FCE word formation exercises: a daily trainer
These FCE word formation exercises help you practise turning a base word into the form a sentence needs, such as a noun, an adjective or a negative. The trainer uses spaced repetition, so the words you find hard come back more often. It is one of our free FCE tools.
By Eleanor BennettLast updated:
In Reading and Use of English Part 3, you change a given word so that it fits a gap in a text. Success depends on two things: understanding what kind of word the gap needs, and knowing the word family well enough to produce it, with the right spelling. This trainer builds the second skill, a little every day.
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How to use it
- Start a short session. You see a base word and a sentence with a gap.
- Decide what type of word you need before you answer: noun, verb, adjective or adverb? Singular or plural? Positive or negative?
- Write the answer and check it, including the spelling.
- Read the example and note the prefix or suffix.
- Come back tomorrow. Words you got wrong will return sooner.
When you are ready for exam-style texts, move on to our FCE word formation practice, which follows the format of the real task.
How it works
Like our phrasal verb trainer, this tool uses spaced repetition:
- Words you get wrong come back soon.
- Words you get right return after a longer gap.
- Over time, your practice focuses on the word families you find most difficult.
The items focus on the changes that appear most in B2-level texts: nouns from verbs and adjectives (decide → decision), adjectives from nouns (success → successful), adverbs (careful → carefully) and negative prefixes (possible → impossible). Every item and example is written by our team.
To see whether your Use of English score is improving, do a practice test every few weeks and check your estimate with the score calculator. The study planner can remind you to fit a short trainer session into most days.
For the strategy behind Part 3 and a full list of common patterns, see our guides to FCE word formation and the FCE word formation list.
Example: thinking through one item
The task
Base word: PATIENT. Sentence: “The children were becoming ___ because the bus was very late.”
- 1.
Look at the words before the gap: were becoming is followed by an adjective, so you need an adjective.
- 2.
Patient is already an adjective, so ask: does the meaning need a change?
- 3.
The bus was very late, so the children were not calm. The meaning is negative, so you need a negative prefix.
- 4.
The negative prefix for patient is im-. Check the spelling carefully: one m, and -ient at the end.
Answer
impatient
How to get better at word formation
- 1
Learn families, not single words
When you learn a new word, also learn its noun, verb, adjective and adverb forms where they exist.
- 2
Watch for negatives
Read the whole sentence. If the meaning is negative, you may need a prefix such as un-, in-, im-, dis- or ir-.
- 3
Check plurals
If the gap needs a noun, ask whether it should be singular or plural.
- 4
Spell carefully
A correct form with a spelling mistake doesn't get the mark. Notice spelling changes such as happy → happiness.
Common word formation mistakes
Trap: Choosing the right word family but the wrong part of speech.
Fix: Look at the words around the gap. After an article you usually need a noun; before a noun, often an adjective.
Trap: Missing a negative meaning.
Fix: Read the whole sentence and the one before it. Words like but, although or a negative context may signal a prefix such as un- or dis-.
Trap: Forgetting the plural.
Fix: If the noun follows words like many, several or a number of, it probably needs to be plural.
Trap: Small spelling errors.
Fix: Check double letters and changes such as y → i (beauty → beautiful). A small spelling mistake costs the whole mark.
Frequently asked questions
How many word formation questions are in FCE?
Reading and Use of English Part 3 has 8 word formation questions, each worth 1 mark.
How can I practise word formation for FCE?
Learn whole word families, practise with short daily exercises like this trainer, and then do full exam-style tasks so you also practise using context.
Is spelling important in word formation?
Yes. Your answer must be spelled correctly to get the mark, so practise spelling changes such as dropping or changing letters when you add a suffix.
Is the word formation trainer free?
Yes. The trainer is free to use, like all our tools.
What is the difference between the trainer and the practice set?
The trainer drills single words with spaced repetition for daily review. The practice set is an exam-style text with gaps, so you practise the full task, including reading for context.