Skip to main content
Academy11+
Back to Cloze and shuffled sentences

English · Guide 1 of 2

Cloze: filling in the blanks

In a cloze question, words or letters are missing from a passage and you put them back. Use the meaning of the sentence and its grammar together and the right word clicks into place.

  • Ages 9 to 11
  • 11+ English
  • Worked examples

What is it?

A cloze passage is a piece of writing with gaps. In one kind, you choose the best word for each gap from a list of options. In another, some letters of a word are missing and you complete the word.

Cloze tests three things at once: vocabulary (does the word mean the right thing?), grammar (does it fit the sentence?) and spelling (for missing letters). It's common in GL and CEM-style 11+ English papers.

A typical question

Choose the best word: Tom put on his thick coat because it was   outside. (hot, freezing, sunny, bright)

How to spot it

  • A passage with numbered gaps and a box of word choices for each one.
  • Words with some letters missing, shown as dashes or boxes: cl _ _ ds.
  • 'Choose the word that best completes the sentence.'

Step-by-step method

  1. Step 1: Read the whole passage (or sentence) first, without filling anything in, so you know what it's about.
  2. Step 2: For each gap, read the sentence up to the gap and past it: words after the gap are clues too.
  3. Step 3: Check the grammar: does it need a/an, a plural, a past-tense verb, an adjective or a joining word?
  4. Step 4: Think what makes sense: cross out options that don't fit the meaning.
  5. Step 5: For missing letters, count the gaps, use the letters you can see and think of words that fit exactly.
  6. Step 6: Read the finished sentence aloud in your head. It should sound right and make sense.

Worked examples

Example 1: meaning clue

Question: Tom put on his thick coat because it was   outside. (hot, freezing, sunny, bright)
  1. Step 1: Clue words: 'thick coat' and 'because'. He's putting on a coat for a reason.
  2. Step 2: You wear a thick coat when it's cold. 'hot', 'sunny' and 'bright' don't explain it.
  3. Step 3: The answer is freezing.

Answer: freezing

Example 2: grammar clue: tense

Question: Yesterday, she   to the park with her dog. (go, goes, went, going)
  1. Step 1: 'Yesterday' tells you it happened in the past.
  2. Step 2: 'go' and 'goes' are present; 'she going' isn't a full sentence.
  3. Step 3: The past tense is went.

Answer: went

Example 3: grammar clue: a or an

Question: For lunch I ate an  . (banana, apple, pear, sandwich)
  1. Step 1: 'an' comes before a word starting with a vowel sound.
  2. Step 2: Only apple starts with a vowel sound. (You'd say 'a banana', 'a pear', 'a sandwich'.)

Answer: apple

Example 4: missing letters

Question: The sky was full of dark cl _ _ ds.
  1. Step 1: Two letters are missing. The word starts 'cl' and ends 'ds'.
  2. Step 2: Something dark in the sky: clouds. cl + ou + ds = clouds. ✓

Answer: ou (clouds)

Example 5: a joining word

Question: Sam ran as fast as he could,   he still missed the bus. (and, but, because, so)
  1. Step 1: He ran fast; he still missed it. The second part is a surprise after the first.
  2. Step 2: A surprising contrast needs 'but'. ('still' is a strong clue.)

Answer: but

Common traps

  • Filling gaps before reading the whole passage

    A clue for gap 1 might be in the next sentence. Read everything first.

  • Ignoring the words after the gap

    'She was so ___ that she fell asleep': the 'fell asleep' at the end tells you it's 'tired'.

  • A word that means the right thing but doesn't fit

    'The cake smelled ___' needs an adjective (delicious), not an adverb (deliciously).

  • Missing letters that make the wrong word

    Count the gaps exactly. 'cl _ _ ds' has two gaps, so 'clods' (one letter) doesn't fit.

  • Singular and plural

    'The twins ___ playing': twins is plural, so 'were', not 'was'.

Top tips

  • Picture the scene in each sentence: the right word usually fits the picture.
  • Learn joining words and what they do: but / although (contrast), because / so (reason and result), and (adding).
  • If two options seem right, read the sentences before and after the gap again.
  • Neither goes with nor; either goes with or.
  • Once you've finished, read the whole passage through once more with your answers in.

Practice questions

Practise this with a free account

9 practice questions on this topic, from easy to 11+ level. Reading the guide is free for everyone; practice is for members, and signing up is free.

Sign up free to practiseSign in

Related on Academy11+

More free help with the same topic, on screen and on paper.