PTE Reading & Writing: Fill in the Blanks. One important correction: suffixes are clues, not absolute rules.

PTE Reading & Writing: Fill in the Blanks. One important correction: suffixes are clues, not absolute rules.

Parts of Speech (Word Class) in English Grammar

1. Noun

Definition: A word that names a person, place, thing, or idea.
Examples:

• Person: teacher, Rahul
• Place: school, Nepal
• Thing: book, car
• Idea: freedom, happiness
  Sentence: The cat is sleeping on the sofa.

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2. Pronoun

Definition: A word that replaces a noun to avoid repetition.
Examples: he, she, it, they, we, you, I
Sentence: Sita is my friend. She is very kind.

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3. Verb

Definition: A word that shows action or a state of being.
Examples: run, eat, is, have, go, was
Sentence: They are playing football.

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4. Adjective

Definition: A word that describes or modifies a noun or pronoun.
Examples: beautiful, small, red, angry, five
Sentence: He has a big house.

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5. Adverb

Definition: A word that modifies a verb, adjective, or another adverb. It tells how, when, where, or to what extent.
Examples: quickly, very, yesterday, outside, too
Sentence: She sings beautifully.
(beautifully modifies sings)

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6. Preposition

Definition: A word that shows the relationship between a noun (or pronoun) and another word in the sentence (usually location, direction, time).
Examples: in, on, at, by, under, over, with
Sentence: The book is on the table.

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7. Conjunction

Definition: A word that joins words, phrases, or clauses.
Examples: and, but, or, because, although
Sentence: I wanted to go out, but it was raining.

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8. Interjection

Definition: A word or short phrase that expresses strong emotion or surprise.
Examples: Wow!, Oh no!, Hey!, Oops!
Sentence: “Wow! That was amazing!”

 

 PTE Word-Class Quick Identification

Word Class	Main Clue	Common Suffixes	Example
Noun	After an article/possessive or adjective	-tion, -sion, -ment, -ness, -ity, -ance, -ence, -ism	development, decision, happiness
Adjective	Before a noun / after linking verb	-ful, -less, -able, -ible, -ous, -ive, -al, -y	useful, possible, dangerous
Adverb	Modifies a verb/adjective/adverb	-ly, -ward(s)	quickly, significantly, towards
Verb	After modal/to/auxiliary or as the main predicate	-ize, -ify, -en, -ate	organize, simplify, strengthen

🔥 The fastest PTE strategy

When you see a blank, don't immediately look at the meaning. First identify the required word class.

Step 1: Look at the words immediately before and after the blank.

• a/an/the + ___ → usually noun or adjective
• a/an + ___ + noun → adjective
• adjective + ___ → usually noun
• verb + ___ → often adverb, but not always
• to + ___ → base-form verb
• modal (can, may, must, should) + ___ → base-form verb
• very/extremely + ___ → usually adjective/adverb
• ___ + noun → usually adjective
• subject + ___ → often verb

⚠️ One important correction

Your statement:

“If the blank has an article (a, an, the) right before it, the blank MUST be a noun.”

is not always correct.

For example:

The rapid development of technology...

Here, the + rapid + noun means the blank is an adjective, not a noun.

A safer PTE rule is:

Article + blank + noun → adjective
Article + adjective + blank → noun

🎯 Example

The rapid ______ of technology has changed our lives.

Options:

A. develop
B. developed
C. development
D. developing

Structure:

The + adjective (rapid) + ______

Therefore, we need a noun.

✅ development

🧠 Golden PTE Formula

Noun:
article/possessive + adjective + NOUN

the rapid development

Adjective:
article + ADJECTIVE + noun

an effective solution

Adverb:
verb + ADVERB

grew significantly

Verb:
to/modal + BASE VERB

to simplify
can simplify

⭐ Remember this sequence

N → A → Adv → V

Ask:

1.      Noun? → What thing/idea/person?

2.      Adjective? → What kind?

3.      Adverb? → How/when/to what extent?

4.      Verb? → What action/state?