PSLE Comprehension Cloze: Strategies That Work

The PSLE comprehension cloze trips up more students than you'd expect. It's not that they can't read—most can breeze through the passage just fine. The problem? They rush to fill in blanks without thinking about what the sentence actually needs.

This section is worth 15 marks in Paper 2, with one mark per blank. That's 15 opportunities to score—or 15 chances to lose marks on careless mistakes. The good news is that with the right approach, most students can improve their cloze scores significantly.

What Makes Comprehension Cloze Tricky

Unlike the vocabulary cloze (which gives you multiple-choice options), the comprehension cloze is open-ended. You're given a passage with 15 blanks, and you need to fill in the exact word that fits. No hints, no options to eliminate.

This tests three things at once:

• Vocabulary: Do you know enough words?
• Grammar: Can you use the right form of the word?
• Comprehension: Do you understand what the passage is saying?

Most students struggle because they focus on just one of these. They might know a word that makes sense, but they write it in the wrong tense. Or they get the grammar right but pick a word that doesn't fit the passage's meaning.

Strategy 1: Read the Whole Passage First

This sounds obvious, but you'd be surprised how many students start filling in blanks after reading just the first sentence.

Here's why reading the whole passage matters: later sentences often give clues about earlier blanks. The passage might mention "the kind old man" in paragraph three—which tells you the blank in paragraph one probably needs a positive word, not a negative one.

Spend about 2 minutes reading the passage without writing anything. Get a feel for:

• What's the passage about?
• What's the tone? (Happy? Serious? Informative?)
• Who are the characters or subjects?

This context helps you make smarter guesses throughout.

Strategy 2: Look for Grammar Clues

Grammar narrows down your options dramatically. Before thinking about meaning, check what type of word the blank needs.

Check what comes before the blank:

• "a" or "an" → needs a noun (or adjective + noun)
• "the" → needs a noun
• "to" → needs a verb (base form)
• "is/are/was/were" → needs a verb (-ing or past participle) or adjective
• "very/really/quite" → needs an adjective or adverb

Check what comes after the blank:

• "-ly" word after → blank is probably a verb
• Noun after → blank might be an adjective
• "to" after → check if it's part of a phrasal verb

Example: "She was _______ surprised by the news."

What comes before? "was" (helping verb) What comes after? "surprised" (adjective)

The blank needs an adverb. Words like "pleasantly," "genuinely," or "quite" would work—but "pleasant" or "genuine" wouldn't.

Strategy 3: Use Context Clues Within the Sentence

Sometimes the answer is hiding right there in the same sentence. Look for:

Synonyms or explanations: "He felt anxious and _______, unable to sit still." The word "anxious" tells you the blank needs something similar—"restless," "nervous," or "uneasy."

Opposites with contrast words: "Although she was tired, she remained _______ throughout the meeting." "Although" signals a contrast. If she's tired, she remained something opposite—"alert," "energetic," or "attentive."

Cause and effect: "The heavy rain caused the river to _______ its banks." Heavy rain → water rising → "overflow" or "burst."

Strategy 4: Check Surrounding Sentences

When the sentence itself doesn't give enough clues, look at what comes before and after.

Example passage: "Tom had been practising for months. On the day of the competition, he felt _______. He knew he had done everything he could to prepare."

The sentences before and after both suggest confidence and readiness. The blank probably needs something like "confident," "prepared," or "ready"—not "nervous" or "worried."

This is where reading the whole passage first pays off. You already know the overall story, so you can fill in blanks that match the flow.

Strategy 5: Watch Out for Collocations

Some words just go together in English. We say "make a decision" (not "do a decision") and "take a shower" (not "have a shower" in Singapore English, though both work).

Common collocations that appear in PSLE cloze:

• make: a mistake, a decision, an effort, progress
• take: a break, care, place, time
• do: homework, the dishes, your best
• have: a look, a chat, fun, difficulty
• pay: attention, a visit, respect

If the sentence reads "She _______ a mistake," you know it's "made" because "make a mistake" is the collocation.

Strategy 6: Get the Tense Right

You've figured out the right word—great! But is it in the right form?

Check the passage's main tense: Most PSLE passages stick to one main tense. If the passage uses past tense throughout, your answers should mostly be past tense too.

Watch for time markers:

• "Yesterday," "last week," "in 2020" → past tense
• "Now," "currently," "at the moment" → present tense
• "Tomorrow," "next year," "soon" → future tense

Don't forget irregular verbs:

• go → went (not "goed")
• swim → swam (not "swimmed")
• teach → taught (not "teached")

A common mistake is knowing the right word but writing it in the wrong form. "Runned" instead of "ran" costs you the mark, even though you understood the passage perfectly.

Strategy 7: Double-Check Tricky Blanks

Some blanks are genuinely hard. If you're stuck:

1. Skip and come back. Later parts of the passage might give you clues.
2. Think of 2-3 possible words. Which one fits grammar AND meaning?
3. Say it out loud in your head. Does it sound natural?

If you're still unsure, write your best guess. A blank answer is definitely zero marks, but a reasonable guess might just be right.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Spelling errors: "Recieve" instead of "receive" loses you the mark. If you're unsure how to spell a word, try a different word you can spell correctly.

Wrong word form: "Beauty" when the sentence needs "beautiful." Check if you need a noun, verb, adjective, or adverb.

Ignoring grammar: "She have" instead of "She has." Even if "have" makes sense meaning-wise, grammar matters.

Not reading carefully: The passage says someone was "unhappy," and you write "sad" for a blank that should be "happy." Always re-read the relevant sentences.

Putting It All Together

Here's a quick process to follow for each blank:

1. Read the sentence with the blank
2. Identify what type of word is needed (noun/verb/adjective/adverb)
3. Check the tense if it's a verb
4. Look for context clues in the sentence
5. Check surrounding sentences if needed
6. Write your answer and re-read to make sure it sounds right

With practice, this becomes automatic. The more passages you do, the faster you'll spot patterns and the more vocabulary you'll build.

Practice Makes Perfect

The comprehension cloze rewards students who read widely and practise regularly. If your child is preparing for PSLE, encourage them to:

• Read different types of texts (stories, news articles, informational pieces)
• Do timed practice with past year papers
• Review mistakes to understand why an answer was wrong

For more PSLE English strategies, check out our guide on writing compositions that stand out. And if PSLE is coming up soon, our last-minute revision guide covers what to focus on in the final weeks.

The comprehension cloze isn't about luck or guessing. It's about reading carefully, thinking logically, and knowing your grammar. With the right strategies and consistent practice, those 15 marks are very much within reach.