8.1. Diagram Label Completion
Label the parts of a picture with words copied from the passage, one gap at a time.
Label the diagram below. Choose ONE WORD from the passage for each answer.
roof → gutter → downpipe → silt 5 → planted 6 → 7 pipe → street drain
In the test the labels sit on a drawing, with an arrow from each numbered gap to the part it names.
The short version
You fill gaps in the labels of a drawing. Each gap is one missing word.
The word is copied from the passage, inside the word limit given in the instructions.
The drawing does not hold the answer. It tells you which part of the process the gap belongs to.
A word already on the drawing is never an answer.
What you have to do
The test shows a drawing of a machine or a process, with labels on its parts. Some labels have a numbered gap where one word is missing. Find the sentence that describes that part and copy the missing word. Read the word limit each time, such as ONE WORD ONLY. An answer over it is marked wrong. The gaps usually come from one part of the passage, but may not follow its order.
What "copy from the passage" means
The word you type must be spelt exactly as it is in the passage. You do not choose a word that means the same, and you do not add a word of your own. If the label reads a brass ______ and the passage says a brass valve, the answer is valve. Nothing else scores.
Step by step
- 1Look at the drawing first, not the passage
Find where the process starts and which way the arrows run. Most drawings read left to right or top to bottom, but check. Count the gaps and note which part of the chain each one sits on.
- 2Read the given labels
The parts that are named on the drawing are your anchors. They tell you where in the passage each gap sits, because the passage will name those parts too. A given word is never an answer, so rule it out.
- 3Find the sentence for that one part
Scan the passage for the given label nearest your gap, or a word that means the same. Read the sentence that follows it. That sentence describes the part with the gap, so your word is in it, not in the sentence after.
- 4Copy the noun that fits the gap
Read the words either side of the gap. A ______ pump wants one noun in front of pump, so find that noun in the sentence and copy it exactly. Drop any word that breaks the limit or the grammar, and drop any word that is already on the drawing.
- 5If you cannot find the sentence
Find the nearest sentence that names a part with no label on the drawing. Copy the word that fits the gap best and move on. Never leave a gap empty, and never spend more than a minute on one.
Quiz time4 questions
Each question gives you the one or two sentences you need, and tells you what is already on the drawing. Practise the copying, not the searching.
Find the sentence for that one part
A drawing of a water filter jug. Box A is labelled lid. Box B has a gap. ONE WORD ONLY.
Read thisWater poured in through the lid collects in an upper chamber called the hopper. From there it drips slowly through a fine mesh, which holds back grit and sand.
Box B: an upper chamber called the
Write no more than 1 word.
The labelled part
On the same drawing, box C is labelled mesh and box E is labelled jug. Box D sits between them and has a gap. ONE WORD ONLY.
Read thisBelow the mesh sits a cartridge packed with carbon. The carbon takes out chlorine and the taste of old pipes, and the water then drips into the jug.
Box D: a packed with carbon
Write no more than 1 word.
Copy the noun that fits the gap
Box D has a second label with a gap. ONE WORD ONLY.
Read thisInside the filter the carbon is not a single block but loose granules, held in a paper sleeve so that none escape into the water below.
Box D: carbon held as loose
Write no more than 1 word.
When you cannot find the sentence
You have looked for a minute and cannot tell which sentence describes box E, at the front of the jug. Use the nearest sentence that names an unlabelled part. ONE WORD ONLY.
Read thisFiltered water gathers in the jug, and a hinged spout at the front lets you pour without lifting the lid. Most people change the filter once a month.
Box E: a hinged
Write no more than 1 word.
Try a full set
Below is a full passage with its drawing and three gaps, set as the test sets them. Work the five steps in order: arrows first, given labels, then one sentence for each gap. Copy the noun that fits, and check it is not already on the drawing.
A household rain garden is a planted trench that takes roof water before it reaches the street drain. The chain is simple, and the labels on the diagram follow it. Rain hits the roof and runs to the gutter. The gutter feeds a downpipe. Before the water enters the planted trench it passes through a silt trap, a small box that holds leaves and grit so they do not clog the soil. Most of the water then soaks away through the planted trench. If a heavy storm fills the trench, an overflow pipe at the downhill end carries the surplus to the street drain. The garden only cuts runoff if that chain happens in order. A downpipe that bypasses the silt trap will silt up the trench in one season. A trench with no overflow will flood the path. The plants are not decoration: their roots keep the soil open. The diagram on this page is the same chain, left to right.
Letters A to E follow the water. A, B and the downpipe are labelled for you. C, D and E each have a gap, with the word beside the gap given. ONE WORD ONLY for each gap.
The full set3 questions
Box C: after the downpipe
ONE WORD ONLY. Use the passage and the diagram above.
After the downpipe, water enters a silt
Write no more than 1 word.
Box D: where the water soaks away
ONE WORD ONLY.
Most of the rainwater sinks into the planted
Write no more than 1 word.
Box E: if the trench fills
ONE WORD ONLY.
If the trench is full, an pipe leads to the street drain
Write no more than 1 word.
Tips
- Read the arrows before you read the passage
Work out where the process starts and which way it flows. A word placed one part too early is the usual mistake.
- Words on the drawing are not answers
Labelled parts fix your position in the passage. Rule them out as answers before you start.
- Let the grammar of the gap choose the word
A gap after a wants a singular noun. A gap after loose or several wants a plural. Check before you copy.
Recap
The answer is a word copied from the passage, with the same spelling, inside the word limit.
The drawing tells you which part you are labelling. Find the one sentence that describes that part.
Given labels are anchors, never answers. If stuck, take the nearest unlabelled part and move on.
Next: the same skill on a chain of boxes joined by arrows.