Shuffled sentences are solved by finding the verb first, then the subject, then building outwards. Children who start at the left hand end and work along are doing it the hard way.
In most versions of this question the sentence also contains one extra word that does not belong, and naming that word is the actual answer.
Find the skeleton before the detail
Every sentence has a frame: somebody doing something. Locate that frame and the rest falls into place around it.
- Find the verb. What is happening? This is the spine of the sentence.
- Find who or what is doing it. That is your subject, and it usually goes in front.
- Find the object. Who or what is it being done to?
- Place the small words last. The, a, of, to, in. These fit around the frame, and trying to place them first is what makes the question feel impossible.
- Read it back. If it sounds wrong, it is wrong.
| Order | Look for | Example from below |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | The verb, the thing happening | slept |
| 2nd | The subject, who is doing it | the dog |
| 3rd | How, when or where | quietly, in the garden |
| 4th | Small joining words | the, in |
| Last | Whatever has no home left | loudly, the spare word |
A worked example
Rearrange these words into a sensible sentence. One word is not needed.
garden the in dog slept quietly loudly the
Start with the verb: slept. Who slept? The dog. Where? in the garden. How? That leaves quietly and loudly, and only one of those can be true of sleeping in this sentence.
The sentence is "The dog slept quietly in the garden" and the extra word is loudly.
Note how the method worked. The spare word revealed itself at the end, once everything else had a home. Hunting for the odd word first is far slower.
Why this is a language type, not a logic type
Shuffled sentences look mechanical, and they are not. They sit alongside anagrams, antonyms and synonyms in the family that rests on reading rather than on rules.
You cannot rearrange a sentence into sense if the words in it are unfamiliar. A child who does not know what reluctantly or summoned means cannot judge where it goes, however good their method is.
That is why these questions, along with antonyms, show the widest spread of marks in a class. The spread is a reading spread.
Where the marks go
- Starting at the left and working along. Find the verb first.
- Placing the small words early. They go last.
- Hunting the spare word first. It appears on its own once the rest is built.
- Not reading it back. Your ear catches what your eye misses.
- Forgetting the capital letter. The word that starts the sentence is often the clue, since it is the one capitalised.
That last point is worth repeating. If one word in the list carries a capital letter, you have been handed the first word for nothing.
See our guide to 11+ vocabulary and our guide to English and comprehension.
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Find the verb, and the rest arranges itself
Children attack these from the left hand end, trying words in order until something sounds right. It is slow and under time pressure it falls apart. Find the verb, find who is doing it, and the sentence more or less assembles itself around that frame.
But I would not let anyone think this is a technique question. Shuffled sentences belong to the language family, with anagrams and antonyms and closest meaning. You cannot rearrange a sentence into sense if the words in it are unfamiliar.
That is why this type, along with antonyms and synonyms, shows the largest deviation in marks between the strongest and weakest children I teach. The method is worth twenty minutes. The reading is worth the year.
Mushtaque Ahmed, Founder of GrammarPath and Bright Mentors
Frequently asked questions
How do you do shuffled sentence questions in the 11+?
Find the verb first, then the subject doing it, then the object. Place the small words such as the, a, of and in last, because they fit around the frame. Reading the finished sentence back is what catches the remaining errors.
How do you find the extra word in a shuffled sentence?
Build the sentence first and the spare word reveals itself, because it is the one left without a home. Hunting for the odd word before you have assembled the sentence is much slower and far less reliable.
What is the quickest clue in a shuffled sentence question?
A capital letter. If one word in the jumbled list is capitalised, that is the word the sentence begins with, and you have been handed the starting point for nothing.
Why does my child find shuffled sentences hard?
Usually vocabulary. These questions look mechanical but they rest on reading: a child who does not know what a word means cannot judge where it belongs, no matter how good their method is. This is one of the question types where the spread of marks in a class is widest.
Can shuffled sentences be taught quickly?
The method can, in a single session. The underlying ability cannot, because it depends on reading fluency and on how much vocabulary a child has met in context. Teach the method, then build the reading.