Transition Words Worksheets - Free Printable

Let’s go through each sentence one by one and find the time-order word. Time-order words tell us when something happens — like “before,” “after,” “finally,” “now,” etc.

1. The nurse stayed in the surgery room afterward.
→ “Afterward” tells us it happened after something else. ✔

2. Toby will graduate soon.
→ “Soon” means in a short time from now. ✔

3. Maverick is setting off on another voyage now.
→ “Now” means at this moment. ✔

4. Before going to school Kendra packed her bag.
→ “Before” tells us what happened first. ✔

5. It rained heavily last night.
→ “Last night” is a time phrase, but not a single time-order *word*. Wait — actually, “last” can be part of a time expression, but we’re looking for words that show order or sequence. Let’s check: “last night” is more of a specific time than an ordering word. But sometimes “last” is used as a time-order word (like “last week”). Hmm… let’s compare with others. Actually, in this context, “last night” is a time marker, but the instruction says “time-order word.” Maybe they want words like before/after/finally/etc. Let’s hold on and see if there’s a better fit. Actually, re-reading: “last night” isn’t really showing order relative to other events — it’s just stating when. So maybe this one doesn’t have a clear time-order word? Wait — no, look again: the sentence is “It rained heavily last night.” There’s no word like “before,” “after,” etc. But “last” could be considered. However, let’s check standard time-order words: usually they are: first, next, then, after, before, finally, soon, now, afterward, etc. “Last night” is a noun phrase. I think this might be tricky. But perhaps the intended answer is “last”? Or maybe none? Wait — let’s look at all sentences again.

Actually, let me list common time-order words:
- First, second, third...
- Next, then, after, before
- Finally, eventually
- Soon, now, later, earlier
- Afterward, beforehand

In sentence 5: “last night” — “last” here is an adjective modifying “night,” not really a time-order connector. But some curricula include “last” as a time-order word. To be safe, let’s assume they want “last” as the answer here, since it indicates past time relative to now.

But wait — let’s check sentence 6:
6. Mark said he hoped they would meet again soon.
→ “Soon” is clearly a time-order word. ✔

Sentence 7:
7. There was a minor earthquake in San Francisco two days ago.
→ “Two days ago” — similar to “last night.” Is “ago” a time-order word? Yes! “Ago” tells us how far back in time. So “ago” is the time-order word here. ✔

Sentence 8:
8. After the match, Melissa grabbed a sandwich.
→ “After” is a classic time-order word. ✔

Sentence 9:
9. Finally, Ocean heard the news that she was hoping for.
→ “Finally” shows it happened at the end of a sequence. ✔

Sentence 10:
10. He took out his wallet and paid for the popcorn before I could say anything.
→ “Before” is a time-order word. ✔

Now back to sentence 5: “It rained heavily last night.”
If we must pick one word, “last” is the only candidate. Some teachers accept “last” as a time-order word because it refers to the most recent occurrence. Alternatively, if strict, maybe there’s no time-order word — but that seems unlikely for a worksheet. Given that “ago” was accepted in #7, “last” should be acceptable here too.

So let’s finalize:

1. afterward
2. soon
3. now
4. Before
5. last
6. soon
7. ago
8. After
9. Finally
10. before

Wait — in sentence 4, it’s “Before” capitalized — probably because it starts the sentence. We still circle “Before”.

Also, in sentence 10, “before” is lowercase — that’s fine.

Let me double-check sentence 5: Is “last” really a time-order word? In many elementary worksheets, yes — “last week,” “last year,” “last night” are treated as time-order phrases, and “last” is the key word. Since the instruction says “circle the time-order word,” and “last” is the word indicating time order (most recent), I’ll go with that.

Final list:

1. afterward
2. soon
3. now
4. Before
5. last
6. soon
7. ago
8. After
9. Finally
10. before

All done!

Final Answer:
1. afterward
2. soon
3. now
4. Before
5. last
6. soon
7. ago
8. After
9. Finally
10. before