Check 1: rebuild the exact word
A word that suits the topic is not enough: it must keep every printed letter, fill the gap exactly (one underscore is one letter here) and fit its sentence. In “volunteers first exa____ each broken object”, only a verb works, so examine beats example and exactly.
Without options, grammar decides. Five gaps from a paragraph about a swap shelf:
- “a simple sys___ for labelling each item”: system, a noun after “a simple”.
- “Owners now des_____ its condition”: describe, with no -s after a plural subject.
- “A volunteer che___ the labels each morning”: checks, because a third-person singular subject in the present simple takes -s.
- “This does not gua______ that every item will last”: guarantee, the base form after “does not”.
- “asks people to ret___ anything”: return, the base form after “to”.
Check 2: separate the general notice from the personal reply
Everyday texts often pair a notice for everyone with a reply to one person. A reply applies a rule or adds detail; it rarely cancels one. When a reply accepts a printed or digital copy of a required booking reference, it changes the form of the proof, not the need for it.
A community tool library posts an update, then answers a member called Alex:
- Notice: collection moves to the side desk; weekday hours stay 4–7 p.m.
- Notice: wait for a ready message; “a reservation confirmation alone is not a collection notice”.
- Notice: “If you cannot collect an item within two working days of the ready message, reply to that message to request an extension. Extensions depend on whether someone else is waiting.”
- Reply: “Your drill is ready today, Tuesday 15 September. We can hold it through Thursday evening.”
- Reply: a colleague may collect it with the code and Alex’s name, never the password.
Check 3: keep a study result apart from a broad claim
Academic passages often report a small study, then limit it. Name what was compared before deciding why: if a class recalls more after an illustrated handout that also uses simpler wording, the result cannot be credited to the pictures alone.
In a passage about a course guide, twenty students from one class got one of two versions with identical sentences, one with headings. Keep every hedge, such as “may” or “on average”:
- Result: “Those with headings located the deadline more quickly on average. The groups took similar amounts of time to find the attendance rule.”
- Limit: “Only one guide and one group of students were studied, and faster searching does not necessarily mean deeper understanding.”
- Not supported, so the answer to a NOT question: “The findings establish that headings help every reader on every task.”
- Vocabulary: a later project could help “distinguish quick location of information from understanding what it requires”, that is, tell the two apart.
Typical mistakes
If your first language does not change the verb for he, she or it, check every rebuilt verb: one volunteer checks, two volunteers check.
- A word that fits the topic but not the letters.
- Keeping the -s after “does not”.
- Treating a personal reply as a rule for everyone.
- Taking a reservation confirmation as permission to collect.
- Reading “may” as “will”, or “on average” as “always”.
A 20-minute review routine
Use this after each practice set:
- Sort: label each wrong answer as word, message or study evidence.
- Quote: copy the line that decides it and mark the clue.
- Explain: say why the right answer is right: “The gap follows ‘does not’, so it needs the base form ‘guarantee’.”
- Separate: put a result and its limit in two sentences: “The heading group found the deadline faster on average. However, only one guide was tested.”
- Transfer: write a polite request based on a notice: “Would it be possible to collect the drill on Friday instead? I have to work late on Thursday.”
Next step
When you can back each answer with a quoted line, take the habit into Listening, where choosing a reply turns on the same question: what exactly was said?