IELTS Listening

Listening Multichoice : Multiple Choice Questions

In multiple choice questions, you are required to choose the correct answer from a list of options. There are two main types of question:

1) Single questions with a choice of 3 answers (A, B or C).
Occasionally, there may be 4 options.
2) List questions. These have a longer list of possible answers
and you must select more than one as specified in the question.

The Strategy

1) Read the question
You will have a short time to prepare before the speaker or speakers begin talking. First, read the question very carefully to ensure that you know exactly what you have to do.
Particularly note the type of question – single with 3 options or list selection with 2 or more answers to identify. For our sample question, we must choose 3 answers. Underline or circle the 3 to remind you.

2) Look for a title
Not every question will have a title but if there is one, it will tell you the context of the question. This will help you to understand the answers listed and give you a big clue as to what sort of information will be contained in the recording.

3) Underline the key word in the question
Next, underline or highlight the key word in the question. In this question, it is ‘recommended’.

4) Predict the answer
Now look at the list of answers. You may be able to predict which ones are correct or at least one or two of them, and a couple that are probably wrong.

5) Think of synonyms
Expect to hear all the answer options in the recording, not just the correct answers. You will have to listen very carefully to determine if each item is or is not recommended.

6) Identify the difference
In single questions with a choice of 3 or 4 answers, the answers may be similar in some way to try and catch you out.

7) Watch out for distractors
We already know that all the answers in the list will probably be included in the text, so you need to listen carefully to identify the correct ones. Particularly listen out for distractors as the examiners love to try and trick you into picking the wrong answers.

8) Writing the answer
In IELTS Listening multiple choice questions, your answer will almost always be the letter of the answer, not the words. This will be stated in the instructions, for example:

9) Guess if necessary
Never leave a blank space on the answer sheet. If you miss an answer, take an educated guess. This gives you at least some chance of getting it right. Don’t stress about a missed answer or it will affect your ability to answer the next set of questions. Just make your choice and move on.

You need to have a good strategy to answer matching questions successfully and that’s what you’ll learn in this lesson.

The lesson includes:

They can take many different forms but will always be a gap fill activity of some sort where you have to fill in missing words. You could, for example, be asked to fill in missing words in a set of notes from a lecture or a list of instructions for a journey.

There are almost endless possibilities but as long as you have a good strategy to follow, you’ll be able to answer any question you’re given. Follow the advice in this lesson and you’ll be well prepared.

What are notes?
As an English language student, you probably make notes on a regular basis. It’s also common to make notes, for example, during meetings and telephone conversations or when browsing the internet for information on a particular topic, such as travel information for a holiday.

So, what sort of information do you write down when you’re taking notes? And, what do you not write down?

Notes contain:
• Key word & phrases
• The minimum vocabulary necessary for the information to make sense to the writer

They frequently include:
• Lists
• Headings & subheadings
• Numbers or bullet points
Notes don’t generally contain full sentences and are often ungrammatical.

Strategy & Tips

You will have a short time to prepare before the speaker begins talking. Use this time to familiarise yourself with the question and focus your mind on what you need to listen out for.

1) Read the instructions
Read the instruction carefully, paying particular attention to how many words you are allowed to write for the answer.

2) Look for a title
Not every question will have a title but if there is one, it will tell you the context of the question.

3) Predict the answers
Try to predict what the answers might be. This will focus your mind on what to listen out for in the recording.
Occasionally, you’ll be able to predict the actual word but mostly it’s one or more of these things that you’ll be able to determine:
• The type of information required, e.g. surname, place name, date, phone number, postcode, percentage, price.
• The type of word required, e.g. noun, adjective, verb.

Any clues you can get will help you to understand the audio and identify the information needed for the answers.

4) Synonyms and paraphrasing
In all types of Listening questions, you need to listen out for synonyms and paraphrasing. These are something else that you may be able to predict.
If you have time before the recording starts, scan the question to identify key words or phrases that are likely to be replaced by synonyms and think of some that might be used.

5) Answer order
The answers will come in the same order in the recording as they are listed in the question so, you will hear answer 11 first, then answer 12 and so on. This makes it easier to pick out the answers than if they were in a random order.

6) Problematic vocabulary
There are 6 types of vocabulary that can cause particular problems for students and some of them will almost certainly be present in notes completion questions. The 6 types are:
• Time
• Numbers
• Prices
• Dates
• Letters
• Addresses

You must be able to recognise them in speech and to write them correctly in your answers

7) Watch out for distractors
The examiners will try and catch you out with distractors. A distractor is a word or a phrase that changes or corrects the original piece of information given. So, you may be given an answer and then have it taken away again.

8) Guess if necessary
The final tip is to never leave a blank space on the answer sheet. If you miss an answer, take an educated guess. This gives you at least some chance of getting it right. Don’t stress about a missed answer or it will affect your ability to answer the next set of questions. Just make your choice and move on.

You also need a good strategy to follow. I cover all this and many valuable tips in this lesson. The lesson includes:

The subject matter could be almost anything but as long as you have a good strategy to follow, you’ll be able to answer any question you’re given. Follow the advice in this lesson and you’ll be well prepared.

The lesson includes:

The lesson includes:

• Sample questions
• Strategy & tips
• Practice question
• Answers
• Vocabulary

We’ll start with the definition of a summary in case you’re unsure of the meaning of the word.

Summary – a short, clear description that gives the main facts or ideas about something

For summary completion questions, you’ll be given a summary of the recording. The recording will typically be a monologue on an academic subject such as a lecture on the Amazon rainforest or the Pyramids at Giza. There will be words missing from the summary which you must fill in.

This type of question is most likely to come up in Section 4, the most challenging part of the test.

Strategy & Tips

You will have a short time to prepare before the speakers begin talking. Use this time to familiarise yourself with the question and focus your mind on what you need to listen out for.

1) Read the instructions
Read the instructions carefully, paying particular attention to how many words you are allowed to write for the answer as this does vary.

2) Look for a title
Not every question will have a title but if there is one, it will tell you the context of the question. This will help you to understand the question and give you a big clue as to what sort of information will be contained in the recording.

3) Answer order
The answers will come in the same order in the recording as they are listed in the question.This makes it easier to pick out the answers than if they were in a random order.

4) Predict the answers
Try to predict what the answers might be. This will focus your mind on what to listen out for in the recording.

Occasionally, you’ll be able to predict the actual word but mostly it’s one or more of these things that you’ll be able to determine:

The type of information required, e.g. name of a person, place name, number, date.
The type of word required, e.g. noun, adjective, verb.

Any clues you can get will help you to understand the audio and identify the information needed for the answers.

5) Synonyms and paraphrasing
Synonyms and paraphrasing will be used extensively in the recording. So, you will not only be listening for the exact words that are used in the summary but also, different words and phrases that have the same meaning.

In your preparation time, scan the summary and underline key words that are likely to be replaced by synonyms. These will be words immediately before and possibly straight after the missing word(s). Then, quickly think of words that might be used instead.

6) Problematic vocabulary
There are 6 types of vocabulary that can cause particular problems for students and some of them are frequently used in summary completion questions. The 6 types are:

• Time
• Numbers
• Prices
• Dates
• Letters
• Addresses

You must be able to recognise them in speech and to write them correctly in your answers.

7) Watch out for distractors
The examiners may try and catch you out with distractors. A distractor is a word or a phrase that changes or corrects the original piece of information given. So, you may be given an answer and then have it taken away again.

8) Guess if necessary
The final tip is to never leave a blank space on the answer sheet. If you miss an answer, take an educated guess. This gives you at least some chance of getting it right. Don’t stress about a missed answer or it will affect your ability to answer the next set of questions. Just make your choice and move on.

This lesson includes:

• Sample questions
• Strategy & tips
• Vocabulary
• Practice question
• Answers

Strategy & Tips

You will have a short time to prepare before the speakers begin talking. Use this time to familiarise yourself with the question and focus your mind on what you need to listen out for.

1) Read the instructions
Read the instructions carefully, paying particular attention to how many words you are allowed to write for the answer as this does vary.

2) Answer order
The answers will come in the same order in the recording as they are listed in the question. This makes it easier to pick out the answers than if they were in a random order.

3) Predict the answers
Try to predict what the answers might be. This will focus your mind on what to listen out for in the recording.

Occasionally, you’ll be able to predict the actual word but mostly it’s one or more of these things that you’ll be able to determine:

The type of information required, e.g. name, date, time, phone number, address, price.
The type of word required, e.g. noun, adjective, verb.

Any clues you can get will help you to understand the audio and identify the information needed for the answers.

4) Synonyms and paraphrasing
Synonyms and paraphrasing will be used extensively in the recording. So, you will not only be listening for the exact words that are used in the questions but also, different words and phrases that have the same meaning.

In your preparation time, scan the questions and underline key words that are likely to be replaced by synonyms or paraphrased. Then, quickly think of words that might be used instead.

5) Problematic vocabulary
There are 6 types of vocabulary that can cause particular problems for students and some of them are regularly used in short answer questions. The 6 types are:

• Time
• Numbers
• Prices
• Dates
• Letters
• Addresses

You must be able to recognise them in speech and to write them correctly in your answers.

6) Watch out for distractors
The examiners may try and catch you out with distractors. A distractor is a word or a phrase that changes or corrects the original piece of information given. So, you may be given an answer and then have it taken away again.

7) Guess if necessary
The final tip is to never leave a blank space on the answer sheet. If you miss an answer, take an educated guess. This gives you at least some chance of getting it right. Don’t stress about a missed answer or it will affect your ability to answer the next set of questions. Just make your choice and move on.

The subject for plan questions will typically be a tour of a specific building such as a hotel or museum, or the description of a place. In map questions, the speaker will often talk about proposed changes to a location.

Your task is to listen to the recording and identify different areas, features or rooms. You will often be given a list of words from which to choose the correct answers. If no list is given, you will have to identify the answers from the recording.

Many students find these one of the easiest question types to answer because the graphic will contain lots of clues as to the missing words, especially in the labels already present.

So, let’s get started. The lesson includes:

• Sample questions
• Strategy & tips
• Vocabulary
• Practice question
• Answers

Strategy & Tips

You will have a short time to prepare before the speakers begin talking. Use this time to familiarise yourself with the question and focus your mind on what you need to listen out for.

1) Read the instructions
Read the instructions very carefully as the wording, and what you have to do, vary in this type of question.

2) Read the labels & title
Learn as much as you can about the map or plan from the existing labels, and the words in the answer list if there is one. Some maps and plans will also have a title which is another big clue as to the context of the question and what the recording will be about.

The more familiar you are with the vocabulary and the layout of the graphic, the easier it will be to understand and follow what the speaker says.

If there is no words list, try and predict what type of word the answers will be from the context of the plan or map, for example, is it a room, a building, a street, a feature such as a pond or a facility such as a public toilet.

Generally, the speaker will begin their talk by introducing themselves and the subject or purpose of the talk so this will also help you to understand the context.

3) Visualisation
One of the skills needed to answer map and plan questions successfully is to be able to visualise what the place being described looks like.

We use maps and plans in everyday life so your brain will already be used to doing this, although you normally do it subconsciously without even thinking about it.

In the precious seconds you have for preparation, imagine that you are standing in the location represented on the graphic. What can you see around you?

4) Answer order
The answers will come in the same order in the recording as they are listed in the question

This makes it easier to pick out the answers than if they were in a random order.

5) Vocabulary
To do well in map and plan questions, you need to understand the language of location and direction.

• Location – where something is in relation to another object or place.
• Direction – the position towards which someone moves or faces

Common vocabulary of location:

• near
• next to
• in front of
• beside
• between
• across from

Common vocabulary of direction:

• turn right
• turn left
• go straight on
• go past
• head sout
• northwest

Knowing this vocabulary is so important to your success that I’ve written a whole lesson on it.

6) Synonyms and paraphrasing
In all types of Listening questions, you need to listen out for synonyms and paraphrasing. As you’re listening to the recording, remind yourself that you are not looking for the exact words as in the question but the same meaning.

7) Watch out for distractors
The examiners may try and catch you out with distractors. A distractor is a word or a phrase that changes or corrects the original piece of information given. So, you may be given an answer and then have it taken away again.

8) Guess if necessary
The final tip is to never leave a blank space on the answer sheet. If you miss an answer, take an educated guess. This gives you at least some chance of getting it right. Don’t stress about a missed answer or it will affect your ability to answer the next set of questions. Just make your choice and move on.

The lesson includes:

• Sample questions
• Strategy & tips
• Practice question
• Answers
• Vocabulary tips

Diagram labelling

In diagram labelling questions, you will be given a diagram of a process, an object, a structure or a machine and you must either fill in the missing labels or complete notes within the diagram.

You could get almost any topic. Examples of diagrams from past papers have included a beehive, a soda can, a fire extinguisher, a Ferris wheel, a zip fastener, a solar heating system, an undersea turbine and soil layers.

As long as you have a good strategy to follow, you’ll be able to answers questions on any subject. In fact, students generally find this one of the easiest question types to answer because the graphic and the existing labels give lots of clues as to what the missing words might be.

Flowchart Completion

Flowchart Completion questions, on the other hand, show the steps of a process. The process will have a start and an end with several steps in between.

It could be about almost anything that can be broken down into stages, for example, the outline of a lecture or essay, an application process, the stages of a training course or a short manufacturing process.

Strategy & Tips

You will have a short time to prepare before the speakers begin talking. Use this time to familiarise yourself with the question and focus your mind on what you need to listen out for.

1) Read the instructions
Read the instruction carefully, paying particular attention to how many words you’re allowed to write for the answer.

2) Read the labels & title
Learn as much as you can from the title and existing labels. The information you get from them will help you to understand the diagram and give you clues as to what the speaker(s) will talk about.

3) Predict the answers
Try to predict what the answers might be. This will focus your mind on what to listen out for in the recording.

Occasionally, you’ll be able to predict the actual word but mostly it’s one of these things that you’ll be able to determine:

The type of information required, e.g. a name, a number, a percentage.
The type of word required, e.g. noun, adjective, verb.

Any clues you can get will help you to understand the recording and identify the information needed for the answers.

4) Synonyms and paraphrasing
In all types of Listening questions, you need to listen out for synonyms and paraphrasing. These are something else that you may be able to predict. This is another quick task that can be done in your preparation time.

Scan the information on the diagram to identify key words that are likely to be paraphrased and think of some synonyms or phrases that might be used. For example, the words ‘studied’ or ‘examined’ might be used instead of ‘analysed’.

As you’re listening to the recording, remind yourself that you are not only looking for the exact words used in the diagram but words and phrases that have the same meaning.

We’ll look at how the information this in IELTS Listening practice test has been paraphrased when we review the answers.

5) The introduction
Before the first speaker begins talking, there will be an introduction in which you’ll be told what the recording is about. For this question, we are told,

You will hear a part of a seminar entitled Understanding the World’s Oceans given by a climate scientist.

The first speaker will then begin the talk or conversation by introducing themselves and the subject or purpose of the talk. This will help you to understand the context and give you more detail about the subject.

Here’s the first sentence of the recording.

Scientist: Thanks to all of you for coming along today to hear about how the robotic float project is helping with ocean research.

You can see how important it is to listen carefully right from the start.

6) Answer order
The answers will come in the same order in the recording as they are listed in the question. This makes it easier to pick out the answers than if they were in a random order.

7) Watch out for distractors
The examiners may try and catch you out with distractors. A distractor is a word or a phrase that changes or corrects the original piece of information given. So, you may be given an answer and then have it taken away again.

The use of ‘but’ and ‘however’ are particularly common distractors but there are many different words and phrases that can be used to change or correct a piece of information so be alert for them.

8) Guess if necessary
The final tip is to never leave a blank space on the answer sheet. If you miss an answer, take an educated guess. This gives you at least some chance of getting it right. Don’t stress about a missed answer or it will affect your ability to answer the next set of questions. Just make your choice and move on.

1) Question Analysis

The listening test contains four recordings. Before listening to each of them you will be given time (around 20-35 seconds) to read the questions they relate to.

Use this time well. It might not sound very long but it’s long enough to do the important preparation work that will enable you to complete the questions successfully.

When analysing the questions, there are 3 key things to note:

a) Which section of the test are they in?

b) What type of questions are they?

c) What sort of information do you need to listen for?

These will all give you valuable clues to understanding the audio recording and identifying the correct answers.

a) Test sections
There are 4 parts or sections to the IELTS Listening test.

Section 1 – A conversation between two people set in an everyday social context (e.g. booking tickets to the theatre).

Section 2 – A monologue set in an everyday social context (e.g. a welcome talk for new college students).

Section 3 – A conversation between up to four people set in an educational or training context (e.g. a group of students discussing a university assignment).

Section 4 – A monologue on an academic subject (e.g. a lecture on wildlife).

If you memorise these, you will know the general context of each audio before it plays and how many people will be talking – one (a monologue), two people in conversation or a group conversation.

This might not seem especially important to know but any clues you have as to what you will be listening to will be helpful. This information will also help you to be better prepared mentally for the test which will reduce your stress level and enable you to think more clearly and listen more effectively.

b) Question types
The next part of this first IELTS listening strategy concerns question types.

You will be asked a variety of different types of questions selected from this list. Most types could appear in any of the four sections of the test.

• Matching
• Multiple choice
• Note completion
• Form completion
• Table completion
• Sentence completion
• Summary completion
• Short answer questions
• Map & plan labelling
• Diagram & flowchart completion

You must be able to quickly identify what types of questions you are required to answer. Sometimes the introduction will tell you or it will be obvious, e.g. it’s a plan or map that requires labels. Other times, you will have to look more closely to decide.

As with everything, you will master this with practice.

c) What sort of information do you need to listen for?
Knowing the type of question will help you to predict the sort of information you need to listen out for.

2) Answer Prediction

To predict an answer is to say what type of word you think it will be based on the evidence you have. That evidence will be in the question clues we’ve just been talking about and the information in the questions.

We’ll look at an example in a minute but first, here are some things you may be able to predict:

• The type of information required, e.g. name, date, phone number, percentage, price, place name.
• The type of word required, e.g. noun, adjective, verb.
• Synonyms or paraphrasing that might be used, e.g. ‘a half’ for ‘50%’, ‘located in the countryside’ for ‘is in a rural area’.

Sometimes, you’ll be able to predict the actual word.

These are the answer predictions we can make:

1 – a surname

2 – the college name

3 – a postcode made up of letters and numbers

4 & 5 – numbers of measurement

6 & 7 – nouns (items in the box)

8 – numbers written as a price

To sum up prediction, it is one of the most valuable of our IELTS listening strategies because it identifies the type of information you will need to listen out for in the recording.

3) Keyword Clues

Item number three in our list of IELTS listening strategies is also to do with prediction but particularly relevant for questions containing a lot of text as opposed to a diagram, map, plan or table.

The technique is to identify the keywords or phrases in the question. Why? Because the answers will very likely be synonyms or paraphrasing of these.

There are 10 different types of IELTS Listening questions that you could get in your test. These are:

• Matching
• Multiple choice
• Note completion
• Form completion
• Table completion
• Sentence completion
• Summary completion
• Short answer questions
• Map & plan labelling
• Diagram & flowchart completion

Your test will include around 5 of these so you need to know how to answer them all. Many of them could appear in any of the 4 sections of the test.

In this lesson, I’m going to give you an overview and an example of each type. I show you how to answer most of these sample questions in the individual step-by-step lessons listed above.

1) Matching

Matching questions are especially common in Section 1 where you’re required to listen for detail in a conversation between two people.

You will have to match the items in two lists of options.

2) Multiple Choice

In multiple choice questions, you are required to choose the correct answer from a shortlist (usually 3 words or phrases). Often the answers will look similar in meaning so you will need to listen very carefully. Don’t just select the first answer you hear.

3) Sentence Completion

This is a gap fill type question. You must listen to the recording and fill in the missing words in the sentences to complete them. You may have to add the ending to the sentences or fill in words within the sentences.

Take careful note of how many words you are allowed to write and do not write more than this or your answer will be marked ‘incorrect’ even if the information you give is correct.

4) Form Completion

Form completion questions often come up in Section 1, which is a conversation between two people, but do appear in other sections too. The most common type is an application or an order form.

It’s generally easy to predict what information you’ll need to listen out for. In this sample question, for example, the answers will be a surname, a street name, a postcode, the type of item ordered and a number for how many items are ordered.

5) Note Completion

This type of question can take many different forms. It will be a gap fill activity of some sort where you have to fill in the missing words. This could, for example, be missing words in a set of notes from a lecture.

Pay careful attention to the number of words or numbers you are allowed to write for the answer.

6) Table Completion

Table completion questions also require you to fill in missing information. The table will be made up of columns and rows containing information.

Tables generally categorise information, that is, they group pieces of information that are related in some way or share the same features.

7) Summary Completion

The Listening test gets more difficult as you progress through it and summary completion questions often come up in Section 4, the most challenging part of the test.

You will be given a summary of the recording, typically a monologue on an academic subject such as a lecture on wildlife. There will be words missing from the summary which you must fill in. Expect synonyms and paraphrasing to be used extensively.

8) Short Answer Questions

This is another type of question where you must identify specific information about a topic.

It’s particularly common in Section 2 which will be a monologue set in an everyday social context, for example, a welcome talk for new college students.

You must listen to the recording and write a short answer in each blank space provided. Sometimes, more than one answer will be required, for example, “What are the TWO major concerns new students have regarding accommodation?”

9) Plan / Map / Diagram Labelling

For this type of question, you’ll be given a plan of a building, a map of a specific location or a diagram of something and must fill in the missing labels.

Many students find these one of the easiest question types to answer because the graphic will contain lots of clues as to the missing words, especially in the labels already present.

As well as the plan, map or diagram, you may also be given a list of words from which to choose the correct answers.

10) Flowchart Completion

A flowchart shows the steps of a process. The process will have a start and an end with several steps in between.

It could be about almost anything that can be broken down into stages, for example, the outline of a lecture or essay, an application process, the stages of a training course or a short manufacturing process.

1) Listen to English every day

The only way to improve your listening skills is to listen to English every day. It doesn’t matter if it’s just 10 or 15 minutes here and there as you’re travelling on a bus, eating lunch or cooking the tea, just listen to something.

You need to hear English used naturally in many different contexts and spoken with a range of accents. In your test, you could hear speakers from the UK (including different regional accents), Ireland, the US, Canada, New Zealand, Australia or South Africa.

2) Listen to a range of things

The test will include two monologues (one person speaking) and two conversations, so you must practice listening to both. You’ll find all the practice material you need online. Podcasts and TED Talks are great for listening to monologues, and radio broadcasts and interviews on YouTube ideal for conversations.

3) Improve your vocabulary

The third of my IELTS Listening tips might seem obvious but many students don’t know the most effective way to improve their vocabulary. Just memorising lists of new words will achieve very little. You won’t fully understand the words – what they mean and how they’re used in context – and you’ll quickly forget them.

When you listen to spoken English, listen actively, that is, note down words you hear that are unfamiliar or you don’t fully understand. Then, check them out in a dictionary. Note the meaning, pronunciation, how the word is used in a sentence, common synonyms, antonyms and collocations. Record all this information in your vocabulary notebook.

Yes, this takes time, but it’s time well spent. Every time you do this, you will have added one more word to your vocabulary that you’ll remember and be able to use confidently in all parts of the IELTS exam.

4) Have a strategy

To score highly in the Listening test, you need to understand the 10 different types of questions and have a strategy for answering them. Click the links below to learn how to answer each type:

• Matching
• Multiple choice
• Note completion
• Form completion
• Table completion
• Sentence completion
• Summary completion
• Short answer questions
• Map & plan labelling
• Diagram & flowchart completion

5) Identify your weaknesses

Throughout the website, you will hear me say, ‘Practice, Practice, Practice’. This is true, of course, but practice wisely. Just completing practice test after practice test isn’t necessarily going to improve your score. Take time to analyse your results and determine what mistakes you are regularly making. Then, work on improving these.

Is it grammar that’s letting you down, a limited range of vocabulary or do you find it hard to follow conversations? Identify your greatest challenges and focus on them.

The Cambridge English books of authentic test papers (and some online tests) include transcripts of the recordings. These will help you to understand why you got a particular answer wrong.

Extra IELTS Listening Tip 1:
Check your spelling. If it’s wrong you’ll lose the mark.

6) The introduction

My next two IELTS Listening tips relate to the test itself. First, the introduction.

Before the first speaker begins talking, there will be an introduction by a narrator in which you’ll be told what the recording is about, e.g.

You will hear a part of a seminar entitled Understanding the World’s Oceans given by a climate scientist.

The speaker will then begin the talk or conversation by introducing themselves and, often, the subject or purpose of the talk, e.g.

Thanks to all of you for coming along today to hear about how the robotic float project is helping with ocean research.

These introductions give important information that will help you to understand the recording, So, listen carefully right from the start.

7) Signpost language

As the speaker(s) talk, listen out for signpost language. We use signposting to connect ideas and indicate to the listeners that we’re moving on to a new idea. Signpost language includes words such as,

• first
• second
• then
• next
• after that
• finally

In a map or plan labelling question, you might hear phrases such as,

• Moving on…
• Now we come to…
• Beyond the library, you’ll come to the…

Extra IELTS Listening Tip 2:
Synonyms and paraphrasing will be used. Listen for the keywords in the questions but also, different words and phrases that have the same meaning.

8) Capital letters

next IELTS Listening tip concerns a grammar issue. Remember to use capital letters for proper nouns. If you forget, your answer will be marked wrong.

A proper noun is the name given to something to make it more specific. If you have difficulty remembering this grammar rule, write your answers for the Listening test in capitals so you don’t make a mistake.

9) Read the instructions

Read the instruction carefully, paying particular attention to how many words you’re allowed to write for the answer.

1) Prediction

Before each recording plays, you will have a short time to read through the question. Try to predict what the answers might be. This will focus your mind on what to listen out for in the recording.

Occasionally, you’ll be able to predict the actual word but mostly it’s one or more of these three things that you’ll be able to determine:

The type of information required, e.g. surname, place name, date, phone number, postcode percentage, price.
The type of word required, e.g. noun, adjective, verb.
Synonyms or paraphrasing that might be used, e.g. ‘a quarter’ for ‘25%’, ‘business functions’ for ‘corporate events’.

Any clues you can get will help you to understand the audio and identify the information needed for the answers.

2) Synonyms & Paraphrasing

Of all the IELTS listening skills, this second one is the most important as it’s essential for understanding the recording.

Something you can be certain of is that the spoken text will contain synonyms and paraphrasing of key words and phrases in the questions. So, do not expect to hear the same vocabulary in the recording as is written in the questions.

One of the best ways to practice recognising and using synonyms and paraphrasing is through listening to short videos or podcasts.

This should already be a part of your preparation for the Listening test but add in this exercise. Every so often, pause the recording after an individual sentence and think how you could paraphrase it and what synonyms you could use.

Do this for a few sentences each day and you’ll soon see a real improvement in your IELTS listening skills.

Key word technique

A technique you can use in the exam to help you deal with synonyms and paraphrasing is to identify the keywords or phrases in the question and quickly think of synonyms or related words that might come up in the recording.

You’ll only have 20 seconds or so to do this but it could make a huge difference to how well you understand the audio and how successful you are at identifying the answers.

3) Recognising Distractors

Another important IELTS listening skill is the ability to recognise distractors. These are words or phrases used by a speaker to qualify something or to correct themselves or another speaker.

In the recording, a piece of information may be given and then corrected or changed. If you’re not listening carefully, you’ll think that the first piece of information is the answer when it is the second detail that is the correct answer.

Distractors are common in the listening test and are intended to try and catch you out.

4) Connected Speech

The final of our four IELTS listening skills is something that most students struggle with to some degree or another – connected speech.

Connected speech is when the words and sounds in a sentence run into each other making it difficult for a non-native speaker to understand what is being said.

There’s no easy way to overcome the challenge of connected speech apart from listening to lots of native speakers speaking at a normal rate.

Podcasts are ideal for this as you can pause them and listen to confusing sentences over and over again until you fully understand what is being said. You’ll be surprised at how quickly you tune into the fast-paced speech with regular practice.

This is an excellent exercise to do on a regular basis and will quickly improve your listening skills. There are podcasts on hundreds of different topics so you’ll easily find ones that interest you or are relevant to the IELTS exam, so make it a daily exercise.

1) Matching

Matching questions are especially common in Section 1 where you’re required to listen for detail in a conversation between two people.

2) Multiple Choice

In multiple choice questions, you are required to choose the correct answer from a shortlist (usually 3 words or phrases). Often the answers will look similar in meaning so you will need to listen very carefully. Don’t just select the first answer you hear.

3) Sentence Completion

This is a gap fill type question. You must listen to the recording and fill in the missing words in the sentences to complete them. You may have to add the ending to the sentences or fill in words within the sentences.

Take careful note of how many words you are allowed to write and do not write more than this or your answer will be marked ‘incorrect’ even if the information you give is correct.

4) Form Completion

Form completion questions often come up in Section 1, which is a conversation between two people, but do appear in other sections too. The most common type is an application or an order form. Watch out for distractors where information is given but then corrected or changed.

5) Note Completion

This type of question can take many different forms. It will be a gap fill activity of some sort where you have to fill in the missing words. This could, for example, be missing words in a set of notes from a lecture.

Pay careful attention to the number of words or numbers you are allowed to write for the answer.

6) Table Completion

Table completion questions also require you to fill in missing information. The table will be made up of columns and rows containing information.

Tables generally categorise information, that is, they group pieces of information that are related in some way or share the same features.

7) Summary Completion

The Listening test gets more difficult as you progress through it and summary completion questions often come up in Section 4, the most challenging part of the test.

You will be given a summary of the recording, typically a monologue on an academic subject such as a lecture on wildlife. There will be words missing from the summary which you must fill in. Expect synonyms and paraphrasing to be used extensively.

8) Short Answer Questions

This is another type of question where you must identify specific information about a topic.

It’s particularly common in Section 2 which will be a monologue set in an everyday social context, for example, a welcome talk for new college students.

You must listen to the recording and write a short answer in each blank space provided.

9) Plan / Map / Diagram Labelling

For this type of question, you’ll be given a plan of a building, a map of a specific location or a diagram of something and must fill in the missing labels.

Many students find these one of the easiest question types to answer because the graphic will contain lots of clues as to the missing words, especially in the labels already present.

As well as the plan, map or diagram, you may also be given a list of words from which to choose the correct answers.

10) Flowchart Completion

A flowchart shows the steps of a process. The process will have a start and an end with several steps in between.

It could be about almost anything that can be broken down into stages, for example, the outline of a lecture or essay, an application process, the stages of a training course or a short manufacturing process.

British vs American English

First of all, let’s ask the obvious question: What’s the difference between British and American English? Maybe some of you didn’t even know that there was a difference. After all, it’s still English, right?

Correct.

However, there are regional differences in languages. There is accent, for example, and also dialect. People in Scotland sound different from people in Canada or South Africa or Australia. However, what we’re really talking about today is whether there is a major difference between British and American English – not just in terms of accent, but other areas.

There are indeed some differences, and although they are quite minor to native speakers, they might appear confusing to IELTS students who are learning English. One of the biggest differences between British and American English is in spelling. In fact, you have probably noticed before that there are some words that appear to change in terms of spelling, and maybe you wonder why it happened.

Can I Use American English in the IELTS Test?

The answer to this question is simply: Yes! You can use American spellings in the IELTS writing test or an American pronunciation in the IELTS speaking test. You can also fill in answers for the reading or listening exam in American English, if that is the correct answer.

In fact, it is perfectly acceptable to use either British or American English in the IELTS exam. Both of these are considered correct and acceptable forms of English, and IELTS examiners are trained to give equal marks to candidates using British or American spelling.

However, the most important thing is that you don’t use both British and American spelling in the IELTS exam. This would be considered a significant error. You can use 100% American spelling, or 100% British spelling, but not a mix of both.

Why?

The reason why you can’t use both American and British English in the exam is that these are considered separate forms of English. The IELTS is an international exam (that’s what the I stands for in the abbreviation) and as such you can use either form of English, but you cannot mix them together. If you wrote “colour” in one sentence and then “realize” in the next, you would be penalised for mixing your spellings.

As soon as you use British English, the examiner will mentally acknowledge your work as British English. Therefore, if you switch to American English, any words spelling this way would be considered misspellings, and you would lose marks for Lexical Resource.

British vs American Accents in IELTS

The IELTS test is an international English test and you will hear different accents during the listening exam, or when speaking with different examiners. For example, you may hear Irish accents and American accents communicating during a listening passage, and then you might speak with someone from London during your speaking exam. You would be expected to understand all these different accents, as they are all representative of the English language.

Practice by listening to British people speaking.
Being able to follow these different accents is really important, so make sure that you don’t spend too much time focused on any one accent during your IELTS preparation. It is really common for people to do all their listening practice to the BBC News and only become familiar with British English, or to fixate on American movies and only learn American English. However, there are lots of different accents you would need to know. Many people struggle to understand Australian English, for example, and yet it is likely to appear during your IELTS exam!

How to Prepare for IELTS – British and American Words

I always recommend to my students that they take a balanced approach to studying for IELTS. That means looking at all sorts of resources instead of fixating on just one type. I think that this would help you a lot for preparing to learn British and American English because if you are looking at all sorts of books, podcasts, TV shows, and so on, then you will hear lots of different types of English, and you will learn a diverse range of words.

Accent vs. Pronunciation: What IELTS Examiners Look For

The IELTS Speaking test aims to assess your overall English language proficiency, not your ability to mimic a specific accent. While a neutral accent is often encouraged, what truly matters is clear and understandable pronunciation.

Here’s the breakdown:

• Accent: Refers to the way you pronounce words based on your regional or national background.
• Pronunciation: Focuses on articulating individual sounds, word stress, and intonation patterns correctly.

IELTS examiners are trained to understand a wide range of accents. They are more concerned with your ability to:

• Speak clearly and naturally.
• Use correct pronunciation.
• Maintain consistent pronunciation.

Don’t Fake It: Focus on Clarity and Consistency

Attempting to adopt an Australian accent, or any accent for that matter, if it’s not your natural way of speaking can backfire. It can lead to:

• Sounding unnatural and forced.
• Introducing pronunciation errors.
• Affecting your fluency and coherence.

Instead of focusing on mimicking an accent, concentrate on these key areas:

• Improving your overall pronunciation: Work on individual sounds, word stress, and intonation. Utilize resources like online dictionaries with audio pronunciations, and practice speaking clearly.
• Expanding your vocabulary: Use a variety of words and phrases naturally and accurately.
• Developing fluency and coherence: Practice speaking at length on different topics, ensuring your ideas flow logically.

Tips for IELTS Speaking Success

• Speak naturally and confidently: Be yourself and let your personality shine through.
• Practice regularly: Engage in mock speaking tests with friends or teachers to receive feedback.
• Listen to a variety of English accents: Familiarize yourself with different ways of speaking English, but don’t feel pressured to imitate them.

1) Is IELTS a British English Language Test?

IELTS is owned by Cambridge English Language Assessment, the British Council and IDP. This means that two of the owners are British and one is Australian. But it is not a test of British English or of Australian English. It is an INTERNATIONAL ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEST = IELTS. This means that it tests international English, not just British or Australian English.

2) IELTS Speaking Pronunciation Marking Features

IELTS Speaking Marking Criteria: Pronunciation is one of four marking criteria for IELTS speaking:

• Fluency = 25%

• Vocabulary = 25%

• Grammar = 25%

• Pronunciation = 25%

Aspects of Pronunciation for Marking

There are a number of features of pronunciation that the speaking examiner will be assessing you on. Pronunciation features and how easy you are to understand are the two key aspects of IELTS Speaking Pronunciation. Below is a summary of some of the main features:

1. Individual sounds – similar sounds (p/b m/n d/t) consonant clusters (sht / cht etc), length of vowels (sheep/ship etc), schwa (the lazy vowel sound that is never stressed – example – there are two schwas in “dangerous”), silent letters.

2. Strong and weak forms – example “and” – this can be produced as “n” (fish and chips = fish “n” chips) or it can be pronounced at full length “and”. This depends on how and when you use this word.

3. Word Pronunciation

4. Word stress and syllables (sounds inside a word that carry the stress)

5. Sentence stress (this links to chunking)

6. Intonation (putting feeling and emphasis into your speaking which causes your tone to rise and fall)

7. Linking sounds and words

8. Chunking (putting parts of a sentence together into chunks to create stress and clarity within a sentence)

9. Contractions (it is = it’s / my name is = my name’s / I did not = I didn’t / I have been = I’ve been / I’m going to = I’m gonna / I want to = I wanna)

3) Accents in IELTS Speaking

Does my accent need to be British English?
No, it doesn’t. IELTS is an international English test so you can have any accent you want. It does not need to be British. It is completely fine to have an American accent or Australian accent. Any accent is fine.

What if I have a mixed accent?
That is also fine. It is 100% normal for people these days to have a mixed accent. Even native speakers have mixed accents if they travel or have lived abroad. IELTS will accept a mixed accent for the speaking test. But you cannot mix your spelling for the writing test.

What about an accent from my own country?
It is normal for you to retain an accent from your own language. IELTS do not prohibit that or lower your band score for it. The question is “Does your accent cause difficulties for the listener? If your mother tongue accent is so heavy that your English pronunciation is difficult to understand, you will get a lower score. However, if your accent is very mild and English pronunciation is easy to understand, you can get a high band score. This means it depends on the effort that the listener has to make to understand you. The less effort is required to understand your pronunciation, the higher your score. However, always remember, you still need to demonstrate the features of pronunciation mentioned further up this page.

5) Pronunciation Advice

Pronunciation is something that takes time to change. This isn’t something you can fix with only a couple of weeks before your test. If you have time before your test, try listening to news channels, documentaries and soap operas. The English used in films can often be rushed or muffled by music so choose your films wisely.

You can only improve your pronunciation by practising to speak out loud. Get used to doing this on your own and record your speaking. Then listen back and check.