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TOEIC Link Part 5: accept versus except

Accept and except look and sound nearly alike but belong to different word classes. Accept is a verb meaning to receive or agree to something. Except is mainly a preposition (and sometimes a conjunction) meaning leaving out or apart from. Part 5 exploits the one-letter spelling gap, but the slot — an action of receiving versus the idea of exclusion — decides which word is correct.

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TOEIC Link Part 5: accept versus except

Accept and except differ by a single letter and sound almost identical in fast speech, but they are not interchangeable. Accept is a verb meaning to receive, take, or agree to something. Except is chiefly a preposition meaning leaving out or apart from, and occasionally a conjunction. Part 5 pairs them precisely because the eye and ear can miss the difference; only the grammar of the slot reveals which one belongs. For the broader skill of answering by sense rather than spelling, see word choice versus word form.

The core rule: receiving versus leaving out

  • accept is a verb meaning to receive, take, or agree to: She accepted the job offer. / Please accept our apologies. / The committee accepted his proposal. Think "to say yes to something or take it in."
  • except is mainly a preposition meaning excluding or apart from: Everyone attended except the manager. / The office is open daily except Sundays. As a conjunction it means "only / but": I would go, except I have a meeting. Think "leaving something out."

A memory hook: accept starts like acceptance and accepted — verbs of receiving. except starts with ex-, the prefix in exclude and exit — the idea of leaving out.

How to read the slot

  • Blank is the main verb (an action) → accept. In the bank will (blank) the payment, they (blank) responsibility, we cannot (blank) returns, the slot is an action of receiving, so it is accept.
  • Blank introduces something excluded → except. In all departments (blank) finance, open every day (blank) holidays, no one (blank) the director knew, the slot means "apart from," so it is except.

The fastest test: if the slot is doing something (receiving, agreeing), choose accept; if it is carving out an exception, choose except.

Common Part 5 traps

  • Only accept works as a verb. If the blank follows a subject and takes an object as the sentence's action (the system will (blank) credit cards), except — a preposition — cannot fit. Spotting that the slot needs a verb settles it instantly.
  • A list followed by "leaving one out" signals except. When the sentence names a whole group and then removes a member (all staff (blank) the interns), the slot is exclusion, so it is except. A nearby all, every, everyone, or no one is a strong cue.
  • Watch the related verb expect. Expect means to anticipate (we expect delivery on Friday) and is a different word again. It can sneak into answer choices alongside accept and except, so confirm the meaning, not just the look.

Quick check

Decide whether the slot is an action of receiving or an idea of exclusion, then choose.

  1. The vendor agreed to (blank) the revised terms of the contract.
  2. The store is open every day (blank) public holidays.
  3. We cannot (blank) cash payments at this counter.
  4. All of the proposals were approved (blank) the last one.

Answers: 1. accept (verb, to agree to) 2. except (preposition, apart from) 3. accept (verb, to receive) 4. except (preposition, leaving one out).

The takeaway

Accept and except are a one-letter trap, so read the slot rather than the spelling: an action of receiving or agreeing is accept; an idea of leaving something out is except. For more look-alike pairs the slot decides, see affect versus effect and council versus counsel.