11+ Question Types Explained
Kent County Council has not yet published the format of the September 2027 Kent Test. These are the types grammar tests use today; we will update this page when Kent publishes.
Five options and an answer sheet
The Bexley test, set by Quest Assessments, gives five options, A to E, and children mark their answer on a separate sheet. Other tests use four or five options. A few habits help whichever format your child meets:
- Mark one box per question, with a firm line inside the box.
- To change an answer, rub out the first mark completely.
- Keep your place: check the question number on the sheet every few questions.
- Never leave a question blank. Make a best guess and move on.
Verbal reasoning
Puzzles with words, letters and codes. Quick to learn, and the biggest gains usually come from a strong vocabulary.
Closest meaning (synonyms)
Pick the word that means the same, or nearly the same, as the word given.
Example: Which word is closest in meaning to CHEERFUL? glum, happy, tired, loud, calm Answer: happy
Tip: Try each option in the same sentence. The one that keeps the meaning is the answer.
Opposite meaning (antonyms)
Pick the word that means the opposite of the word given.
Example: Which word is most opposite in meaning to ANCIENT? old, modern, broken, famous, tall Answer: modern
Tip: Watch for options that are related to the word but are not its opposite.
Odd one out
Find the word that does not belong with the others.
Example: apple, pear, plum, carrot, cherry Answer: carrot (the others are fruits)
Tip: Name the group the others share before you choose.
Hidden words
A four-letter word is hidden across the end of one word and the start of the next.
Example: Find the hidden four-letter word: Our team ate early. Answer: mate (tea-m ate)
Tip: Run a finger along each pair of neighbouring words, ignoring the gap.
Letter series
Find the next letter, or pair of letters, in a pattern.
Example: B, D, F, H, ? Answer: J (each letter skips one)
Tip: Write the alphabet across the top of the page and count the jumps.
Letter codes
A word is written in a code. Work out the rule and use it on another word.
Example: If CAT is written DBU, how is DOG written? Answer: EPH (each letter moves one place on)
Tip: Check the rule on every letter, not just the first.
Word analogies
Find the word that completes a pair in the same way as the first pair.
Example: Hot is to cold as up is to ? high, down, over, top, sky Answer: down
Tip: Say the link as a sentence: hot is the opposite of cold, so up is the opposite of ?
Compound words and missing letters
Join two words to make a new word, or find the letters missing from a word in a sentence.
Tip: Say the new word out loud. If it is not a real word, try another pair.
Logic problems
A short set of facts about people, days or places, and a question that needs every fact.
Tip: Draw a quick table or line so nothing is kept in your head.
Non-verbal reasoning and spatial reasoning
Puzzles with shapes and patterns, no words. Most children improve quickly once they know what to look for.
Series
Shapes change step by step. Pick the one that comes next.
Tip: Track one thing at a time: number, size, shading, then direction.
Odd one out
Several shapes share a rule; one does not.
Tip: Count sides and lines before looking at shading.
Analogies
The first shape changes into the second. Make the same change to a third shape.
Tip: Name the change in words, such as 'turns a quarter turn and loses a dot'.
Matrices
A grid of shapes with one square missing.
Tip: Check rows and columns: the rule runs along one or both.
Codes
Each shape has letters that stand for its features. Find the code for a new shape.
Tip: Find two shapes that differ in only one feature to crack each letter.
Reflections and rotations
Pick the shape as it looks in a mirror, or after it is turned.
Tip: Follow one small detail, such as a dot in a corner.
Nets and cubes
Which cube can be folded from a flat net, or which net makes a given cube.
Tip: Opposite faces never touch on a cube. Rule those out first.
Hidden shapes
Find which small shape is hidden inside a bigger picture.
Tip: Look for the most unusual corner of the small shape.
English
Reading and the rules of written English. Comprehension carries the most marks in most English papers.
Comprehension
Questions on a passage: finding facts, working out what a character feels, and what a word means in context.
Tip: Read the questions first, then the passage, then go back for each answer.
Spelling
Find the line or word with a spelling mistake, or say there is none.
Tip: Read each word slowly, syllable by syllable.
Punctuation
Find the missing or wrong punctuation mark.
Tip: Check capital letters, apostrophes and speech marks first: they are the usual traps.
Grammar and missing words
Choose the word that fits a sentence or a passage correctly.
Tip: Read the whole sentence with your choice in place before moving on.
Maths
Mostly what children learn by the end of Year 5, asked in less familiar ways.
Arithmetic
Quick calculations: the four operations, fractions, decimals and percentages.
Tip: Estimate first, so a wrong answer looks wrong.
Word problems
A short story with numbers that needs more than one step.
Tip: Underline what the question actually asks for.
Number patterns
Find the next number or the rule.
Example: 3, 6, 12, 24, ? Answer: 48 (each number doubles)
Tip: Look at the gaps between numbers, then at the gaps between the gaps.
Shape, measure and data
Angles, area, time, money, charts and tables.
Tip: Check the units: minutes or hours, cm or m.