Star questions: build the sentence, then count
Every piece looks like it could go anywhere — until the sentence is built in full.
52% of 58 answers were right — one of the hardest questions in the catalogue.
Order the four pieces; which goes in the ★ position?
- まっすぐ
- 行った
- 銀行が
- ところに✓ correct
There's a bank straight ahead.
What it is testing
The ★ question gives four pieces and asks which one lands in the starred slot. Guessing the ★ directly almost never works. Build the whole sentence first, then read off the third slot.
Start from the fixed text after the blanks. あります needs a subject marked が, so 銀行が goes last, right before it. 行った is a plain past verb, and plain verbs come directly before the noun they describe, so 行ったところに belong together. まっすぐ describes how you go, so it comes before 行った. The sentence is まっすぐ／行った／ところに／銀行が, and the ★ is ところに.
The pattern itself is useful for directions: 〜たところに means "at the point you reach after doing ~". 角を曲がったところに is "just round the corner".
Why the wrong answers are tempting
- ✕ まっすぐIt does belong in the sentence, just at the start — an adverb comes before the verb it describes.
- ✕ 行ったSecond slot, not third: it has to come directly before ところ.
- ✕ 銀行がThe subject of あります sits right before it, in the last slot.
More examples
- 角を右に曲がったところにコンビニがあります。There's a convenience store just after you turn right at the corner.
- 橋を渡ったところに公園があります。There's a park just over the bridge.
- 駅を出たところで待っています。I'll be waiting just outside the station.
Write the full sentence before choosing. The text after the last blank tells you what the last piece must be.