C2 Use of English - How to ACE this Part of C2 Proficiency

C2 Use of English [Proficiency] – TOP Tips to ace this section of the exam

Last updated on May 4, 2025

In recent times, I’ve completed many C2 Proficiency practice examination Use of English tasks in an effort to challenge and develop myself as a teacher of English. The Use of English section appears together with the Reading section of the exam in what is known as the C2 Proficiency Reading and Use of English Paper.

This post details the three task types in the Use of English section of the paper. I also provide an abundance of tips as to how you can achieve the highest mark possible for each task.

What task types make up the Use of English section of the C2 Proficiency Reading and Use of English paper?

The Reading and Use of English paper contains seven parts. There 53 questions in total, with a maximum of 72 marks up for grabs.The Reading section of the paper consists of parts 1, 5, 6 and 7. The Use of English section encompasses parts 2, 3 and 4:

2. an open cloze task

3. a word formation task

4. a key word transformations task

Essentially, the Use of English section tests your ability to demonstrate your control of English by doing different tasks at both text and sentence level. You are given the chance to show your knowledge of a range of grammatical forms and lexical items, and your ability to apply them correctly and appropriately.

Candidates are able to take Cambridge exams either digitally (typing answers directly onto a computer) or in paper format.

Text types

There are three texts in the Use of English section. These texts are chiefly contemporary and taken from academic, journalistic and literary sources. Texts tend to be in the form of extracts from reports and articles, meaning that the content is mostly factual or informational. Occasionally, these texts contain opinions.

As you can imagine, texts are exceedingly dense and complex, with long sentences containing several clauses with very high-level use of grammatical structures.

The titles are meant to give candidates an early idea of what to expect from the text, and to help them apply their predictive reading skills.

C2 Use of English - Part by Part

Now that you have been acquainted with the types of tasks you will encounter in the Use of English section of the C2 Proficiency exam, let’s focus our attention on each individual task type. I will describe each task type in more detail and give some tips as to how you can achieve the highest mark possible for each task.

Part 2 - Open Cloze Task [8 questions / 8 marks]

Part 2 of the C2 Reading and Use of English paper is an open cloze task. In a nutshell, the task consists of a short text with EIGHT gaps. There’s also an example at the beginning (0). One mark is awarded for each correct answer.

You have to fill each gap by identifying the missing words. Note that a SINGLE WORD is needed to fill each gap - never a contraction or phrase. There may be more than one acceptable word for a gap. These words appear in the mark scheme compiled by Cambridge English.

Unlike part 1, this is not a multiple-choice task. You must utilise your knowledge of the structure of English and ability to grasp the context of the text in order to fill the gaps.

For part 2, it’s vital that you write/type your answers IN CAPITAL LETTERS. Each word must be correctly spelt.

What does the open cloze task test?

The open cloze task of the Use of English section generally tests a candidate’s awareness and control of grammar. However, the focus of the gapped words may also be lexico-grammatical, that is areas which may be considered part-grammar and part-vocabulary. Examples of lexico-grammatical areas include linking words and phrases, parts of phrasal verbs, and verb, adjective and noun complementation (e.g. prepositions used after these).

As the gapped words tend to be grammatical in nature, they are usually short and high-frequency ones, such as prepositions (in, on) and articles (a, the). However, these ‘simple’ words will be placed within a relatively complex setting.

What common parts of speech are often tested in part 2 of the C2 Reading and Use of English paper?

Parts of speech that are often gapped include:

Prepositions - without, result in, regardless of
Multi-word prepositions/prepositional phrases - except for, apart from, out of order
Subordinating conjunctions - although, while, unless, until, in order to
Multi-word conjunctions - in order that, as long as, so as to, provided that
Relative pronouns - who, which
Linkers - moreover, let alone, far from, regardless of
Phrasal verbs - set someone apart, turn up
Fixed phrases - by no means, when it comes to, to such an extent, as a rule
Graded quantifiers - many, fewer
Idioms/collocations - (it) goes without saying, (in) one way or another, on the horizon, kill time, take place

How long should candidates spend on part 2 of the C2 Reading and Use of English paper?

I recommend candidates to spend no longer than FIVE minutes on part 2 of the C2 Reading and Use of English Paper.

An Example of an Open Cloze Task

sample task part 2 of C2 Reading and Use of English paper

Solutions to sample tasks can be found at the end of this post.

Tips for acing part 2 of the C2 Reading and Use of English Paper

1. First of all, look at the title and briefly skim the entire text in order to grasp what the text is about.

2. Read the whole text again ignoring the gaps.

3. Read the text again sentence by sentence, as opposed to line by line. Pay attention to the words and structures before and after each gap as they may form part of a phrase or expression which is completed by the missing word.

4. If it helps, read the sentences both before and after the whole sentence with the gap in it. Many answers may require you to recognise the flow and connections between ideas and information in the text. Indeed, awareness of the writer’s train of thought and logical argument plays a substantial role in the C2 Proficiency Reading and Use of English paper. If you consider each gap in isolation, you may produce an answer which appears to make sense within the narrow context of the few words either side of the gap. However, you will find that the answer does not make sense within the context of the text.

5. If you are struggling, it may help you to read through the whole article carefully and decide which type of word is missing from each gap, e.g. a question word, a preposition, a verb or a noun etc. You might also reach the conclusion that the missing word makes up a phrase or idiom.

In the sample text above, it’s obvious that gap 9 is a question word (why?) because of the question mark.

6. Look for a referent (e.g. names; places; pronouns, he/they, etc.) in another part of the sentence. Make sure that the word you write in the gap agrees with the subject.

7. When you have finished, read the whole text again to make sure that it reads well and makes sense.

In the lead up to taking the C2 proficiency exam, how can you boost your chances of getting a top mark for part 2 of the Reading and Use of English Paper?

Perhaps more than anything else, this task revolves around the knowledge and recognition of grammatical patterns, fixed phrases, prepositional phrases and multi-word conjunctions.

I tend to advise candidates to seek out as many academic and journalistic articles as possible and initiate the process of noting down the many grammatical patterns and multi-word phrases they come across. If it helps, these articles can relate to an area of personal interest. It would also be a prudent move to seek out as many sample/past C2 (previously CPE) Reading and Use of English papers as possible for the purposes of picking out phrases.

The following paragraph is from an article titled ‘The Role of Positive Emotions in Positive Psychology: The Broaden-and-Build Theory of Positive Emotions’ by Barbara Fredrickson (2001):

Evidently, this paragraph is just what the doctor ordered when it comes to preparing for part 2 of the Reading and Use of English Paper. Remembering that the missing words tend to be grammatical in nature, and are thus rather short and simple, it would be worth taking a note of the following grammatical patterns and phrases:

On first consideration
serve as
characterised by
in which
Consistent with this
According to
the whole story
within the present (moment)
over the long term
not just as
in themselves
as a means to

All of the words in bold are the kind which you may have to gap. The next step would be to add these phrases/chunks of words to a table. For example, you can do this on a Google Doc. After that, I would recommend you to try to find synonyms for relevant multi-word items. For example, I have a feeling that according to may be a bit too simple to appear in a C2 Use of English task. However, this does not mean you cannot search for equivalent terms in a good online dictionary. I have found the following synonyms for according to:

in accordance with
in conformity with
in line with
as claimed by

You can also add these synonyms to the entry for ‘according to’ in your table. For some entries, you may wish to add whole sentences containing the target phrases so that you have greater context and as a potential memory aid for the target phrases. You can find example sentences in any reputable online dictionary, such as Cambridge Dictionary.

Part 3 - Word-Building Task [8 questions / 8 marks]

Part 3 of the C2 Use of English paper is a Word-Building task. Candidates should read the text and complete the EIGHT numbered gaps with a form of the word in capitals at the end of the line. This word at the end of the line is known as, among other terms, a stem word. There is an example at the beginning of the text. This example is taken from the sample Word-Building task which follows below:

As you can see, the stem word is EFFECT (a noun). You would have to change effect into EFFECTIVE (an adjective) to complete the gap.

ONE mark is awarded for each correct answer. Each word must be correctly spelt.

What does the Word-Building Task test?

The focus of the Word-Building Task is mainly lexical (e.g. compounding, affixation, suffixation).

As the very nature of the term Word-Building suggests, most questions involve producing a word that is longer than the word given, especially when adding affixes. However, you may have to produce a shorter word for some questions, for example changing the adjective greedy to the noun greed.

How long should candidates spend on part 3 of the C2 Reading and Use of English paper?

I recommend candidates to spend no longer than FIVE minutes on part 3 of the C2 Reading and Use of English Paper.

An Example of a Word Formation Task

Part 3 task from a sample C2 Use of English paper

How can you maximise your chances of getting a top mark in part 3 of the C2 Reading and Use of English Paper?

1. As with part 2, begin by skim-reading the text, ignoring the words provided.

2. The first step in the word-building process is deciding what part of speech the missing word in each gap should be. More of than not, you will have to form a noun from a given verb or an adjective from a given noun. Less commonly, you may have to form an adverb from a noun. Some questions may also involve creating a different word that is the same part of speech, for instance changing an adjective into a negative adjective.

You should possess enough basic grammatical knowledge to work out from the context what part of speech the word you have to form must be.

For example, it should be common knowledge that bare infinitives follow modal verbs such as may, could and, in the example below, can. Therefore, the only viable infinitive form related to the base word company is accompany:

4. Having identified what part of speech the gapped word should be, you now need to consider the type of word formation that is required. The types of word-building involve the following:

(a) Affixation:

Affixation refers to the process of adding affixes (namely prefixes and suffixes) to a word to a base word to form a new word. Common prefixes include un-, im-, dis- and over-. As for suffixes, common examples include -al, -ful, -ment and -tion.

At this level, Cambridge English tends to demand that you supply both a prefix and a suffix to form the required word. Therefore, it may be useful to learn that im- is used before the letters m and p, as in immobile and impatient. However, Cambridge English may be more inclined for candidates to supply a prefix and suffix for a negative noun based on a stem word that is a verb.

In the example below, the verb orientate should be changed into a noun which requires knowledge of both the required prefix (-dis) and required suffix (-ion). The gapped word is disorientation.

This example with disorientation proves the point that, even if you don’t know what the gapped word is on the basis of the stem word, you can still draw on your knowledge of English to produce a word which you feel sounds correct. The verb prevent suggests that the following noun is negative in its relation to awakening. Next, you can consider the first letter of orientate - 'o'. In order to create the negative form of nouns beginning with the letter ‘o’, such as organisation, obedience and order, you often need to add the prefix dis-. That’s one clue. The second clue for this particular gapped word revolves around the suffix -tate. You can refer to your knowledge of English again to work out that verbs ending in the suffix -tate, such as imitate, tend to take the suffix - tion in the noun form (imitation).

Common affixes and changes to word forms

verb to noun - act to interaction
verb to plural noun - apply to applicants
noun to adjective - flaw to flawless
noun to negative adverb - effect to ineffectively
adjective to negative adverb - definite to indefinitely
adjective to verb - deep to deepened

(b) Internal/ Grammatical changes

You may have to change some words in ways which do not involve the addition of affixes. For example, changing the noun thief to the verb thieve.

Word-building also involves making internal changes to the stem word, for example, strong to strengthened. Therefore, any number of changes may be made to the stem word, including subtle changes in spelling. A subtle change in spelling appears in the transformation of vary to invariably with the ‘y’ in vary becoming ‘i’ in the middle of invariably. As another example, changing doubt to undoubtedly amounts to three changes, not forgetting that other letters have also been added (-ed) to form a negative adverb.

(c) Compounding

Occasionally, you may have to change the stem word to form a compound word. In the example below, you would have to add -fall to rain to create the compound noun rainfall.

Have a go at completing this C2 word formation exercise.

Final Thoughts and preparing for the Word-Building Task before the exam

Having completed a large number of sample Reading and Use of English papers in recent weeks, I find it easier to do word-building tasks than Open Cloze (part 2) and Key Word Transformation tasks (part 4). Frankly, I am disappointed if I don’t get 100% on every Key Word Transformation task I do.

Of course, it’s mightily difficult to prepare for a C2 Word-Building task. After all, it’s impossible to get to know the range of words that can be formed from the many tens of thousands of base words there are, including all the negative forms. However, I’d like to leave you with one final piece of advice. The stem words provided by Cambridge English tend to be fairly common nouns and verbs. Occasionally, Cambridge may provide an adjective as the stem word.

I’ve just found stem words such as break, close, progress, repeat and regular in sample papers. This suggests to me that, while reading a text, you can try to judge which verbs, nouns and adjectives are ‘common’.

I’ve just found an article on the BBC website about how holiday resorts are rethinking the all-inclusive holiday. If I were preparing for part 3 of the C2 Use of English exam, I would do the following with this article:

1. If you deem a noun or verb to be ‘common’, stop reading at the end of the sentence or paragraph the word appears in

2. Head to Chat GPT and type ‘What are all the affixes of the word ____’ or ‘What are all the prefixes and suffixes of the word ___’. One search query may throw up a more complete set of results than the other search query so it’s worth comparing ‘affixes’ with ‘prefixes and suffixes’:

chat GPT help to pass C2 Proficiency Reading and Use of English paper

3. For example, the word adventure appears in the article. Here are the results from ChatGPT:

suffixes and prefixes of the word 'adventure'

You can then create a Google Doc with the stem words in the left-hand column and the affixes in the right-hand column. Moreover, you can add definitions and example sentences containing variants of the stem word should you wish to.

Part 4 - Key Word Transformations Task [6 questions / 12 marks]

Part 4 of the C2 Use of English paper is a Key Word Transformations task.

Expanding on the instructions a little more, there are six key word transformations to complete. Each question contains three parts: a lead-in sentence, a key word and second response sentence of which only the beginning and end are given. Therefore, you have to fill the gap in the second sentence so that it is similar in meaning to the lead-in sentence. It is vital that you use the key word in bold. You can use between three and eight words including the given word in the transformation sentence.

Here’s an example transformation question:

key-word-transformation-question-c2-use-of-english

Possible solutions as given by Cambridge English:

resignation / resigning / decision to resign came (1 mark) + as a (total/complete) surprise / shock to (1 mark)

It’s crucial that you use the key word in your answer and you must not alter it in any way. If you do not use it or if you change it, you will not be awarded the marks. When you write/type your answers, you only need to write/type the words that are needed to fill the gap and not the whole sentence.

How long should candidates spend on part 4 of the C2 Reading and Use of English paper?

I recommend candidates to spend no longer than TWELVE minutes on part 4 of the C2 Reading and Use of English Paper. This equates to two minutes per question.

An Example Key Word Transformations part from a Sample C2 Reading and Use of English Paper

key-word-transformations-task-c2-proficiency

key-word-transformations-task-c2-use-english

What does the Key Word Transformations task test and what’s the best way to approach the task?

The focus of the Key Word Transformations Task is on grammar, vocabulary and collocation. Candidates are required to manipulate sentence structures and lexical phrases in their answers.

To reiterate, each answer must consist of between three to eight words. If you write more than eight words, you will not be awarded the marks. You must remember that contractions count as two words (won’t = will not).

The answer you write is separated into two distinct parts. Each part is worth ONE mark. Therefore, you may score 0,1 or 2 marks depending on the accuracy of the response. In effect, then, there are really two ‘pieces of language’ to produce for each answer. In any question, either of the ‘pieces’ may involve:

the transformation of one grammatical structure into another;
the production of a lexical phrase, such as a phrasal verb, a fixed phrase, an idiom, a collocation, a linking phrase or a phrase with the correct complementation (complements complete the meaning of a sentence and include subject complements and object complements);
changing a word from one part of speech to another, such as forming a noun from a given adjective.

Make sure to write a complete answer to each question. Even if you are unsure whether your whole answer is correct, it is possible that one of the two parts will be. Indeed, as the example at the beginning of this analysis of part 4 about “Lucy’s resignation” shows, you can get a mark for simply transforming a verb/to-infinitive into a noun.

It’s also vital that you read the words on both sides of the gap carefully. These words provide you with crucial information about the nature of the correct answer.

Key Word Transformation - Noticing Patterns

It’s very difficult to give advice about how to prepare for the Key Word Transformation task. The only thing I urge candidates to do is to seek out sample papers, past examination papers and Key Word Transformation exercises online and practise. Even if you struggle at first, it will get easier as you begin to recognise grammatical patterns in the answers. You can record new structures and chunks in a notebook or on a Google Doc.

Here are two grammatical items, followed by lexical chunks, which may crop up in this C2 Use of English part:

1. Saxon Genitive followed by a noun

Let’s return to the example I provided earlier. As Lucy is followed by an apostrophe (‘) + s to indicate possession (known as the Saxon Genitive), the following word would most likely be a noun. The verb resign immediately stands out for its potential to be ‘transformed’. Therefore, the noun of resign is resignation. By recognising this, and adding the word came after resignation, you’ll have already secured one mark: Lucy’s resignation came |

Judging by the answer keys, Cambridge English is quite flexible with the answers in part 4. After all, both ‘resigning’ and ‘decision to resign’ are acceptable alternatives to ‘resignation’. However, I think it’s easier to just go with a noun after the Saxon Genitive.

Your knowledge of collocations would have to come into play in the next part: Lucy ’s resignation came (1) | as a surprise / shock to everyone (1)

2. Passive structures

This question should be straightforward for students at this level. The fact that the word Passengers now appears at the start of the answer suggests that a passive structure is required. Always double check the tense in the first sentence. Here we have the present simple tense, which equates to the following in the passive:

Passengers are asked / requested to | [1]

The word ‘to’ indicates that a to-infinitive should follow:

Passengers are asked / requested to | remain

Finally, you can complete the transformation in one of two ways:

Passengers are asked / requested to | remain seated / in their seats [1]

3. Inversions

example of an inversion in the C2 Cambridge Proficiency Reading and Use of English exam

Although they're somewhat old-fashioned, Cambridge English does like to test candidates on inversion, for example:

Inversion after negative adverbials, such as never, not only and hardly.
Inverted conditionals

In the example above, we have a case of inversion in the third conditional with the following solution:

Had it not been for Nick's advice [1] \ I would / I'd [1]

Final piece of advice for preparing for part 4 of the C2 Reading and Use of English Paper

Apart from practising from sample papers, past papers and exercises online, you can also practise your paraphrasing skills using different grammatical structures and synonyms/other lexical chunks by rewriting sentences from texts you have read. This can only help you develop flexibility in language use.

I’m available to check your paraphrases.

Final Thoughts

Honestly, it’s not the case that I achieve 100% for every single C2 Use of English task I attempt. Although I tend to achieve 100% for the Word-Building tasks, I tend to operate at around 90-95% for parts 2 and 4 combined. I believe that most well-educated native speakers of English, without any background in English Language/Linguistics, would do well to get over 70% in total for the three parts of the Use of English section.

When it comes to English language learners who get over 90% in total for the Use of English parts, I take my hat off to them.

Reference:

Fredrickson, B.L., (March2001). ‘The Role of Positive Emotions in Positive Psychology: The Broaden-and-Build Theory of Positive Emotions’, American Psychologist, Vol.56, No. 3, 218-226