IELTS Academic Reading gives you 3 texts and 40 questions in 60 minutes, and ielts.org lists 11 question types. Most marks are lost on True/False/Not Given and matching headings. Below is a concrete approach for each type, worked examples and a way to split the 60 minutes.
The Reading format
Each correct answer is 1 mark and wrong answers lose nothing. Unlike Listening, there is no extra transfer time: everything fits inside the 60 minutes.
| Academic | General Training | |
|---|---|---|
| Time | 60 minutes (transfer included) | 60 minutes |
| Questions | 40 | 40 |
| Texts | 3 long texts, 2,150-2,750 words in total | 3 sections, 2,150-2,375 words in total |
| Sources | Books, journals, newspapers, online publications | Notices, workplace documents, one general-interest text |
All 11 question types in one table
| Type | What you do | Key technique |
|---|---|---|
| Multiple choice | Pick one or more answers from A-D | Check every option against the text, reject the “almost right” one |
| True / False / Not Given | Does the information match the text? | Explained below |
| Yes / No / Not Given | Does it match the writer’s view? | You test the writer’s opinion, not a fact |
| Matching information | Which paragraph contains it? | A paragraph can be used more than once |
| Matching headings | A heading for each paragraph | Find the paragraph’s main idea |
| Matching features | Link ideas to people, periods or places | Mark the names in the text first |
| Matching sentence endings | Join a sentence start to its end | Meaning and grammar must both fit |
| Sentence completion | Complete with words from the text | Respect the word limit |
| Summary / note / table / flow chart completion | Gaps in a short text or table | Answers usually follow the text’s order |
| Diagram label completion | Label parts of a diagram | Locate the descriptive paragraph |
| Short-answer questions | Answer briefly | Copy the word exactly from the text |
True / False / Not Given: telling them apart
- TRUE - the text says the same thing in other words.
- FALSE - the text says the opposite.
- NOT GIVEN - the text does not say, so it neither confirms nor contradicts the statement.
- Example. Text: “The bridge was completed in 1932 after six years of work.” “The bridge took six years to build.” - TRUE. “The bridge was built in four years.” - FALSE. “The bridge was the longest in the country.” - NOT GIVEN.
- The most common mistake is adding general knowledge. Use the text only: “it makes sense” does not turn NOT GIVEN into FALSE.
- Watch qualifiers such as “some”, “all”, “only”, “usually”, “always”: one word changes the answer.
Matching headings
- There are more headings than paragraphs - the extras are distractors.
- Read the first and last sentences of the paragraph: the main idea is often there.
- Do not choose a heading because one word matches - it must cover the whole paragraph.
- Do the paragraphs you are sure of first, so fewer headings remain for the rest.
- Doing this task early gives you a map of the text that helps with later questions.
Completion tasks: limits and exact words
- An answer over the limit (“ONE WORD ONLY”, “NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS”) gets no mark.
- Take the word from the text and do not change its form.
- Look at the words before and after the gap: noun, verb or adjective, singular or plural?
- A spelling mistake makes the answer wrong - copy carefully.
How to split the 60 minutes
If a question takes more than 2 minutes, put your best guess, move on and come back at the end. A blank still scores 0.
| Text | Time | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Text 1 | 17-18 minutes | Usually the easiest - bank time here |
| Text 2 | 20 minutes | Medium difficulty |
| Text 3 | 22 minutes | Longest and hardest, often writer’s-view questions |
How many correct answers band 7 needs
Average thresholds from ielts.org (they vary slightly by test). General Training needs more correct answers for the same band:
| Band | Academic (of 40) | General Training (of 40) |
|---|---|---|
| 5 | 15 | 23 |
| 6 | 23 | 30 |
| 7 | 30 | 35 |
| 8 | 35 | - |
Frequently asked questions
- Text or questions first? Many candidates do best by looking at the questions, skimming the text, then scanning for each answer.
- Is there transfer time in Reading? No, transfer is part of the 60 minutes.
- What is the difference between True/False and Yes/No? The first checks facts, the second the writer’s views and claims.
