The original Reading notes introduce the complete test clock and the difference between skimming and scanning. Skimming helps locate the shape of a text.…
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3.1
The three passages and the 60-minute clock
Academic Reading is 40 questions on three passages, 2,150–2,750 words in total, taken from
books, journals, magazines and newspapers written for a general reader rather than a specialist.
There is no extra transfer time. You write on the answer sheet as you go. Students who
plan to copy their answers across at the end find the clock has already stopped.
Twenty minutes per passage, and the passages get harder. If passage 1 takes you thirty
minutes, you will not finish passage 3, and passage 3 carries the same 13 or 14 marks.
The register 语域 of the texts is a general reader's, not a specialist's: you need no
subject knowledge, and an answer you "know" from outside the passage is a trap.
Put a hard stop at 20 and 40 minutes. Move on with blanks and come back; never let an
early passage eat a later one.
Questions follow the passage in order for most task types. If you have found question 17
in paragraph D, question 18 is almost never in paragraph B.
You will not have time to read a passage properly and then answer. Read the questions, then
scan 扫读 for the place each one is answered, then read that place carefully. Save
skimming 略读 — a fast read for the shape of the passage — for the first minute.
Many candidates lose marks here in one specific way: Not Given is confused with False.
True — the passage says it. The wording will differ; the meaning will not.
False — the passage says the opposite. There is a specific sentence that contradicts
the statement.
Not Given — the passage does not say, either way. It may be obviously true in the real
world. It may be something the writer would surely agree with. That does not matter.
The test:
Find the part of the passage the statement is about.
Ask: is there a sentence here that contradicts it? If yes → False.
If no: is there a sentence here that states it? If yes → True.
If neither → Not Given. Do not reason further.
Contradiction first, then statement; anything else is Not Given
⚠ The commonest mistake is to decide the passage does not say this, so it is false. That is
exactly what Not Given means.
Watch qualifiers 限定词: all, always, never, only, the main reason. A statement
saying the main cause against a passage saying only one cause is Not Given, not True:
the passage never ranks the causes. It becomes False only if the passage says the main
cause was something else.
Yes / No / Not Given is the same task applied to the writer's opinion rather than to
facts. Ask what the writer thinks, not what is true.
Answer with the exact words the instruction gives — TRUE, FALSE, NOT GIVEN, or YES,
NO, NOT GIVEN. Not mentioned, or YES on a True/False task, is marked wrong.
Worked example: three statements, one paragraph
A short invented passage, written for practice:
Honeybee colonies in parts of Europe fell sharply between 2006 and 2015. Pesticides are one cause that researchers have studied closely, but parasites and the loss of wild flowers also play a part. In Switzerland, beekeepers reported fewer winter losses after 2016, when a common pesticide was restricted.
Honeybee colonies declined in some parts of Europe between 2006 and 2015. — TRUE.fell sharply = declined, parts of = some parts of; the dates match.
Pesticides are the main reason for the decline in bee colonies. — NOT GIVEN. The passage names pesticides as one cause among three and never ranks them. Nothing says another cause is the main one either, so it is not False.
Swiss beekeepers lost more colonies in winter after 2016. — FALSE. The passage says fewer winter losses: a direct contradiction.
The procedure did the work: find the sentence, look for a contradiction, then for a statement, and stop.
The trap is matching a word. A heading containing pollution and a paragraph containing
pollution is the pairing the test expects you to make wrongly.
Match the paragraph's function instead: what is this paragraph doing? Introducing a
problem, giving a history, presenting evidence against, drawing a conclusion.
The topic sentence 主题句, usually the first, carries that function far more often than
the middle does; the last sentence often confirms it.
Do the paragraphs you are sure of first and cross those headings off. There are usually more
headings than paragraphs, so some are never used; eliminating is faster than matching.
Often two headings look like near-synonyms. Those two are the pair the item is testing; decide
between them last, when the others are gone.
Worked example: function, not words
A. For centuries, people in dry regions have stored rainwater in tanks and underground chambers. … B. Today, however, these systems are being abandoned as piped water reaches more villages. …
Headings: (i) The history of water storage in dry places (ii) Why traditional water storage is in decline (iii) How rainwater is cleaned before use
Paragraph A gives a history (for centuries) → (i).
Paragraph B describes a change and its cause (however … being abandoned … as piped water reaches) → (ii).
(iii) shares the word rainwater with paragraph A but describes a process neither paragraph explains: the word match is the trap.
Sentence, summary, note, table, flow-chart and diagram completion all work the same way.
Obey the word limit.NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS means a three-word answer is wrong even when
it is the right idea. A hyphenated word counts as one; a number counts as one.
Words must come from the passage, unchanged, in most completion tasks. Do not substitute a
synonym 同义词 of your own.
Read the grammar of the gap — its word class 词性 — before you look for the answer. If the gap follows a, you
need a singular countable noun (perhaps with an adjective) beginning with a consonant sound. If it follows have been, you
need a past participle or an -ing form. This alone eliminates most wrong candidates.
In summary completion, the summary paraphrases one section of the passage, not the whole thing.
Find that section first.
If a box of options is given, the answer is in the box — and the box will contain words that
fit the grammar but not the meaning.
Worked example: read the gap first
Summary: Rainwater systems were once common, but many villages now prefer a ___ supply. (ONE WORD ONLY)
The gap follows a and comes before supply, so it must be an adjective or a noun used like one, starting with a consonant sound.
The passage says piped water reaches more villages → piped. One word, taken unchanged from the passage, and a piped supply reads correctly.
modern fits the grammar, but it is not in the passage: a word of your own is marked wrong.
Matching information ("which paragraph contains…") does not follow passage order, and
a paragraph can be used more than once. Leave it until last: by then you know the passage.
Look for the specific thing named — an example, a comparison, a date, a reason — rather than
the topic.
Matching features pairs statements with people, places or studies, and the statements are
not in passage order either. Underline each name in the passage first; the names are the
fastest thing on the page to find.
Matching sentence endings is a grammar task as much as a meaning task. Only some endings
fit each beginning grammatically, which cuts the list before you think about content.
Vocabulary in context: guess from the word parts — a prefix 前缀 or a suffix 后缀
often gives the sense — and from the sentence around it. You are never expected to know every
word, and looking one up in your head costs time you do not have.
Never leave a blank. There is no penalty for a wrong answer, and a blank is a mark given
away. Fill every gap in the last two minutes even if you are guessing.
Transfer answers as you go, in capitals, and check that the number on the answer sheet
matches the number of the question.
Practise the whole 60 minutes in one sitting. Reading three passages in three separate sessions
trains none of the pacing the test is really measuring.
If a question is taking more than ninety seconds, mark it, move on, and return. The last
question of a passage is worth the same as the first.
A library advert says, “A useful service for everyone.” Does it prove that every visitor used the service?
No. An attractive sentence is not a record of what people did. Your Reading answer needs the relevant text.
This supplement adds worked tasks to the existing Reading notes. All passages and questions here are original.
They are short classroom tasks, not a complete official test or a source of band scores.
Read each instruction before choosing an answer. Keep the question number beside your answer.
A highlighter can make the page yellow. It cannot choose an answer for you.
Use a qualifier 限定词 such as some, all, only or main carefully.
It changes what a claim says. “One reason” does not prove “the main reason”.
However, it does not automatically prove that the reason was not the main one either.
You need evidence of agreement or contradiction. Without either, the information may be Not Given.
The eleven official task families below require related skills, but their instructions differ.
Some answers follow text order. Summary and diagram answers may not do so.
Matching tasks can require searching across paragraphs. Reuse an option only when the instruction allows it.
Read an original library passage
Read the four paragraphs. Their letters help you practise matching tasks.
Paragraph A
The town library opened a small tool-lending service in May. The aim was to help residents with occasional repairs.
Many people need a drill for one job but do not want to buy one. The service did not lend large machines.
The trial lasted twelve weeks. Membership was free during it. Members still paid a deposit before taking a tool home.
The deposit was returned when the tool came back undamaged.
Paragraph B
At first, tools were arranged by their brand names. Visitors found this difficult.
Staff changed the shelves so that tools for the same job stood together. Picture cards showed what each tool did.
A visitor could find tools for hanging a shelf without knowing the name of a particular drill.
Staff also gave a short safety briefing before the first loan. The briefing did not replace the printed safety instructions.
Paragraph C
Three researchers studied different parts of the trial. Chen counted loans and compared busy and quiet weeks.
Malik asked users to describe their experience. Several said the picture cards helped them choose tools.
Rosa watched the return desk. She recorded how long staff spent checking tools and whether items were damaged.
The researchers used these different methods because one total could not explain how the service worked.
Paragraph D
The trial recorded 240 loans, but this did not mean that 240 different people used it.
Some members borrowed more than once. The report did not compare the service with another library.
It recommended clearer advice about returning tools. It also said that a longer study was needed before deciding on a permanent service.
The library had not yet made that decision when the report was written.
Read with a purpose
Skim once to locate purpose, shelf changes, research methods and limits.
Scan for a named detail when a question asks for it.
Read the relevant sentence and nearby context carefully before answering.
The passage is shorter and simpler than a full Academic Reading text.
A high score here cannot show how you manage three long texts under the complete test clock.
Choose one answer or the requested number
For question 1, choose one letter.
1. Why did the library start the tool service?
A To help people with occasional repairs.
B To replace every local tool shop.
C To lend large machines to businesses.
D To sell drills to library members.
Worked answer: A. Paragraph A states this aim. The other options add unsupported purposes.
“Drill” appears in the passage, but option D changes lending into selling.
A repeated word can be useful evidence or part of a wrong option. Check its meaning in the whole option.
For question 2, choose two letters.
2. Which TWO changes are described in paragraph B?
A Staff removed every written safety instruction.
B Tools were grouped by their use.
C Picture cards showed what tools did.
D Tool brands became the only way to search.
E Members could borrow without any safety briefing.
Worked answers: B and C. Both changes are stated.
A conflicts with the continued printed instructions. D describes the old problem as the new solution.
E conflicts with the briefing. Choosing only B leaves one requested answer missing.
For this classroom task, B and C may be entered in either order.
Follow the actual answer-entry instructions in other practice.
Separate True, False and Not Given
For questions 3-6, write TRUE, FALSE or NOT GIVEN.
Use only the library passage. Do not use your knowledge of real libraries.
3. Members paid nothing to join during the trial.
Answer: TRUE. Free membership states that joining had no charge during the trial.
The deposit is a separate requirement for borrowing. Do not turn it into a membership fee.
4. The deposit was kept even when a tool came back undamaged.
Answer: FALSE. Paragraph A says it was returned in that situation.
This is a contradiction 矛盾, not merely a missing detail.
5. Exactly 240 different people borrowed tools during the trial.
Answer: FALSE. Paragraph D distinguishes loans from people and states that some borrowed more than once.
The 240 loans therefore cannot represent 240 different users.
6. Most users lived within one kilometre of the library.
Answer: NOT GIVEN. The passage gives no home-distance information.
It does not say that most users lived nearby or that they did not.
Build an evidence 证据 note during review: claim, relevant sentence, relationship.
Keep that note out of an answer box that asks only for TRUE, FALSE or NOT GIVEN.
If you cannot find support, search for a contradiction before deciding that the claim is NOT GIVEN.
Separate writer views from reported facts
Read this separate original opinion passage.
Writer's view: A tool-lending service can be useful, but a high loan count alone does not prove success.
I believe a library should check whether users can borrow safely and return tools easily.
The trial gives a promising start. It does not justify an immediate permanent commitment.
A longer review would help staff find problems that a short trial misses.
I have not compared the running costs of tool lending with book lending.
For questions 7-9, write YES, NO or NOT GIVEN according to this writer's view.
7. A large loan total is enough by itself to prove success.
Answer: NO. The writer explicitly rejects that claim.
8. Safety and easy returns should be checked.
Answer: YES. The writer says the library should check both.
9. Tool lending costs less to run than book lending.
Answer: NOT GIVEN. The writer says no cost comparison has been made.
Do not turn “has not compared” into a claim that one service must cost more.
Use the response labels requested by the task. Factual agreement uses True/False;
writer-view agreement uses Yes/No. Both require the text, but the question tells you what to judge.
Match a specific detail to its paragraph
Return to the four-paragraph library passage.
For questions 10-12, write A, B, C or D.
You may use a letter more than once in this classroom task.
10. A method for checking the time needed to process returns.
Answer: C. Rosa recorded checking time at the return desk.
11. A warning that a total does not equal the number of individual people.
Answer: D. The report separates 240 loans from the number of users.
12. A statement that another library was not used for comparison.
Answer: D. Paragraph D explicitly states this limit.
This task asks for a particular detail, not the main idea of the paragraph.
The two D answers are allowed because the instruction permits reuse.
Do not assume the same rule in every matching task.
Match a heading to the main idea
Match each paragraph A-D to one heading below.
Write its Roman numeral. Use each heading at most once. One heading is unused.
i Ways to study a new service.
ii A final decision to keep the service forever.
iii Why the service began and how borrowing worked.
iv Making the tools easier to choose.
v Results that still leave questions open.
Worked matches: A-iii; B-iv; C-i; D-v.
Paragraph A combines the aim with membership, deposit and borrowing rules.
Paragraph B explains the improved shelf arrangement and cards. Its main idea is easier selection.
Paragraph C explains different research methods. Paragraph D gives results and limits before any permanent decision.
Heading ii is unused. It sounds related to D, but changes an undecided future into a final commitment.
A heading 标题 should cover the paragraph's main idea, not one attractive word.
Read beyond the first sentence when later sentences change or develop the point.
Match features and sentence endings
For questions 13-15, match the activity with a researcher.
Write A Chen, B Malik or C Rosa using the letter only.
You may use a letter more than once here.
13. Collected users' descriptions of their experience.
Answer: B. Malik asked users about their experience.
14. Compared the number of loans across weeks.
Answer: A. Chen counted and compared loans.
15. Recorded whether returned items were damaged.
Answer: C. Rosa watched the return desk and recorded damage.
Keep each name connected to its own action. A nearby name is not enough.
Now match these sentence beginnings to one ending each. Use each ending at most once.
16. Members could borrow during the trial only after they...
17. The shelf changes helped visitors who...
18. The longer study was needed before staff...
A knew the brand name of every tool.
B paid the deposit.
C decided on a permanent service.
D did not know a tool's particular name.
Worked answers: 16-B; 17-D; 18-C.
Grammar helps reject an unsuitable ending, but several endings may be grammatical.
The full meaning must agree with the passage. These beginnings follow the passage's information order.
Complete sentences and answer short questions
For questions 19-22, use NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the library passage.
Do not use a synonym 同义词 of your own in place of the text phrase.
19. The trial continued for ____.
Answer: twelve weeks. This gives the duration and fits the limit.
“Twelve-week trial” does not fit the sentence as a duration phrase.
20. Before the first loan, staff gave a short ____.
Answer: safety briefing. These are the passage's two words, and they complete the grammar.
“A safety briefing” has three words and repeats an article the printed sentence already supplies.
21. What was arranged by brand name at first?
Answer: tools. This short question asks for the items, not the later shelf policy.
22. How many loans did the trial record?
Answer: 240. This asks for loans, so do not answer with an unknown number of people.
Read the gap's grammar, but use it with the meaning. A noun that fits the sentence can still be wrong.
Write only the requested answer. A long explanation may break the word limit.
Numbers can be written as figures or words where instructions permit them.
A normal hyphenated word counts as one; joining unrelated words with a new hyphen does not rescue an answer.
Complete summaries, notes, tables and a flow chart
A summary 摘要 condenses part of a passage. It may present information in a different order.
Find the relevant part, then check every gap against the original meaning.
Choose words from the text
Use NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from paragraph B for each gap.
Summary: Staff explained safety in a short 23 ____.
To make selection easier, they added 24 ____ and grouped tools by their job.
Answers: 23 safety briefing; 24 picture cards. The summary moves the safety detail before the shelf detail.
Do not force the answers into paragraph order. Both phrases fit the summary and the limit.
Note: Initial shelf system: tools arranged by 25 ____.
Answer: brand names. It names the earlier arrangement.
Researcher
Place observed
Details recorded
Rosa
26 ____
Checking time and damage
Answer: return desk. The row asks where, not what she counted.
Complete the last step with a word from paragraph A.
Answer 27: returned. This completes the last step with one word from paragraph A.
The flow chart shows the described borrowing process. Do not add a stage the text does not state.
Choose from supplied options
Choose one letter for each gap in this separate summary.
A totals.
B methods.
C final.
D damaged.
Summary: The researchers used different 28 ____.
The report did not make a 29 ____ decision about keeping the service.
Answers: 28-B; 29-C. The option methods fits both the grammar and paragraph C.
The decision remained open in D. For this option-based task, use the supplied letters.
Do not copy an unrelated text word simply because another task required words from the passage.
Label a diagram from its description
Read this original classroom description. It describes a simple observation device, not drinking-water treatment.
Description: The bottle is at the bottom, where it receives the sample.
Above it, a mesh holds back large pieces. At the top, a wide tray catches water.
Water moves downward through these three parts. The device does not measure water safety.
Use NO MORE THAN ONE WORD from the description for each numbered label.
Match each position to the description, even when the text describes the parts in another order.
Answers: 30 tray; 31 mesh; 32 bottle.
The description names the bottle first, but label 30 is the top part.
Read position and function together. “Wide tray” exceeds this one-word limit.
“Filter” may seem reasonable, but it is not a word from this description.
A diagram organises the parts; it cannot supply a label that the text does not support.
Use a clock and an error record
The full Academic Reading test has three sections, forty questions and a sixty-minute limit.
These short tasks teach decisions; they cannot reproduce that reading load.
Use suitable full-length practice to check pacing and stamina.
Twenty minutes per passage is a starting plan, not an instruction for every question or a guarantee of difficulty.
Check progress, move past a question that has stalled, and return if time remains.
Keep answer entry within the test time. Follow the actual screen or answer-sheet instructions for your test.
After practice, label each error by its cause:
Evidence: a wrong person, time, quantity or unsupported inference.
Task: a main idea confused with a detail, or an option reused without permission.
Answer form: the wrong response labels, too many words or incorrect spelling.
Time: too long on one item, or unfinished answer entry.
Choose a specific next exercise for that cause. Repeating a known answer tests memory more than new reading.
A dictionary can help during review; a fresh timed attempt serves a different purpose.
Practice and explained answers
Use the passages and tasks above. Explain each decision before reading its answer.
A classmate says free membership means no deposit was needed. Is that supported?
Does “one reason” alone prove that a reason was not the main one?
Can 240 loans be treated as 240 different users in this passage?
Why is the one-kilometre claim Not Given rather than False?
Why does writer-view question 7 require NO rather than FALSE?
May D be used for both information-matching questions 11 and 12?
Why does heading ii fail for paragraph D?
Could a grammatical sentence ending still be wrong?
Why does “a safety briefing” fail question 20?
Must the summary answers follow the paragraph's order?
Why is the first diagram label not bottle?
Can this thirty-two-question classroom pack establish an official band?
Explained answers
No. Joining was free, but borrowing still required a deposit. They are different requirements.
No. It gives no ranking by itself. Check for agreement or contradiction; otherwise consider Not Given.
No. Some people borrowed more than once. The passage explicitly separates loans from users.
No distance evidence supports or contradicts it. Lack of support is not a stated opposite.
The task asks about the writer's view and requires Yes/No/Not Given labels.
Yes, because this task explicitly permits reuse. Check the instruction for each new task.
It claims a final commitment, but D says the decision had not yet been made.
Yes. Grammar checks sentence form; the passage must also support its meaning.
It has three words and repeats the article already present. The limit permits two words.
No. This summary changes the order. Match meaning, not a fixed search direction.
Label 30 is at the top. The description puts the tray there, although it mentions the bottle first.
No. It is original, short and uncalibrated. Use it to learn from raw answers and reasons.
Interactive lessons on this topic
Work through it step by step, with instant-check exercises.
