Primary 5 · English · Sentence Synthesis & Transformation
Sentence Synthesis & Transformation questions for Primary 5 English
12 questions to work through online, 6 of them written out the way the paper asks. Answer and you get the working straight away, then a score at the end. No sign-up, and you can retake it as often as you like.
- No sooner ... than
- So ... that
- In spite of
- Reported speech with a question
- Unless
- The passive with two objects
- Writing the joining word
- Writing the verb form
- Writing with too
- Writing the relative pronoun
- Writing the tag
Answers and explanations for all 12 questions
Every answer with the reasoning behind it. Worth reading after you have tried the set — or on its own, if you are a parent marking it.
Join these sentences using no sooner: The bell rang. The corridor filled with pupils.
Answer: No sooner had the bell rung than the corridor filled with pupils.
No sooner turns the clause round — no sooner had the bell rung — and it is always followed by than.
Join these sentences using so: The queue was very long. We gave up and went home.
Answer: The queue was so long that we gave up and went home.
So goes before the adjective and that introduces the result: so long that we gave up.
Rewrite using in spite of: Although she had a fever, Nadia sat the paper.
Answer: In spite of her fever, Nadia sat the paper.
In spite of takes a noun phrase, so although she had a fever becomes in spite of her fever.
Rewrite in reported speech: "Have you seen my recorder anywhere?" Sara asked me.
Answer: Sara asked me whether I had seen her recorder anywhere.
A reported question drops the question order, steps the verb back to had seen, and moves my to her.
Rewrite using unless: If you do not water the seedlings daily, they will not survive.
Answer: Unless you water the seedlings daily, they will not survive.
Unless carries the if not by itself, so the do not comes out of the sentence.
Rewrite so that it begins with Aravind: The judges awarded Aravind the first prize.
Answer: Aravind was awarded the first prize by the judges.
Turning the sentence round makes Aravind the subject, the verb becomes was awarded, and by the judges goes last.
Write one word for the blank. Hardly had the concert begun ______ the power went out.
Answer: when
Hardly had ... pairs with when, in the same way that no sooner pairs with than.
Write the correct form of the marked word. By the time the ambulance arrived, the swelling [go] down.
Answer: had gone
By the time marks one past event as earlier than another, and the earlier one takes had gone.
Write one word for the blank. The soup was too salty ______ anyone to finish.
Answer: for
The pattern is too + adjective + for + person + to + verb: too salty for anyone to finish.
Write one word for the blank. The volunteer ______ handwriting was clearest was asked to write the banner.
Answer: whose
The handwriting belongs to the volunteer, and whose is the word that shows belonging.
Write one word for the blank. She took the earlier train ______ that she would not miss the briefing.
Answer: so
So that introduces a purpose — the reason she chose the earlier train.
Write the two words that complete the sentence. Let us begin without them, ______ ?
Answer: shall we
A sentence that begins Let us takes the tag shall we.