Explanation:
Let’s go through each question one by one and choose the correct option based on grammar and meaning.
1.
_____ I was about to lock the door, a gust of wind blew it open.
- “If” introduces a condition (e.g., *If I had locked it…*), but here we’re describing something that happened *at the same time* as another action.
- “As” means “while” or “at the same time as” — fits perfectly: *As I was about to lock the door…*
✔ Correct:
B. As
2.
I ate the entire dinner and dessert, even though I wasn’t hungry.
- The sentence already has a main verb: “ate”. We need a subordinating conjunction to connect the two clauses.
- “even though” is a subordinating conjunction meaning “despite the fact that” — exactly what we need here.
- “ate”, “hungry”, and “and” don’t fit grammatically in the blank.
✔ Correct:
B. even though
3.
Kyle is going to lend me the book once he is finished reading it.
- The blank is before “he is finished reading it”. We need a word that introduces the time clause.
- “once” = “as soon as” — perfect for time clauses.
- “he”, “it”, and “finished” alone don’t work here.
✔ Correct:
C. once
4.
The palms of my hands get sweaty _____ I get nervous.
- This shows a repeated situation: whenever nervous → sweaty palms.
- “whenever” = “every time that” — matches the pattern.
- “before” would mean sweating happens *prior* to being nervous — illogical.
✔ Correct:
B. whenever
5.
If the tide is too high, we won’t be able to see the tidepools.
- This is a conditional sentence: *If [condition], then [result]*.
- Blank is at the beginning — needs the conjunction “If”.
- “too”, “won’t”, “able” are not conjunctions and don’t start the sentence correctly.
✔ Correct:
D. If
6.
After we eat dinner, the waiter will bring us a dessert menu.
- The blank is at the beginning of the sentence, before “we eat dinner”.
- “After” is a subordinating conjunction introducing a time clause — correct usage.
- “dinner”, “eat”, “will” are not conjunctions and can’t start this clause properly.
✔ Correct:
C. After
7.
The children cannot eat dessert unless they finish their dinner.
- “unless” = “if not” — used to express a necessary condition.
- The sentence means: they can eat dessert *only if* they finish dinner. That’s exactly what “unless” does.
- “children”, “dessert”, “their” don’t fit in the blank grammatically.
✔ Correct:
D. unless
Final Answer:
1. B
2. B
3. C
4. B
5. D
6. C
7. D
Parent Tip: Review the logic above to help your child master the concept of conjunctions worksheet 5th grade.
