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Expand, Combine and Reduce is a free printable Grade 5 English worksheet on reshaping sentences for meaning and interest, aligned to Common Core standard L.5.3. It prints 8 questions with an answer key on its own sheet of paper, in 25 versions that each ask different questions, so no two students in the class work from the same page. Print it from the browser or download it as a PDF — no account, no email.

Set 6 of 25 · the same problems every time you open this link.

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Set 1 has all 25 in a single PDF. All 25 sets ask different questions.

Expand, Combine and Reduce

L.5.3

NameDate

Circle the right answer.

1.Expand "The ship sailed." to tell when and where. Which is best?
  • A.At dawn, the ship sailed out of the bay.
  • B.The ship, a ship, sailed.
  • C.The ship sailed and sailed.
2.Why combine two short sentences into one?
  • A.Because short sentences are always wrong
  • B.To show how the ideas relate rather than just listing them
  • C.To make the writing longer
3.Combine using a word that shows contrast: "It was sunny. It was cold."
  • A.It was sunny but cold.
  • B.It was sunny so cold.
  • C.It was sunny, it was cold.
4.Combine: "The bell hung in a barn. It was green with damp." Which is best?
  • A.The bell hung in a barn and it was green with damp and it was there a long time.
  • B.The bell, green with damp, hung in a barn.
  • C.Green with damp the bell hung in a barn.
5.Combine: "Maya won the race. She had trained for months." Which is best?
  • A.Maya won the race, she had trained for months.
  • B.Maya won the race because she had trained for months.
  • C.Maya had trained for months and won and the race.
6.Expand "The dog barked." to tell why. Which is best?
  • A.The dog barked because a stranger was at the gate.
  • B.The dog barked and barked.
  • C.The dog, a dog, barked.
7.Reduce: "The reason why we were late was because the bus was late." Which is best?
  • A.We were late. Because the bus. It was late.
  • B.We were late because the bus was late.
  • C.The reason why we were late was the reason the bus was late.
8.Combine: "The fox was hungry. The fox looked for food." Which is best?
  • A.The fox was hungry and the fox looked and looked for food.
  • B.The hungry fox looked for food.
  • C.The fox looked. Hungry for food.

LessonPrint · L.5.3 · Set 6 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — Expand, Combine and Reduce

Set 6. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.At dawn, the ship sailed out of the bay.
  2. 2.To show how the ideas relate rather than just listing them
  3. 3.It was sunny but cold.
  4. 4.The bell, green with damp, hung in a barn.
  5. 5.Maya won the race because she had trained for months.
  6. 6.The dog barked because a stranger was at the gate.
  7. 7.We were late because the bus was late.
  8. 8.The hungry fox looked for food.

More practice for L.5.3

Expand and combine sentences for meaning, and compare varieties of English.

Teaching this next? Combining Sentences for Style is the 40-minute plan for it, with the misconceptions to expect.

All Grade 5 worksheets

Last reviewed 2026-09-05. Aligned to L.5.3 of the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts.