Fill in the Blanks
🔒 Log in to trackConnective and relative-pronoun blanks
🔒 Log in to trackA connective is a joining word like although, because or therefore. The blank asks how two parts of a sentence are linked: contrast, cause, result, addition or time. Relative pronouns like who, whom and which join a describing part to a noun.
Name the link first
Both sides of the blank are complete. The blank only shows how they are linked.
Example: ___ he had practised for weeks, he forgot his lines. The second part goes against the first, so the link is contrast. Answer: Although.
Give each part a direction. Same direction → and, so, therefore. Opposite direction → but, yet, although. Second part explains the first → because, since.
Words that come in pairs
When the sentence shows one half of a pair, the other half is fixed.
| Pair | Example | Wrong partner |
|---|---|---|
| No sooner ... than | No sooner had he sat down than the phone rang. | when |
| Hardly / Scarcely ... when | Hardly had she entered when the lights went out. | than |
| Not only ... but also | not only cheap but also strong | but, and |
| Both ... and | Both the manager and his staff were present. | as well as |
| Either ... or; Neither ... nor | Neither he nor I | or with neither |
| Rather ... than | He would resign rather than apologise. | then |
| too ... to | too weak to walk | so, very |
| so / such ... that | so weak that he could not walk | too |
| as ... as; between ... and; from ... to | as tall as; between you and me | |
| Lest ... should | Run fast lest you should miss the bus. | or else |
Contrast and cause: check what follows
Many wrong options are right in meaning but wrong in grammar. Look at what comes after the blank.
| Word | What follows | Example |
|---|---|---|
| although / though / even though | a full clause | although it rained |
| despite / in spite of | a noun or -ing | despite the rain |
| because | a full clause | because it rained |
| because of / owing to / due to | a noun | because of the rain |
Watch: Despite it rained and although the rain are both wrong.
Although never pairs with but. Older books allow yet in the second part; a plain comma is always safe.
Linking words between sentences
- however: contrast; use it after a full stop or a semicolon.
- therefore / hence / consequently: a result or conclusion.
- moreover / besides: one more point.
- otherwise: what happens if not.
Relative pronouns
| Noun and its job in the clause | Pronoun | Example |
|---|---|---|
| person who does the action | who | the leader who inspires us |
| person who receives the action | whom | the leader whom everyone trusts |
| owner of something | whose | a girl whose bag was lost; a house whose roof leaks |
| thing | which / that | the book which / that I lent you |
| place / time / reason | where / when / why | the town where I grew up |
| "the thing that" (no noun before) | what | tell me what you need |
Tip: Rewrite the clause with he or him. "Everyone trusts him" → whom. "He inspires us" → who.
After a comma, use which or who; that never follows a comma.
Myself, themselves, each other
- Use a reflexive (myself, themselves) when the doer and receiver are the same: The children decorated the hall themselves.
- Use each other / one another when two sides act on each other.
- Theirselves, themself and hisself are not standard English.
Question types you will see
Each type: how to recognise it, the method step by step, and one question to try.
No sooner ... than / Hardly ... when
The sentence begins with No sooner had, Hardly had or Scarcely had. The blank is the second half; options are than, when, then, that.
Read the first half.
No sooner → than. Hardly / Scarcely → when.
Reject 'then' and 'that'; they are never partners here.
These pairs are fixed; every other option belongs to a different pattern.
No sooner had the bell rung ___ the students rushed out.
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The first half is 'No sooner had'.
Its fixed partner is 'than'.
'When' belongs to hardly / scarcely.
than
Relative pronoun (who / whom / whose / which)
The blank joins a noun to a describing clause. The options are who, whom, whose, which, that.
Find the noun before the blank: person or thing?
Find the pronoun's job in the clause: doer, receiver or owner.
Doer → who (people) / which (things). Receiver → whom. Owner → whose.
Rewriting the clause as a small sentence shows the pronoun's job at once.
The engineer ___ designed the bridge won a national award.
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The noun is 'engineer', a person.
The engineer designed the bridge, so he is the doer.
Doer + person = who.
who
Contrast and cause words
Two full clauses sit on either side of the blank. The options are although, because, therefore, however and similar words.
Label the link: the second part goes against the first (contrast), explains it (cause) or follows from it (result).
Contrast + clause → although / though. Cause → because. Result → therefore / so.
Check the grammar after the word: despite needs a noun, not a clause.
Once both parts are read, the link is clear, and each option stands for one link.
___ he had rehearsed for weeks, he forgot his lines on stage.
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Rehearsing should help, but he still forgot: contrast.
A full clause follows the blank.
Contrast + clause = Although.
Although
Possessive and reflexive pronouns
The options differ by an apostrophe or ending: whose / who's, its / it's, themselves / theirselves.
If a noun follows and shows ownership, use whose or its (no apostrophe).
Expand who's to 'who is' and it's to 'it is' and test.
Same doer and receiver → themselves, myself (never theirselves or hisself).
The apostrophe forms sound the same, so expanding them settles the choice.
The athlete, ___ dedication is well known, trains at dawn.
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'Dedication' belongs to the athlete, so we need ownership.
Whose shows ownership.
'Who's dedication' would mean 'who is dedication', which makes no sense.
whose
despite / although: check what follows
The blank starts a contrast. What comes after the blank is either a noun phrase or a full clause.
Look at the words after the blank.
Noun phrase or -ing → despite / in spite of.
Full clause (subject + verb) → although / though / even though.
The two families mean the same; only the grammar after them differs.
___ the heavy downpour, the match went on.
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'The heavy downpour' is a noun phrase with no verb.
A noun phrase takes despite or in spite of.
Although would need a clause: 'although it rained heavily'.
Despite
however / therefore / moreover / otherwise
The blank starts a new sentence or follows a semicolon. The options are linking words such as however, therefore, moreover, otherwise.
Read the sentence before the blank and the one after it.
Label the link: contrast, result, one more point, or 'if not'.
Pick however (contrast), therefore (result), moreover (addition) or otherwise (if not).
These words link whole sentences, and each one carries a single type of link.
Carry an umbrella; ___, you will get wet on the way.
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The second part says what happens if you do not carry an umbrella.
'If not' = otherwise.
However would signal contrast, which does not fit.
otherwise
lest ... should
The sentence contains 'lest', and the blank comes after the subject that follows it. The options include should, will, would, not.
Spot 'lest' (meaning 'so that ... not').
Use 'should' + V1 after the subject.
Do not add 'not'; lest is already negative.
Lest carries its own 'not', and standard exam grammar pairs it with should.
Walk carefully lest you ___ slip on the wet floor.
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'Lest' means 'so that you do not'.
It takes should + V1.
'Should not slip' would make a double negative.
should
Shortcuts that save time
Scan the sentence for the first half of a pair. 'Hardly had' fixes the blank as 'when'. 'No sooner had' fixes it as 'than'.
Hardly had she entered the room ___ the lights went out.
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The sentence starts with 'Hardly had'.
Hardly pairs with 'when'.
'Than' belongs to 'No sooner'.
when
Rewrite the clause as a sentence. If 'he' fits, use who. If 'him' fits, use whom.
A full clause (subject + verb) after the blank needs although / though. A noun or -ing form needs despite / in spite of.
Mistakes to avoid
Where most students lose marks on this subtopic.
Choosing 'than' after Hardly or Scarcely.
Hardly / Scarcely go with 'when'; only No sooner goes with 'than'.
Using 'whom' as the subject of the clause ('the man whom came').
The subject of the clause is 'who': the man who came.
Putting a full clause after 'despite' or a bare noun after 'although'.
despite + noun (despite the rain); although + clause (although it rained).
Using 'which' for a person or 'who' for a thing.
who / whom for people; which / that for things.
Using 'that' after a comma.
After a comma, use which (things) or who (people).
Quick revision
Read this the night before the exam.
Name the link first: contrast, cause, result, addition or time.
No sooner ... than; hardly / scarcely ... when; not only ... but also; both ... and.
too + adjective + to + V1; so + adjective + that + clause; lest ... should.
although + clause; despite / in spite of + noun or -ing.
because + clause; because of / owing to / due to + noun.
who does, whom receives, whose owns; which after a comma, never that.
themselves, not theirselves; each other for two sides acting on each other.
Practice: 12 questions
Sets of 10, mixed across the question types above. Every answer has a step-by-step explanation.
Topic test · 12 questions
Suggested time 6 min · wrong answers go to your mistake notebook automatically.