Ordering of Words
Ordering of words means arranging given words or groups of words to form a complete, grammatical and meaningful sentence. A group may contain a few words or an entire clause. The main decision is where each part belongs and how it connects to the parts around it.
For example, the parts “a book”, “Meera” and “is reading” form “Meera is reading a book.” Meera names the person, is reading gives the action, and a book tells us what she is reading. We choose the order by understanding these roles.
Longer sentences use the same basic connections, with extra information about people, places, reasons or conditions. This article explains those connections from the beginning, then shows how to assemble jumbled parts, compare options and check the complete sentence. The practice set has one Answer key with explanations.
1. Understand the arrangement format
A sentence may have a fixed opening followed by parts labelled P, Q, R and S. The opening stays where it is. Your answer gives only the order of the movable parts, such as QSPR. Other formats may have a fixed ending or ask you to arrange every part.
Treat each labelled part as a single unit unless the instructions say otherwise. You may move P before Q, but you cannot move a word out of P into another part. Use every supplied part exactly once, and do not add or remove words to rescue an unsuitable order.
Example: The opening is “The teacher”. Arrange these parts:
P: to the students
Q: explained
R: who was already in the classroom
S: the new activity
R describes the teacher: the singular verb was agrees with this singular noun. It cannot describe the plural noun the students, which would require were. Q supplies the main action, S tells us what the teacher explained, and P identifies the people receiving the explanation.
The order is RQSP: “The teacher who was already in the classroom explained the new activity to the students.” All four parts are used exactly once.
Punctuation can make a completed sentence easier to read, but it cannot supply a missing verb or repair a broken phrase. Follow any punctuation already fixed in the question. In the examples here, normal sentence punctuation is shown in the completed answer.
2. Find the subject, verb and completion
The subject is the person or thing the sentence says something about. A verb expresses an action or state, such as reads, has arrived or is. The information after a verb depends on what that verb needs.
In “Ravi opened the window”, Ravi is the subject, opened is the verb and the window is the object. An object is the person or thing directly involved in an action of this kind. Asking “opened what?” helps identify it.
In “Ravi is tired”, tired describes Ravi. It is a complement, a word or group that completes the meaning after a verb such as be. It is not an object that Ravi acts on. This difference explains why “Ravi is” can continue with a description, while “Ravi opened” normally needs something that can be opened.
Not every sentence needs an object. “The baby slept” is complete, and “The baby slept peacefully” adds information about the action. Use subject–verb–object as a useful starting pattern, not a rule that every English sentence must follow.
Example: The opening is “The children”.
P: after the final lesson
Q: their bags
R: packed
The children performed an action, so R gives the main verb. Packed connects to Q because the bags are what they packed. P then gives the time.
The order RQP produces “The children packed their bags after the final lesson.” Notice that the time phrase could occupy other positions in a differently constructed sentence. Here RQP is a clear, ordinary arrangement; the complete options and any fixed punctuation would decide between acceptable alternatives in a multiple-choice task.
Keep helping verbs with the main verb
A verb may contain several words. In “They have been waiting”, have and been help form the verb phrase have been waiting. In “She will submit the report”, will submit is the verb phrase.
When parts split a verb phrase, connect them in a grammatical order. “The report has” can continue with “been checked”, giving “The report has been checked.” It cannot normally continue with “checked been”. A noun between a helping verb and its required main verb is not automatically wrong, because questions have different word order, but ordinary statements do not use question order without a reason.
Subject–verb agreement can also help: “the student who works here is”, but “the students who work here are”. First identify the actual subject. A nearby noun inside a description may not control the main verb.
3. Recognise phrases and clauses
A phrase is a group of words functioning together, such as the old library, under the table or to finish the work. For these arrangements, think of a phrase as a meaningful unit that may need to join another unit before the sentence is complete.
A clause normally contains a subject and a verb. “The train arrived” is a main clause and can stand as a sentence. “When the train arrived” has a subject and verb too, but when makes it depend on another clause: “When the train arrived, we boarded.”
This matters because finding a verb does not always mean you have found the main action. In “The girl who won the race thanked her coach”, won belongs to the description “who won the race”. The main subject is the girl, and the main verb is thanked.
Example: The opening is “The engineer”.
P: has solved
Q: that delayed the launch
R: who joined last month
S: the problem
R describes the engineer. P supplies the main action, and S tells us what has been solved. Q describes the problem, giving RPSQ: “The engineer who joined last month has solved the problem that delayed the launch.”
There are three verbs here: joined, has solved and delayed. Only has solved is the main verb of the whole sentence. Separating the two descriptions makes the central statement easy to see: “The engineer has solved the problem.”
4. Build noun groups before attaching descriptions
A noun names a person, place, thing or idea. A noun group may also include words that identify or describe it: a small room, these three books, the purpose of the meeting. Articles such as a, an and the normally belong before the noun, although adjectives can stand between them and the noun.
If one part ends in “the purpose”, another beginning with “of the meeting” may complete the noun group. The connection answers “the purpose of what?” It is stronger than merely noticing that the two parts discuss a meeting.
An adjective describes a noun, as quiet does in “a quiet room”. An adverb may describe a verb, adjective or another adverb. In “extremely useful”, extremely strengthens useful, so those words form a natural connection.
Example: The opening is “We discussed”.
P: of the new library
Q: the proposed design
R: that will open next year
Discussed needs its object here, and Q supplies it. P tells us which design, and R describes the new library. The order is QPR: “We discussed the proposed design of the new library that will open next year.”
A description should be placed so that the reader can tell what it describes. Do not rely only on the nearest noun when meaning and grammar point elsewhere. For instance, a noun group may contain several nouns, and a following clause can describe the larger group rather than its final word.
5. Connect who, which, that, where and when
A relative clause describes a noun or noun group. “The nurse who helped me” identifies a person; “the form that you submitted” identifies a thing. The noun being described is sometimes called the antecedent. You only need to recognise the relationship, not memorise the term.
Who commonly introduces a description of a person. Which commonly refers to a thing, and that can introduce identifying descriptions of people or things. Where can connect a place to something happening there, while when can connect a time to an event.
Example: The opening is “We visited”.
P: where my aunt
Q: the village
R: grew up
Q supplies the place visited. P begins a description of that village, but “where my aunt” still needs a verb. R completes it, producing QPR: “We visited the village where my aunt grew up.”
The pair P–R completes a clause, while Q–P connects that clause to its place. These are two different reasons supporting the same arrangement.
Sometimes the relative word is omitted: “the book I borrowed” means “the book that I borrowed”. In “the things it needed”, it needed describes the things even though there is no visible that. Do not assume every description must announce itself with who or which.
Descriptions can contain another description
“The house beside the lake where we stayed” may leave the reader unsure whether where we stayed refers to the house or the lake area. A successful arrangement must make sense as a whole, not merely place where after a place word. Use the available wording and context to choose the intended connection, and recognise ambiguity if the material does not resolve it.
6. Complete prepositional phrases and verb patterns
A preposition expresses a relationship, such as in, on, under, of, for or with. In “under the bridge”, the preposition and its following noun group form a phrase. A part ending with “under the” normally needs a suitable noun group next.
Longer phrases can build in layers. “At a distance” can be expanded to “at a distance of ten metres”. The words of ten metres explain the distance, so they belong with that noun rather than with an unrelated action.
Example: The opening is “The team relied”.
P: collected during the survey
Q: on the information
R: to prepare its report
The verb pattern is rely on something, so Q continues the opening. P describes the information. R explains the purpose of relying on it. The order QPR gives “The team relied on the information collected during the survey to prepare its report.”
Learn verb patterns through their meanings: depend on support, listen to advice, provide someone with information, and prevent someone from entering. The exact pattern determines which kinds of words can follow. A preposition alone does not tell you the entire order; you still need its object and the rest of the sentence.
Distinguish the two uses of to
In “to complete the form”, to introduces the base form of a verb. This is an infinitive, often used to express a purpose or complete another expression. In “to the office”, to is a preposition followed by a noun group.
Therefore, “a part ends in to, so a base verb must follow” is not a safe general rule. Read the expression: “has to” usually needs a base verb, while “travelled to” commonly needs a destination. Some expressions also use prepositional to before an -ing form, as in “looks forward to meeting you”.
7. Add purpose, manner, place and time
Extra phrases may explain why, how, where or when an action happens. “She went to the library to study” gives a purpose. “She answered politely” gives manner, meaning how she answered. “She studied at home” gives place, and “She studied yesterday” gives time.
Attach each phrase to the action it explains. In “We entered the hall where the students had gathered to practise”, to practise explains why the students had gathered. It does not naturally describe why we entered unless the wording or context establishes that reading.
Example: The opening is “Please contact”.
P: to guide new visitors
Q: who are available
R: the volunteers
S: through the exhibition
R supplies the people to contact. Q describes the volunteers, P completes “are available” by saying what they can do, and S gives the route through which they guide visitors. The order is RQPS: “Please contact the volunteers who are available to guide new visitors through the exhibition.”
Time and place phrases are often movable. Both “Yesterday, we met at the library” and “We met at the library yesterday” are grammatical. Do not treat “time always comes last” or “place must always come before time” as universal rules. In an arrangement task, fixed parts, phrase boundaries, punctuation and the supplied options narrow the choices.
8. Join ideas with conjunctions
A conjunction connects words, phrases or clauses. And adds information, but introduces a contrast, and or gives alternatives. Words such as because, although, if and when introduce dependent clauses that need a main clause.
The grammar and the logical relationship must both fit. “Although it was raining, we continued walking” sets up a contrast. “Because it was raining, we opened our umbrellas” gives a reason. Rearranging parts must preserve the relationship already expressed by the connector.
Example: The opening is “Although the task was difficult,”.
P: until it was complete
Q: the team
R: continued working
The opening is a dependent clause. Q begins the main clause, R gives its action, and P tells us how long the action continued. The order QRP gives “Although the task was difficult, the team continued working until it was complete.”
A fixed opening beginning with if may also be followed by an instruction. “If you need assistance, ask the receptionist” is complete even though ask has no written subject. In an instruction, the subject you is understood.
Keep paired expressions in the right relationship
Expressions such as both … and, either … or, neither … nor and not only … but also join corresponding ideas. In “She not only designed the poster but also printed it”, the two connected items are actions: designed and printed.
Example: The opening is “The course”.
P: but also provides
Q: teaches basic concepts
R: practical exercises
S: not only
S introduces the first part of the pair. Q supplies its action, P introduces the second action and R completes provides. The order is SQPR: “The course not only teaches basic concepts but also provides practical exercises.”
The paired words establish a relationship, but they are not necessarily adjacent. Here S and P are connected in structure while Q stands between them. This is why “find a pair” does not always mean “put those two labels next to each other”.
9. Understand clauses introduced by that and what
Some clauses fill a role normally filled by a noun group. In “I know the answer”, a noun group follows know. In “I know that she has arrived”, a whole clause tells us what I know.
After a fixed opening such as “He realised that”, look for the subject and verb of the idea being reported. That subject may itself be long: “He realised that the person standing near the door was his teacher.” The main verb of the reported idea is was, not standing.
Example: The opening is “Maya understood that”.
P: was to check
Q: before submitting it
R: her first responsibility
S: every entry
R gives the subject of the reported idea. P begins what is said about that responsibility, S completes check, and Q explains when the checking must happen. The order RPSQ produces “Maya understood that her first responsibility was to check every entry before submitting it.”
A what-clause can mean “the thing that”: “He did what the teacher asked.” In an arrangement, a part ending in “did exactly” may connect to “what he had been told”. The whole clause supplies what he did.
Indirect questions also use statement order. “I wonder how useful it is” is correct; “I wonder how useful is it” incorrectly uses direct-question order inside the statement. Compare it with the separate question “How useful is it?” The function of the clause decides the order.
10. Place shortened descriptions beside the right noun
Descriptions do not always contain a relative word and a complete verb. “The files stored in the cabinet” means the files that are stored there. “A path leading to the river” describes a path that leads there.
These shortened descriptions often begin with an -ing form or a past participle such as written, stored or chosen. They can look like the main action, but they may simply describe a noun. In “The files stored in the cabinet are missing”, are missing is the main verb phrase.
Example: The opening is “The documents”.
P: must be kept
Q: containing personal details
R: in a secure folder
Q describes the documents, and P supplies what must happen to them. R gives the location, producing QPR: “The documents containing personal details must be kept in a secure folder.”
An opening description can instead refer to the subject that follows: “Hoping to finish early, Priya started at seven.” Priya is the person hoping to finish. Check this connection carefully; “Hoping to finish early, the alarm rang at seven” would wrongly make the alarm appear to be doing the hoping.
11. Assemble the sentence and compare complete options
Start by reading all parts so that you know the subject matter and can see unfinished expressions. Then examine the fixed opening. If it ends with a verb such as bought, look for what was bought; if it begins a condition, look for the main clause that completes that condition.
Next, connect parts whose grammar strongly supports an order. A preposition and its noun group, a helping verb and its completion, or a relative clause and the noun it describes can establish useful links. Keep those groups together while you test where the remaining parts fit.
Do not stop when the beginning sounds right. Read every join, then read the full sentence for meaning. Check that there is a main clause, that descriptions attach sensibly and that every label appears once.
Example: The opening is “The researcher”.
P: the results
Q: who led the study
R: before publishing them
S: checked
The options are:
a) QSPR
b) QPSR
c) SQRP
d) RQSP
Q describes the researcher. S gives the main action, P supplies what was checked, and R gives the time relationship. Therefore a) QSPR produces “The researcher who led the study checked the results before publishing them.”
b) begins with a sensible description but then gives “the researcher who led the study the results checked”. That fails to put the main verb before its object in this ordinary statement. c) puts who led the study after checked, leaving its relationship broken. d) produces “The researcher before publishing them who led the study checked the results”, an awkward and unclear attachment of the two clauses.
This comparison uses the whole sentence. Finding Q as the likely first part was useful, but it did not distinguish a) from b). The verb–object connection S–P made that decision.
When two arrangements both work
Some jumbled parts genuinely allow more than one grammatical arrangement. Consider the fixed opening “She” and the parts “at home”, “worked” and “yesterday”. Both “She worked at home yesterday” and “She worked yesterday at home” can be grammatical, with differences in emphasis.
If only one appears among the options, choose the option that works. If two options remain grammatical and preserve the intended meaning, do not invent a rule to reject one. Check the instructions and punctuation again; if they still do not decide, the item may be ambiguous. In open practice, a valid alternative deserves consideration.
12. Common mistakes
Choosing by topic alone. Two parts can discuss the same person without fitting next to each other. Identify the grammatical connection, such as a noun and its description, before deciding their order.
Calling every remaining phrase compulsory for grammatical completeness. “The children played” is already a sentence. A remaining phrase such as “after lunch” still has to be used because the task requires every part, not because the shorter sentence lacks a verb or object.
Mistaking a descriptive verb for the main verb. In “The worker who repaired the gate thanked us”, repaired belongs to the description. Thanked completes the main statement about the worker.
Forcing all sentences into subject–verb–object order. Linking verbs may take descriptions, some verbs need no object, and instructions may omit a written subject. Use the pattern that fits the actual sentence.
Treating movable information as fixed. Time, place and some adverbs can occupy different positions. Judge the full construction and the intended meaning rather than memorising one position for every adverb.
Changing the supplied wording. If a sequence works only after adding is, deleting that or moving a word inside a labelled part, it is not a valid arrangement of those parts.
Checking only the first two labels. Two options may share a good opening and differ later. Complete the entire sentence before selecting an answer.
13. Practice questions
Keep each opening fixed and use every labelled part once without changing its words. Write the order and the complete sentence. The Answer key gives a natural intended arrangement; where another arrangement is also grammatical, judge it by the complete meaning rather than by the label sequence alone.
Question 1
Opening: The gardener
P: the flowers
Q: watered
R: that we planted yesterday
Question 2
Opening: The girl
P: is my cousin
Q: who won
R: the drawing competition
Question 3
Opening: We depend
P: to complete
Q: on your support
R: this project
Question 4
Opening: If you have any questions,
P: who is standing
Q: ask the guide
R: beside the entrance
Question 5
Opening: The message has
P: to everyone
Q: been sent
R: who registered
Question 6
Opening: She was pleased
P: had been accepted
Q: that her application
R: to learn
Question 7
Opening: The museum
P: contains a collection
Q: where my brother works
R: of ancient coins
Question 8
Opening: They were looking for
P: to hold
Q: a quiet place
R: their meeting
Question 9
Opening: The programme
P: but also develops
Q: not only builds
R: communication skills
S: confidence
Question 10
Opening: Although the road was narrow,
P: to allow
Q: the driver stopped
R: the bus to pass
Question 11
Opening: The books
P: belong to the library
Q: on the top shelf
R: that you can see
Question 12
Opening: He realised that
P: was to inform
Q: the manager
R: the best course of action
Question 13
Opening: The team followed
P: by the trainer
Q: the instructions
R: given
Question 14
Opening: There was
P: could access
Q: a time when only a few people
R: this information
Question 15
Opening: I could not understand
P: had been rejected
Q: why the proposal
R: that we submitted
Question 16
Opening: The manager asked us
P: before sending it
Q: to check
R: to the client
S: the report carefully
Question 17
Opening: The path
P: leads to a bridge
Q: running through the garden
R: that crosses the stream
Question 18
Opening: It is important
P: what the speaker
Q: to understand
R: actually means
Question 19
Opening: Hoping to avoid the traffic,
P: than she usually did
Q: Anu left
R: earlier
Question 20
Opening: The student
P: to explain
Q: who solved the puzzle
R: how she had done it
S: was asked
Answer key
1. QPR
“The gardener watered the flowers that we planted yesterday.” Watered is the main verb, the flowers is its object, and “that we planted yesterday” identifies those flowers.
2. QRP
“The girl who won the drawing competition is my cousin.” Q–R completes the description of the girl. P then supplies the main verb and the information about who she is.
3. QPR
“We depend on your support to complete this project.” Depend on is the required verb pattern here. P–R explains the purpose for which the support is needed.
4. QPR
“If you have any questions, ask the guide who is standing beside the entrance.” The condition is followed by the instruction ask the guide. P–R identifies that guide by location.
5. QPR
“The message has been sent to everyone who registered.” The fixed has connects to been sent, completing the passive verb phrase. P supplies the recipients, and R identifies them.
6. RQP
“She was pleased to learn that her application had been accepted.” R completes pleased by naming the event that caused the feeling. Q–P forms the clause telling us what she learned.
7. QPR
“The museum where my brother works contains a collection of ancient coins.” Q describes the museum. P supplies the main verb and its object, while R completes “a collection of what”.
8. QPR
“They were looking for a quiet place to hold their meeting.” Q supplies the object of for. P–R explains what they wanted to do at that place.
9. QSPR
“The programme not only builds confidence but also develops communication skills.” Q–S gives the first action and its object. P–R gives the second. The two sides of the paired expression have matching structures. QRPS is also valid: “The programme not only builds communication skills but also develops confidence.” Both objects fit both verbs here, so the supplied wording allows both arrangements.
10. QPR
“Although the road was narrow, the driver stopped to allow the bus to pass.” Q supplies the main clause after the contrast. P–R gives the purpose of stopping and completes allow the bus to pass.
11. RQP
“The books that you can see on the top shelf belong to the library.” R–Q describes which books are meant, and P gives the main statement. QRP also works: “The books on the top shelf that you can see belong to the library.” Both can identify visible books on that shelf, although the first makes the connection between see and the location more direct.
12. RPQ
“He realised that the best course of action was to inform the manager.” R is the subject inside the clause after that. P supplies its verb and begins the explanation of the action, which Q completes.
13. QRP
“The team followed the instructions given by the trainer.” Q supplies what the team followed. R–P is a shortened description meaning “that were given by the trainer”.
14. QPR
“There was a time when only a few people could access this information.” Q supplies what existed and begins the time clause. P gives the action of a few people, and R supplies its object.
15. QRP
“I could not understand why the proposal that we submitted had been rejected.” Q introduces the subject of the indirect question. R describes that proposal, and P supplies its verb phrase. The clause uses statement order, with the subject before had been rejected.
16. QSPR
“The manager asked us to check the report carefully before sending it to the client.” Q completes the pattern asked us to do something. S supplies what to check and how, while P–R completes the time clause and destination. It refers to the report.
17. QPR
“The path running through the garden leads to a bridge that crosses the stream.” Q describes the path. P gives the main action and destination, while R describes the bridge.
18. QPR
“It is important to understand what the speaker actually means.” Q completes the expression it is important to. P–R supplies the content to be understood; the speaker is the subject of means.
19. QRP
“Hoping to avoid the traffic, Anu left earlier than she usually did.” Q identifies Anu as the person hoping and supplies her action. R–P completes the comparison earlier than. The opening description has a sensible subject.
20. QSPR
“The student who solved the puzzle was asked to explain how she had done it.” Q identifies the student. S supplies the main passive verb, P completes what she was asked to do, and R gives the content of the explanation.
FAQs
What is ordering of words in English?
It is arranging supplied words or sentence parts into a grammatical, meaningful sentence. The arrangement must respect any fixed opening or ending and use every supplied part as instructed.
Which grammar basics should I learn first?
Begin with subjects, verbs, objects and complements. Then learn how noun groups, prepositional phrases and dependent clauses connect. These basics help explain why one part follows another instead of relying only on how the sentence sounds.
How do I find the first part after a fixed opening?
Identify what the opening still needs. A subject may need its main verb or a description, a verb may need an object, and a dependent clause may need a main clause. Read all the parts before deciding which continuation completes that structure.
Must a sentence always follow subject–verb–object order?
No. Some verbs take no object, linking verbs take complements, and instructions often have an understood subject. Subject–verb–object is a common statement pattern, but it cannot explain every sentence.
Can more than one arrangement be correct?
Yes. Time and place phrases, some adverbs and other descriptions can sometimes move without making a sentence ungrammatical. Compare the full meaning, fixed punctuation and available options. If two answers still work, the item may allow alternatives or need clearer wording.
How is this different from ordering sentences in a paragraph?
Here, the parts combine into one sentence, so grammar within that sentence is central. Paragraph ordering arranges complete sentences and relies more on how ideas, references and events develop across the paragraph.