Complete the Words: why isn’t the beginning of the word enough?
ETS describes Complete the Words as a task in which you complete partially erased words. The technical manual presents a paragraph whose first sentence is intact, followed by truncated words. The specifications connect this task to vocabulary knowledge, word order, and comprehension. The outline below draws on those documents, reviewed on October 14, 2026; our practice steps are our own.
A beginning such as “re” can lead in many directions. The sentence may call for an action, a person, or a quality. Looking for a French translation immediately can lead you to choose too soon. Start with a basic description of the situation: who is acting, on what, and for what purpose? Use that description to check proposed words, not to invent the missing ones.
How can you tell what the sentence needs?
Read the whole phrase around the blank. After a determiner, look for a noun and any adjectives; after an auxiliary, examine the verb form; before a noun phrase, consider a preposition. These are clues to test. A word after “to” is not automatically an infinitive: “to the office” contains a preposition.
Also identify the subject of the verb, even if it is far away. In “The box of spare cables remains downstairs,” the subject is “box,” not “cables.” This distinction can matter when an ending is missing. Reconstruct a short subject–verb clause before adding the complements back. That keeps you from deciding agreement based on the nearest noun.
How can you move from an idea to the exact word?
Once you have identified the function, propose a complete candidate word. Compare it with the visible beginning, letter by letter. Then check the ending: a past-tense form, a plural, and an adjective may share a root without fitting the same construction. An approximate meaning cannot fix incorrect agreement.
In our exercise, each underscore represents exactly one letter. This teaching convention makes the word length checkable; it does not describe how the test displays the task. First write the complete word on your practice draft, then isolate the missing letters. That way, you can distinguish a vocabulary error from a simple spelling omission.
Can you justify each completion?
The following passage describes a fictional situation. Ten selected words are truncated to isolate grammatical and lexical clues; this is not a complete simulation of the ETS format. Before viewing the explanation, account for at least one verb, one preposition, and one relative pronoun.
Complete the ten selected words. Each underscore represents one missing letter. Write the complete words in order. The seed cabinet in Larch Hall is managed by student volunteers. Each spr___, volunteers col____ seeds fr__ nearby gar____. They dr_ the seeds bef___ placing th__ in paper enve_____, wh___ carry dated lab___.
Enter your answer before viewing the review.
The solution, step by step
spring, collect, from, gardens, dry, before, them, envelopes, which, labels.
The method in action
- “Each spring” places the action in a regular time frame. The plural subject “volunteers” takes “collect,” without a final s. “From nearby gardens” gives the seeds’ source: “from” is the preposition, and “gardens” completes the place phrase.
- “They dry the seeds” describes the next action. “Before placing” establishes the order of operations; “them” refers back to the seeds as the object of “placing.” After “in paper,” a container is needed: “envelopes.” “Which” introduces the relative clause describing those envelopes, and “labels” refers to what carries the dates.
- Check the lengths: spr + ing; col + lect; fr + om; gar + dens; dr + y; bef + ore; th + em; enve + lopes; wh + ich; lab + els. All ten completions fit the visible letters and number of underscores. Then reread the sentences without the breaks to check that they flow.
The pitfall
Accepting a word because it fits the topic
In a passage about seeds, “growth” belongs to the right subject area, but it cannot replace just any word. The topic provides a semantic filter, never an exemption from grammar. Ask instead: does this word make sense in the sentence as written, including its small words and agreement?
Also avoid generating more candidates once you have found a strong solution. If the meaning, construction, and letters all point to the same word, move on to proofreading. If two candidates remain possible, look for what distinguishes them in the next sentence instead of choosing the one you know best.
What should you work on when you miss a word?
Classify the mistake by the clue you missed. Unknown word: keep a sentence that shows its meaning. Incorrect form: rewrite the phrase with a different subject or tense. Spelling: cover the word and reconstruct it, then check each letter. The remedy should match the mistake you observed.
Then apply the same reasoning to another short passage. Recalling the ten answers from the explanation does not prove that you can use syntax. A more useful measure is whether you can say which clue led to the form and which clue would have ruled out another form.
Key takeaways
- Understand the situation before proposing words.
- Grammatical function narrows the candidates; context distinguishes their meanings.
- Check the complete form, its agreement, and its spelling.
- Work on the clue you missed instead of memorizing only the answer.