DailyMocksLessons / Reading
IELTS Reading (Academic)
Three passages in one hour
You answer 40 questions about three passages in 60 minutes. The passages contain 2,150 to 2,750 words. There is no separate transfer time. You can move between passages and questions, so use the hour where you need it.
Plan more time for Passage 3
| Passage | Character | How the question may restate it |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Accessible and concrete. A general-interest topic for a non-specialist. | Usually close to the words in the passage. |
| 2 | Factual and analytical. It may compare data or explanations. | Whole phrases may be restated. |
| 3 | Argumentative. The writer takes a position and makes careful claims. | Whole ideas may be reworded. |
Start with 20 minutes per passage as a guide. Passage 1 may take less time. Save that time for Passage 3, where the vocabulary and ideas are usually harder to follow.
Use passage order, with three exceptions
Most Reading question types follow passage order. Question 8’s evidence comes after question 7’s, so each answer helps you find the next one. Three matching types do not follow that order. They test your scanning.
- Matching information: Find which paragraph contains a specific detail. The answers do not follow passage order.
- Matching headings: Choose the heading that states each paragraph's main idea, not one detail.
- Matching features: Match statements to the right researcher, study or place, from a shared lettered list.
One more Reading rule. When a rubric says “from the passage”, it is literal. The answer must be words that appear in the text, copied exactly. A perfect synonym in your own words scores nothing.
The Reading question types
IELTS Reading has 11 official question types. We teach them as 14 short lessons. True/False/Not Given and Yes/No/Not Given appear only in Reading, and Multiple choice here has four options, not three.
- 1 Multiple choice One question, four options. The wrong three are close to the passage but do not answer it.
- 2 Multiple choice, two or more answers Pick the statements the writer actually makes, from a longer list.
- 3 True / False / Not Given The passage says it, contradicts it, or does not mention it.
- 4 Yes / No / Not Given The same three verdicts, but about the writer's opinions instead of facts.
- 5 Matching information Find which paragraph contains a specific detail. The answers do not follow passage order.
- 6 Matching headings Choose the heading that states each paragraph's main idea, not one detail.
- 7 Matching features Match statements to the right researcher, study or place, from a shared lettered list.
- 8 Matching sentence endings Match each sentence beginning to the ending the passage supports.
- 9 Sentence completion Finish a sentence with words copied exactly from the passage.
- 10 Summary completion Fill the gaps in a paragraph that summarises part of the passage.
- 11 Summary completion from a word list The same summary task, but the answers come from a boxed list of words, not the passage.
- 12 Note, table and flow-chart completion Complete notes, a grid or a process chart with exact words from the passage.
- 13 Diagram label completion Label the parts of a drawn object or structure using words from the passage.
- 14 Short answer Direct questions answered with words lifted straight from the passage.
After you read
Read a Reading lesson, then practise it free.
Every Reading question type has free practice in the app. Try one, and the review shows you the answer and why the wrong choices looked right. No payment needed.