Listening
Word limits, question words and the answers that come as numbers. With a practice exercise.
IELTS listening short answer questions ask you to write one, two or three words, or a number, taken from the recording. They are among the most winnable marks in the paper and among the easiest to lose on a technicality.
The instruction line above the questions does more work than most candidates notice. It tells you the limit, and it often tells you what kind of answer to expect before you have heard anything.
The instructions
Four instruction lines, and what each one is telling you.
One or two words. Three is wrong even if the two correct words are among them. One word is fine when it answers the question.
At least one answer in the set will be a number on its own. That is a useful hint before the recording starts.
At least one answer combines a number with a word, such as 20 kilometres or Platform 4.
Every answer is a single word. If yours needs two, it is the wrong answer.
You write what you hear, not your own paraphrase. A correct idea in different words scores nothing.
A misspelled answer is marked wrong. This matters most with names and places, which are usually spelled out for you.
Method
Six habits, most of them used before the recording plays.
Before the questions. The limit changes what a correct answer looks like and it is printed only once.
Who wants a person or organisation. When wants a time or date. Where wants a place. How many wants a number. How often wants a frequency.
Write N for number or P for place beside each question in the pause. It halves the work when the recording starts.
Note it roughly and tidy it later. Trying to write neatly during the recording is how people miss the next answer.
Every time, in the two minutes at the end. This is the commonest way a correct answer is marked wrong.
There is no penalty. Put something plausible in every gap before you finish.
Practice
This is the transcript of a short recording. Read it, then answer as if you had heard it once.
And finally this evening, a reminder about the festival. It runs in Sydney again this year, opening on the fifteenth of January and continuing for three weeks.
Last year more than one million people attended, and organisers expect a similar number this time. Tickets for the main events are twenty-eight dollars, though entry to the outdoor stages remains free.
1Where is the festival held?
Sydney. The question word where tells you to listen for a place. Australia would be too general and is never said.
2When does the festival start?
January. When wants a time. Three weeks is how long it lasts, which is a different question, and the fifteenth alone is incomplete.
3More than how many people attend?
One million. How many signals a number. Twenty-eight is the ticket price, which is the distractor sitting nearby.
4How much are tickets for the main events?
Twenty-eight dollars. Two words, within a two-word limit. Free applies to the outdoor stages, not the main events.
5The instruction says NO MORE THAN ONE WORD. You want to write hot air balloon. What should you do?
Find a one-word answer. If your answer will not fit the limit, it is the wrong answer. Never leave a blank, but do not exceed the limit either.
Word limits and spelling account for more lost marks in this question type than listening ability does.
The complete IELTS course on IELTStestONLINE has video lessons on every question type, many more exercises like this one, and your own support tutor you can ask when an answer does not make sense. Take a look at the complete course
Working from a transcript is the easy version. In the test the recording plays once and you cannot go back.
IELTStestONLINE keeps every score you get in one place, gives you an estimated band as you work, and assesses your writing and speaking against the four criteria so you can see where you stand before test day. See what full membership includes
Your answer can be one or two words but not three. An over-length answer is marked wrong even when it contains the correct words.
A number counts as one item. If the instruction says two words or a number, an answer such as 25 is acceptable on its own.
No. Answers must use the words from the recording. A correct idea expressed differently does not score.
Yes. A misspelled answer is wrong, which is why names and places are usually spelled out in the recording.
Two minutes at the end. You type answers in as you go, so nothing needs copying.
Full membership
Two or three limit or spelling slips across a listening paper is half a band. Knowing which mistakes you repeat is what changes the score.
IELTStestONLINE assesses your writing and speaking against the four IELTS criteria, instantly and as often as you like, using a system built by a former IELTS examiner and examiner trainer. It keeps every score in one place with an estimated band, and it carries no advertising.
See what membership includes