Cloze Test Method: How to Fill Blanks Correctly Every Time

A cloze test is a passage with words removed. You choose the word that fits each blank. It tests grammar, vocabulary and understanding at the same time, which is why it appears in both SSC and banking exams.

The good news: you rarely need to know a difficult word. In most blanks, three options can be removed by simple checks. Use the four checks below in order, and stop as soon as only one option is left.

Before you start: read the whole passage once

Read it quickly with the blanks empty. Get the topic and the direction of the passage. Is the writer praising something, warning about something, or telling a story? A blank in a warning passage will rarely need a cheerful word.

Check 1: Grammar (what part of speech fits?)

Look at the words just before and after the blank.

• After a modal verb (can, should, must, will), use the base form: can grow, not can grown.
• After a preposition (despite, before, after, without, of), use a noun or an -ing form: Despite working hard.
• After was / were / is / are in a passive sentence, use the past participle: were damaged.
• A plural subject takes a plural verb: Doctors recommend.

This check alone often leaves only one option.

Check 2: Connectors (how are the two ideas related?)

When the blank joins two parts of a sentence, decide the relationship first, then pick the word:

Relationship	Words that fit
Contrast	but, yet, although, however, despite
Result	so, therefore, hence, as a result
Reason	because, since, as
Condition	if, unless, provided that
Time	before, after, as soon as, until, while

Example: “The train was delayed by three hours, ___ the passengers waited patiently.” Waiting patiently is unexpected after a long delay, so the relationship is contrast and yet fits. So would mean that the delay caused the patience, which makes no sense.

Check 3: Collocations and fixed phrases

English has word pairs that simply go together. Learn them as pairs:

• the key to success (not key of)
• the rains failed (the monsoon did not come)
• give up smoking, bring people together
• prefer tea to coffee, good at maths

If an option “sounds wrong” to you, it is often because it breaks a collocation. That instinct grows with reading, so read English news daily.

Check 4: Meaning in the whole passage

If two options are still possible, read the sentences before and after the blank. The right word must fit the story of the passage, not just its own sentence.

Example: “The farmer was worried because the rains had ___ again this year, and the wells were dry.” Fallen fits the grammar, but the dry wells tell you the rain did not come, so failed is correct.

Common traps

• Similar-looking words: except / expect, beside / besides, affect / effect, loose / lose. Read each option slowly.
• Tense clues: words like yesterday, since 2015, next week or by the time fix the tense of the blank.
• Neither…nor / either…or: the verb agrees with the nearer subject. Neither the manager nor the clerks were present.
• Choosing the “difficult” word: examiners often place a fancy word as a trap. The plain word that fits all four checks is usually right.

Practice plan

Do one 5–10 blank passage a day. For each wrong answer, write down which of the four checks would have caught it. Within a few weeks you will see that most mistakes come from skipping Check 1.

Practise with our cloze test set, where each explanation names the rule that decides the answer.