Skip to content
Pick TwoActivity

C1 Advanced word formation: Part 3 practice

C1Reading & Use of English40 questionsUpdated

C1 Advanced word formation gives you a stem in capitals and one gap to fill. At this level the answer often needs two changes at once — a negative prefix and a noun suffix — and a plural that no one notices until the marks come back.

What this task tests

  • Suffixes that change word class: -ance, -ence, -ity, -ment, -ness, -ship.
  • Negative and reversing prefixes: un-, in-, im-, il-, ir-, dis-, mis-, non-.
  • Whether the slot needs a noun, verb, adjective or adverb, judged from the grammar around it.
  • Plural nouns, which are needed more often than candidates expect.
  • Stems that change spelling when an affix is added, such as maintain and maintenance.
  • Adjective pairs from one stem, such as economic and economical, where meaning decides.
  • Adverbs formed from irregular adjectives, and the spelling changes they bring.
  • Compound formations, where a prefix such as over-, under- or re- carries the meaning.
  • Reading for contrast words that signal a negative answer: although, despite, failed to, far from.
  • Handwriting and spelling accuracy under time pressure at the end of a long paper.

How to do it

  1. Step 1:

    Cover the capitals and read the sentence first

    Work out what the sentence needs before the stem influences you. Candidates who read the stem first tend to write a word from the same family in the wrong class, because the stem has already fixed the shape in their mind.

  2. Step 2:

    Use the words immediately either side

    An article or possessive before the gap means a noun; ‘very’ or ‘more’ means an adjective or adverb; a gap between the subject and an object means a verb. This single check prevents the most common error in the whole part.

  3. Step 3:

    Build the word in two steps

    Change the class first, then ask about the prefix. Going straight to ‘unreliable’ from RELY risks producing the right meaning in the wrong class. ‘Reliability’ first, then ‘un-’ if the sentence needs it.

  4. Step 4:

    Watch for two answers from one stem

    Where a stem yields two adjectives — economic and economical, historic and historical, sensitive and sensible — the sentence always contains the word that separates them. Find that word before you choose.

  5. Step 5:

    Spell it out to yourself before moving on

    Doubling, dropping a final -e and changing -y to -i are the usual traps. Say the letters in your head once: ‘m-a-i-n-t-e-n-a-n-c-e’. It costs three seconds and saves whole marks at the end of a tiring paper.

  6. Step 6:

    Read the sentence to the end first

    The grammar after the gap decides the word class. A gap before ‘of’ is usually a noun; a gap after ‘more’ is an adjective or adverb; a gap that is the subject of a plural verb must be a plural noun.

  7. Step 7:

    Decide the class, then build the word

    Say the class out loud in your head — ‘noun, abstract’ — before you touch the stem. Candidates who build first and check later write ‘reluctant’ where ‘reluctance’ was needed.

  8. Step 8:

    Ask whether the meaning is negative

    About one item in five needs a negative prefix. Look for a contrast word nearby: ‘but’, ‘although’, ‘despite’, ‘failed to’. These are the clue that the sentence means the opposite of the stem.

  9. Step 9:

    Check the plural and the spelling

    Before you move on, read your word with the words either side. Does the verb agree? Did the stem change spelling? Is the suffix -ence or -ance? Those three checks take five seconds and recover real marks.

Mistakes that cost marks

  • Not thisHer reluctant to comment fuelled the rumours.

    ThisHer reluctance to comment fuelled the rumours.

    After a possessive and before ‘to’, the slot is a noun. The stem is given as an adjective precisely to catch candidates who do not check the class.

  • Not thisThe redesign made the engine more economic.

    ThisThe redesign made the engine more economical.

    ‘Economic’ relates to the economy; ‘economical’ means efficient with money or fuel. Part 3 regularly tests pairs like this.

  • Not thisThere has been no significant improvement in employment among graduates.

    ThisThere has been a sharp rise in unemployment among graduates.

    Where the sentence describes a problem, the answer is the negative form. Candidates read the stem and forget to read the meaning.

  • Not thisThe committee acted with commendable efficient.

    ThisThe committee acted with commendable efficiency.

    After ‘with’ plus an adjective, the slot is a noun. ‘Efficient’ is what the stem gives you; the answer is never simply the stem in another sentence.

  • Not thisThe building is of great historical importance to the town.

    ThisThe building is of great historic importance to the town.

    ‘Historic’ means important in history; ‘historical’ means relating to the past. Stems that yield two adjectives are a favourite of this part.

  • Not thisHe showed a complete lack of sensibility to the mood of the room.

    ThisHe showed a complete lack of sensitivity to the mood of the room.

    ‘Sensitivity’ is awareness of others’ feelings; ‘sensibility’ is a different, more literary noun. Check which noun the preposition after the gap takes.

  • Not thisTheir maintainance costs rose sharply.

    ThisTheir maintenance costs rose sharply.

    The stem changes spelling: maintain becomes maintenance. A correctly formed word that is misspelled earns nothing.

Language this task keeps reusing

reluctance
unwillingness to do something
persistence
the quality of continuing despite difficulty
inconclusive
not leading to a firm result or decision
unworkable
impossible to put into practice
reliability
the quality of being trustworthy or consistent
disadvantaged
in a worse position than others, socially or economically
incomprehensible
impossible to understand
economical
using money, fuel or time without waste
likelihood
the chance that something will happen
awareness
knowledge that something exists or is happening
maintenance
the work of keeping something in good condition
historic
important in history, as opposed to merely past
sensitivity
awareness of and care for other people’s feelings
overestimate
judge something to be larger or better than it is
misinterpret
understand something wrongly
inaccessible
impossible to reach, enter or understand

Practice: word formation

40 original questions. The first 10 are open to everyone. Answers are checked in your browser and never sent to us, so you can share this page with a class as it is.

1Use the word in brackets to form a word that fits the gap.

The two reports were remarkablyin tone. (SIMILAR)

2Use the word in brackets to form a word that fits the gap.

Herto comment only fuelled the rumours. (RELUCTANT)
Which form of STRENGTH completes: ‘The new evidence ___ the case against the company.’
Decide whether each statement about Part 3 is true or false.
  • An answer can need a prefix and a suffix at the same time.
  • Only the ending ever changes; the stem itself never changes spelling.
  • A plural -s can be part of the correct answer.
3 to go
Which form of ANALYSE fits: ‘The report offers a detailed ___ of the housing market.’

6Describe the two checks you make on a Part 3 answer after writing it.

7Use the word in brackets to form a word that fits the gap.

The assembly instructions were almost. (COMPREHEND)
Which form of ECONOMY fits: ‘The redesign made the engine considerably more ___.’

9Use the word in brackets to form a word that fits the gap.

There has been a sharp rise inamong recent graduates. (EMPLOY)
Which form of RELY fits: ‘The ___ of the data has been questioned by two independent teams.’

Keep going

30 more questions on this page

Leave your email and the rest of the set opens straight away — on this page and every other exam page on the site. We read every address by hand and write back with practice suited to what you are preparing for. No list, no drip sequence.

One email, once. We never sell it or pass it on.

Note

Pick Two Activity is an independent tool. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by Cambridge University Press & Assessment, the British Council, IDP, ETS, Duolingo or any other exam board. Exam names are trademarks of their owners and are used here only to describe the exam you are preparing for. Every question on this page is original practice written by us: we do not provide, copy or reproduce official exam papers.

Frequently asked questions

How do I know whether to use -ance or -ence?

There is no rule that covers every case, so learn the word rather than the ending: persistence, existence, reluctance, resistance. Writing the noun next to the adjective in your notes makes the pair stick better than a list of endings.

How often is the answer a plural?

Often enough that it is worth a deliberate check on every item. Look at the verb and at any quantifier: ‘a number of ___’ and ‘few ___’ both need a plural noun.

Can one stem produce two acceptable answers?

Very rarely, and where it could, the sentence is written so that only one meaning works. If you have two candidates, the contrast words in the sentence usually show whether the negative form is wanted.

Which negative prefix goes with which word?

There are tendencies rather than rules: im- before p, m and b (impossible, immature), il- before l (illegal), ir- before r (irregular), in- before many Latin stems, un- before most Germanic ones. When you learn a new adjective, learn its negative in the same breath.

Do I lose the mark for a spelling slip?

Yes. A word that is formed correctly but spelled wrongly scores nothing, which makes the final spelling check the highest-value five seconds in the part. Watch doubled consonants and the -ence/-ance ending in particular.

How do I practise word formation efficiently?

Take twenty stems that matter at C1 and build a family for each: verb, noun, person noun, adjective, negative adjective, adverb. Twenty families cover a surprising proportion of what this part asks, and building them yourself fixes the spelling far better than reading a table.