Cloze Passage - ESL worksheet by kristyjak - Free Printable

Let’s solve this cloze passage step by step. We’ll read each sentence and pick the best word from the word bank to fill in the blank. The goal is to make the story sound natural and make sense.

Word Bank:
white, built, planted, where, hot, dinner, made, water, small, grass, sparkling, metal, with, fence

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First paragraph:

“My family and I live in a ________ wooden house ________ a large backyard.”

→ “small” fits well for the size of the house.
→ “with” makes sense — we live in a house *with* a backyard.

So:
“My family and I live in a small wooden house with a large backyard.”

Next:
“It is mostly covered in ________ with a small concrete patch ________ our pergola is.”

→ Backyards are usually covered in “grass”.
→ The second blank needs a word that tells us location — “where” works: “a small concrete patch where our pergola is.”

So:
“It is mostly covered in grass with a small concrete patch where our pergola is.”

Next:
“We have ________ under their some nights.”

Wait — that doesn’t sound right. Let’s look again.

Actually, it says: “We have ________ under their some nights.” That must be a typo. Probably meant: “We have ________ under them some nights.”

Looking at context — maybe they’re talking about having dinner under the pergola? “dinner” fits.

So:
“We have dinner under them some nights.”

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Second paragraph:

“My dad ________ a stone water fountain in the middle of our backyard.”

→ He didn’t just find it — he probably “built” or “made” it. Both could work, but “built” sounds more like constructing something permanent. Let’s check later sentences.

“Our cute dog, Rover loves to drink ________ out of it.”

→ Obviously, dogs drink “water”.

So:
“My dad built a stone water fountain... Rover loves to drink water out of it.”

Next:
“We have some green ________ swings that my dad ________ in the back left corner.”

→ Swings can be made of “metal” — and “green metal swings” makes sense.
→ Dad “built” them? But we already used “built” for the fountain. Wait — let’s check the word bank: “made” is also there. Maybe “made” for the swings?

But actually, looking back — maybe “built” was better for the fountain, and “made” for the swings? Or vice versa? Let’s see what else is left.

Actually, let’s hold on — maybe “built” for the fountain, and “made” for the swings? But “made” isn’t typically used for swings — you “build” swings too. Hmm.

Wait — perhaps “planted”? No, that’s for plants. “Built” is fine for both, but we can only use each word once.

Let’s list what we’ve used so far:

Used: small, with, grass, where, dinner, built (for fountain), water

Left: white, planted, hot, made, sparkling, metal, fence

Ah — “metal” is still available. So: “green metal swings”

Then: “that my dad ________” — he probably “built” them, but we already used “built”. Wait — did we?

In the fountain sentence, we said “My dad built...” — yes.

But “made” is also an option. You can say “my dad made the swings” — that’s acceptable.

So: “We have some green metal swings that my dad made in the back left corner.”

Okay, that works.

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Third paragraph:

“My mum ________ a lovely rose garden along the right side of the ________.”

→ She “planted” the garden — that’s perfect.

→ Along the side of the “fence” — that makes sense for a backyard.

So:
“My mum planted a lovely rose garden along the right side of the fence.”

Next:
“They smell beautiful. She put ________, shiny pebbles under them.”

→ What kind of pebbles? “Sparkling” fits — “sparkling, shiny pebbles” — redundant but okay for emphasis.

Or “white”? “White, shiny pebbles” also works.

But “sparkling” is in the word bank and matches “shiny” nicely.

Let’s go with “sparkling”.

So:
“She put sparkling, shiny pebbles under them.”

Last sentence:

“I just wish we had a ________ blue swimming pool in the backyard for those ________ days.”

→ First blank: describing the pool — “small” is already used. “White”? Doesn’t fit. “Hot”? No. “Metal”? No. Wait — “small” was used for the house. Is there another adjective?

Wait — we haven’t used “hot” yet. But “hot blue swimming pool”? That doesn’t make sense.

Perhaps “small” wasn’t the best choice earlier? Let’s double-check.

Earlier: “My family and I live in a ________ wooden house”

We chose “small”. But maybe “white”? A “white wooden house” is common.

And then for the pool: “a small blue swimming pool” — that makes sense.

Let’s reconsider.

If we change the first blank to “white”, then “small” is free for the pool.

Check if “white” works for the house: Yes — “white wooden house” is very common.

Then for the pool: “a small blue swimming pool”

And last blank: “for those hot days” — perfect! Summer days when you want to swim.

So let’s adjust:

First sentence: “My family and I live in a white wooden house with a large backyard.”

Then later: “I just wish we had a small blue swimming pool in the backyard for those hot days.”

That uses “white” and “small” appropriately, and “hot” for the days.

Now, what about “made”? We used it for the swings.

What’s left? Let’s list all words and cross off as we assign.

Original word bank:

white → now used for house
built → used for fountain
planted → used for garden
where → used for pergola location
hot → used for days
dinner → used for evening meals
made → used for swings
water → used for drinking
small → now used for pool
grass → used for yard
sparkling → used for pebbles
metal → used for swings
with → used for house + backyard
fence → used for garden location

All words used exactly once. Perfect.

Let’s write the full corrected passage:

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My backyard

My family and I live in a white wooden house with a large backyard. It is mostly covered in grass with a small concrete patch where our pergola is. We have dinner under them some nights.

My dad built a stone water fountain in the middle of our backyard. Our cute dog, Rover loves to drink water out of it. We have some green metal swings that my dad made in the back left corner.

My mum planted a lovely rose garden along the right side of the fence. They smell beautiful. She put sparkling, shiny pebbles under them. I just wish we had a small blue swimming pool in the backyard for those hot days.

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Final Answer:

white, with, grass, where, dinner, built, water, metal, made, planted, fence, sparkling, small, hot