows an article and precedes a noun
How to narrow your search: The blank is after 'a' and before 'environment' — it must be an adjective or adjective phrase modifying 'environment', e.g. 'controlled' or 'sterile'.
“Researchers found that participants __________ more when given visual prompts.”
Predicted type: Verb (past tense, third person plural) — the blank is the main verb
How to narrow your search: The structure 'participants ___' requires a past tense verb. Look for action verbs in the passage near the relevant idea.
“The study was published __________ after the initial findings were recorded.”
Predicted type: Time expression (adverb or prepositional phrase)
How to narrow your search: The blank follows 'published' and precedes 'after' — it is likely a time adverb like 'shortly' or 'immediately', or a phrase like 'one year'.
Step-by-Step Strategy
- 1
Read the incomplete sentence and predict the grammar type
Identify what part of speech is needed (noun, verb, adjective, adverb, or a number). This determines what you are looking for when you scan.
- 2
Identify the keyword(s) in the sentence stem
Find the most specific, searchable term before or after the blank. This is your scanning anchor. Sentence completion questions follow the order of the passage, so use your previous answers to locate roughly where to scan.
- 3
Scan the passage for the keyword or a paraphrase
The sentence stem paraphrases the passage — the blank itself is the one place where you use the passage's exact words. Scan for the idea in the stem, not the exact words.
- 4
Read carefully around the keyword location
Once you locate the relevant section, read the 2–3 sentences carefully. Find the word or short phrase that fills the blank and completes the sentence logically and grammatically.
- 5
Copy the answer exactly from the passage
Write the words as they appear in the passage — same spelling, same capitalisation (if it is a proper noun), same form. Do not paraphrase, do not change the tense, do not add or remove letters.
- 6
Count the words and check the limit
Before moving on, count the words in your answer. Hyphenated words (e.g. 'well-known') typically count as one word — but check the specific exam instructions, as conventions can vary.
Word Form — Changing the Form Counts as Wrong
This is a rule that catches many candidates by surprise. The passage may use a word in one form, but the gap in the sentence requires a different grammatical form. In this case, you must write the form that fits the sentence — not the form in the passage.
Example:
Passage: “Scientists rapidly adoptedthe new methodology after peer review confirmed its accuracy.”
Sentence to complete:“After peer review, the new methodology saw rapid __________ by scientists.”
Correct answer: adoption
The passage uses the verb “adopted” — but the sentence requires the noun “adoption” (after the adjective “rapid”). Writing “adopted” would be grammatically incorrect in the sentence and therefore wrong.
Note: In most cases, the correct word appears in the passage in the exact form needed. Cases where you must change the form are less common but do occur. Always check that your answer fits grammatically into the sentence.
Worked Examples
Example 1
The decline of the high street has been attributed to multiple factors. Online retail has consistently grown its market share, offering consumers the convenience of purchasing goods without leaving home. At the same time, rising commercial rents have made it increasingly difficult for independent retailers to remain financially viable. Local councils in several cities have responded by converting vacant shops into community spaces, arguing that this approach can revitalise town centres more sustainably than further retail development.
Instructions: NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS
“High street decline has partly been caused by increases in __________, which have put pressure on smaller retailers.”
Answer: commercial rents
The sentence stem paraphrases: “put pressure on smaller retailers” = “difficult for independent retailers to remain financially viable.” Scanning for “retailers” leads to the relevant section. The cause given is “rising commercial rents” — but “rising” is already represented by “increases in” in the sentence, so the answer is “commercial rents” — exactly two words, within the limit.
Example 2
The Great Barrier Reef stretches for approximately 2,300 kilometres along the north-east coast of Australia and is composed of nearly 3,000 individual coral reefs and 900 islands. It is the world's largest coral reef ecosystem and is visible from space. Rising sea temperatures caused by climate change have led to repeated bleaching events, during which corals expel the algae that provide their nutrients and colour, turning white. Without intervention, scientists predict that the majority of the reef could suffer irreversible damage within decades.
Instructions: NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER
“The Great Barrier Reef is made up of around __________ separate coral reefs and nearly 900 islands.”
Answer: 3,000
Scan for the number. The passage says “nearly 3,000 individual coral reefs”. The sentence stem uses “around” as a paraphrase for “nearly”, so the blank requires only the number: 3,000. Writing “nearly 3,000” would exceed the word limit if the instructions say NO MORE THAN ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER — but here the limit is three words, so either would be technically acceptable. However, the most precise answer is just the number: 3,000.
Common Mistakes
- 1
Paraphrasing instead of copying
The answer must come from the passage — in the passage's exact words. Candidates who rephrase the answer in their own words are almost always marked wrong. The only exception is when the sentence requires a different word form, in which case you adapt the form but keep the base word.
- 2
Exceeding the word limit
Always count. Articles (a, an, the) count as words. Prepositions count as words. If your answer is three words and the limit is two, it is wrong — even if the answer contains the correct information. This is the most mechanically avoidable error in the entire Reading test.
- 3
Choosing a word that fits grammatically but contradicts the passage
Some candidates guess a word that fits grammatically and sounds plausible — without verifying it against the passage. Every answer must be directly supported by the text. If you cannot point to the exact word in the passage, it is not a valid answer.
Practice Tip
Take a short article and write five sentence completion questions from it — with strict word limits. Then give it to a study partner (or attempt it yourself after a day has passed). Focus on making your incomplete sentences paraphrase the passage rather than copy it — this trains you to recognise paraphrasing in real exam questions, which is the skill that locates the correct section of the passage.
Want personalised feedback on your Reading?
Book a session with our trainers and get a strategy tailored to your target band score.
View Trainers →