Part 5 sentences are built from a small number of frames. Once you recognise the frame, the blank has a fixed answer type before you read the options — and that is the whole speed advantage in this part.
Each template below shows the pattern with the blank marked, the form the slot requires, and the distractor that is placed next to it.
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| Template | Slot needs | Example |
|---|---|---|
| the ___ of the project | Noun | the completion of the project |
| our ___ policy | Adjective | our revised policy |
| a ___ increase in sales | Adjective | a considerable increase in sales |
| the ___ team members | Adjective or participle | the remaining team members |
If a noun already follows the blank, the slot is an adjective. If nothing follows, the slot is the noun itself.
| Template | Slot needs | Example |
|---|---|---|
| for ___ | Noun or gerund | for approval / for reviewing the file |
| after ___ the report | Gerund | after submitting the report |
| in ___ with the policy | Noun | in accordance with the policy |
| without ___ notice | Adjective | without prior notice |
| despite ___ delays | Adjective or noun modifier | despite repeated delays |
Never a bare infinitive after a preposition. “for review” and “for reviewing” are both possible; “for review the file” is not.
| Template | Slot needs | Example |
|---|---|---|
| The manager ___ the request. | Finite verb, active | The manager approved the request. |
| The request ___ yesterday. | Finite verb, passive | The request was approved yesterday. |
| Sales ___ by 12 percent since March. | Present perfect | Sales have risen by 12 percent since March. |
| The shipment ___ by Friday. | Future or future perfect | The shipment will arrive by Friday. |
Object present means active. No object with the subject receiving the action means passive. Verbs like arrive, rise and occur never take an object, so they are never passive.
| Template | Slot needs | Example |
|---|---|---|
| The team worked ___. | Adverb | The team worked efficiently. |
| The figures were ___ accurate. | Adverb modifying an adjective | The figures were remarkably accurate. |
| The order ___ arrived this morning. | Adverb of time or degree | The order finally arrived this morning. |
If the sentence is already grammatically complete, the slot cannot be a noun or a verb.
| Template | Slot needs | Example |
|---|---|---|
| ___ the delay was short, customers complained. | Conjunction | Although the delay was short… |
| ___ the short delay, customers complained. | Preposition | Despite the short delay… |
| ___ the shipment arrives, we will invoice. | Time conjunction | Once the shipment arrives… |
| ___ heavy rain, the event continued. | Preposition | In spite of heavy rain… |
Look right of the blank for a subject and a verb. Clause means conjunction; noun phrase means preposition. This one distinction resolves several questions per test.
| Template | Slot needs | Example |
|---|---|---|
| the supplier ___ raised prices | Subject relative | the supplier that raised prices |
| the client to ___ we wrote | Object of preposition | the client to whom we wrote |
| the vendor ___ terms expire in May | Possessive | the vendor whose terms expire in May |
| the warehouse ___ the units are stored | Place | the warehouse where the units are stored |
If the clause after the blank already has its own subject, the slot is an object relative (whom, which, that) or a possessive (whose), never who.
| Template | Slot needs | Example |
|---|---|---|
| the ___ costs | -ing if the noun acts | the rising costs |
| the ___ budget | -ed if the noun receives the action | the approved budget |
| ___ the file, she found the error. | -ing, same subject as the main clause | Reviewing the file… |
| ___ in May, the plan began in June. | -ed, passive with the same subject | Approved in May… |
| Template | Slot needs | Example |
|---|---|---|
| ___ than last quarter | Comparative form | higher than last quarter |
| the ___ option available | Superlative | the cheapest option available |
| as ___ as the original estimate | Base adjective or adverb | as accurate as the original estimate |
| ___ higher than expected | Comparative intensifier | considerably higher than expected |
The word than anywhere in the sentence forces a comparative. Very cannot intensify a comparative — use much, far, slightly or considerably.
| Template | Slot needs | Example |
|---|---|---|
| ___ of the applicants were shortlisted | Plural quantifier | Several of the applicants… |
| ___ information was provided | Uncountable quantifier | Little information was provided |
| ___ employee must sign the form | Singular quantifier | Each employee must sign… |
| ___ of the two proposals | Two-item quantifier | Neither of the two proposals… |
Check whether the noun is countable plural, countable singular or uncountable before choosing. This is the whole question.
Cover the right-hand columns and name the slot type for each frame from the template alone. Ten frames, under 60 seconds, is exam pace.
| Frame | Trigger you can see instantly | Answer type |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | the / a / our before the blank | Noun or adjective |
| 2 | Any preposition before the blank | Noun or gerund |
| 3 | Subject with no other verb | Finite verb |
| 4 | Sentence already complete | Adverb |
| 5 | Blank at the start of the sentence | Conjunction or preposition, decided by what follows |
| 6 | Noun then blank then verb | Relative pronoun |
| 7 | Article, blank, noun with a verb root | Participle, -ing or -ed |
| 8 | than / as…as / the most | Comparative or superlative |
| 9 | Blank then of the / then a bare noun | Quantifier |
A large share of them. Word form, preposition, connector and relative pronoun questions are decided by the frame rather than by meaning, and those are the bulk of Part 5. Vocabulary and collocation questions still need you to read the whole sentence.
The options. Four forms of one word tells you it is a frame question, and you then only need the words immediately around the blank. Four unrelated words tells you to read the whole sentence for meaning.
20 to 25 seconds per question, which puts 30 questions inside 10 to 12 minutes. Anything slower comes directly out of Part 7, where 54 questions are waiting.
Mark your default letter and move on. Part 5 questions are worth exactly the same as Part 7 questions, and one hard Part 5 item can cost you two easy Part 7 items.
Yes for the word-level blanks, which use the same frames. Part 6 adds sentence-insertion questions that no frame resolves — those need the sentence before and after the blank.
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