IELTS Reading
IELTS Reading: format, strategies and practice
You have 60 minutes to answer 40 questions. Academic and General Training use different texts but the same question types and the same band conversion idea.
Start Reading practice- Time
- 60 minutes
- Sections
- 3
- Questions
- 40
- Transfer time
- None
Academic vs General Training texts
Academic Reading has three long passages from books, journals and newspapers. General Training starts with short everyday and workplace texts and ends with one longer passage.
Common question types
- True / False / Not Given and Yes / No / Not Given
- Matching headings and matching information
- Sentence, summary and table completion
- Multiple choice and short answers
How to manage 60 minutes
Aim for about 20 minutes per section and do not get stuck on one question. Answers usually appear in passage order, so skim first, then scan for keywords and their synonyms.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between False and Not Given?
False means the passage says the opposite. Not Given means the passage does not give enough information either way.