C1 Advanced · Use of English · Module 1, Lesson 4

Part 4: Key Word Transformations

Six sentences, six key words, two marks each, 3–6 words per answer. At C1, several of the classic testing points involve formal inversion — "Never have I...", "No sooner had...", "Such was..." — structures that are rare in speech but common in this part of the exam.

6 items 2 marks each 10–12 min target 3–6 words
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What this part really tests

Part 4 gives you a sentence, a key word, and a second sentence with a gap. You rewrite the missing words so the second sentence means exactly the same as the first — using the key word, unchanged, somewhere in your answer, in 3–6 words. Each item is worth two marks, awarded in two separate halves.

The examiner's method

  1. Identify the grammar point being tested — usually signaled by the key word itself (passive? reported speech? inversion? causative?).
  2. Plan the whole new sentence in your head before you write anything.
  3. Count your words: a contraction counts as two words, and the key word must appear unchanged — same spelling, same form.
  4. Write only the missing words between the given start and end of the sentence — never rewrite parts you've already been given.
  5. Check both halves separately. The two marks are awarded separately, so getting the general meaning right but one small detail wrong may still earn you one of the two marks.

Worked example — a C1 inversion structure

As soon as the announcement was made, share prices began to fall.
Key word: SOONER
No ___ than share prices began to fall.
Half 1: sooner had the announcement
Half 2: been made
  1. The testing point: "No sooner had X happened than Y happened" is a formal way of saying "as soon as X happened, Y happened" — and it requires inverted word order after "No sooner".
  2. "No" is already given, so the gap starts with the key word: "sooner".
  3. Because of the fronted negative structure, the auxiliary comes before the subject: "had the announcement been made" (not "the announcement had been made").
  4. Count the words: "sooner had the announcement been made" = 6 words, exactly at the limit.
  5. Answer: sooner had the announcement been made.
Try

Micro-trainer — six testing points

Six transformations, each testing a different structure: perfect passive, reported speech with modal backshift, inversion after "Never", "No sooner... than" inversion, causative "have", and "wish + would". Type the missing words and press Check.

Try score: 0 / 6
Ready for the real thing? Scroll down to Apply — six brand new transformations in full exam format, against the clock.
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Exam-format practice

Six new transformations, official Part 4 format. Aim to finish before the timer runs out — then check your answers below.

12:00

Your result

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This is a practice estimate for one exam part only, and this tool awards full marks only for a fully correct answer — the walkthrough above each item shows how a real Cambridge examiner would split the two marks. Your official Cambridge result is calculated across the whole exam on the Cambridge English Scale.

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