Jumbled sentences is a staple of the verbal reasoning paper, where speed matters as much as accuracy. Here is how the questions are built, how to spot the pattern quickly, and five worked examples explained step by step, easiest first.
Verbal reasoning · examined by GL · 5 worked examples
Where marks get lost: Build the sentence, then spot the word left over.
Every question below is generated by the same engine your child practises on, and every answer is derived by our checker rather than written by hand — which is why we can put them on a public page at all.
Example 1 · level 1 — a gentle start
One of these words is not needed to make a sentence. Which one? the · fox · a · empty · road · seventeen · crossed
Answer: seventeen — The sentence is “a fox crossed the empty road”, so seventeen is the spare word.
Example 2 · level 2 — typical of early practice
One of these words is not needed to make a sentence. Which one? they · from · wizard · den · branches · built · a
Answer: wizard — The sentence is “they built a den from branches”, so wizard is the spare word.
Example 3 · level 3 — standard paper difficulty
One of these words is not needed to make a sentence. Which one? garden · cactus · the · were · birds · singing · in
Answer: cactus — The sentence is “birds were singing in the garden”, so cactus is the spare word.
Example 4 · level 4 — a harder paper
One of these words is not needed to make a sentence. Which one? night · elephant · sister · each · book · reads · my · a
Answer: elephant — The sentence is “my sister reads a book each night”, so elephant is the spare word.
Example 5 · level 5 — the level that separates candidates
One of these words is not needed to make a sentence. Which one? wizard · today · every · baker · loaf · the · sold
Answer: wizard — The sentence is “the baker sold every loaf today”, so wizard is the spare word.
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