Word Order Exercises - 220 Free Practice Questions

What is the basic word order in English?

English is an SVO (Subject-Verb-Object) language. Unlike many other languages, English relies heavily on word order to show meaning. Moving words around changes who does what to whom. "The dog bit the man" means something very different from "The man bit the dog."

Subject + Verb + Object

The most basic English pattern

"She reads books every day."

Subject + Verb (no object)

Intransitive verbs need no object

"The children are playing."

Subject + Verb + Indirect + Direct

Two objects with give, tell, show

"She gave him a present."

Subject + Verb + Complement

With be, seem, become, look

"He seems happy today."

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What is the SVOMPT word order rule?

SVOMPT stands for Subject-Verb-Object-Manner-Place-Time. When a sentence has multiple adverbials, they follow this order. The key rule is: Manner before Place before Time. This pattern helps learners build longer, more natural-sounding sentences.

Note: Short time expressions like "yesterday" or "today" can sometimes move to the beginning: "Yesterday, she studied at the library." Place and manner rarely move.

Where do adverbs go in English word order?

Adverb position depends on the type of adverb. Frequency adverbs (always, never, usually) have strict rules: they go before the main verb but after "be". With auxiliary verbs, the adverb goes between the auxiliary and the main verb. Other adverbs of manner, place, and time follow the SVOMPT pattern.

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How does word order change in English questions?

English questions use subject-auxiliary inversion: the auxiliary verb moves before the subject. This is one of the hardest word order rules for learners, because many languages don't change word order for questions. There are three main patterns depending on the question type.

What order do adjectives go in before a noun?

English has a strict but largely unconscious rule for adjective order before nouns. The mnemonic OSASCOMP helps remember: Opinion-Size-Age-Shape-Colour-Origin-Material-Purpose. Native speakers follow this order instinctively — "a beautiful old Italian wooden table" sounds right, while "a wooden Italian old beautiful table" sounds completely wrong.

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What are embedded questions and how does word order change?

Embedded questions (also called indirect questions) are questions inside another sentence. The key difference is that they use statement word order, not question word order. This makes them sound more polite in spoken English and is essential for formal writing.

What are the most common word order mistakes in English?

Word order errors are among the most frequent mistakes for English learners. Research shows that learners from different language backgrounds make predictable errors based on how their native language structures sentences.

Why is word order so important in English?

Unlike languages with rich case systems (like German, Russian, or Latin), English relies primarily on word order to show grammatical relationships. In English, the position of a word in a sentence determines whether it's the subject, object, or complement. Getting word order wrong can completely change the meaning or make the sentence incomprehensible.

How should I practise English word order?

Our word order exercises use a "click-to-build" format where you arrange scrambled words into the correct sentence. This interactive approach is more effective than traditional grammar drills because it forces you to think about the position of every word.