PTE Academic Question Type
Complete Explain

Part 1: Speaking & Writing

Read Aloud

Paragraphs around 60 words long will appear on the screen. You are allowed 40 seconds to study the paragraph. After 30-40 seconds of preparation, says "Recording" is displayed. You will then have to read the paragraph loudly into the microphone within 40 more seconds.

Repeat Sentence

A sentence between 3 and 9 seconds long will be played. You have to repeat it exactly immediately after within 15 seconds.

Describe Image

An image will appear on the screen. This could be a graph, chart, table, map or picture. After 25 seconds of preparation, you will have 40 seconds to describe the information you see in detail.

Re-tell Lecture

You will hear a recording of a lecture or interview. After 10 seconds of preparation, you will have 40 seconds to re-tell the content of the recording in your own words.

Answer Short Question

You will hear a general knowledge question. Answer with a one or a few words.

Summarize Written Text

A passage of up to 300 words will appear on the screen. You will have 10 minutes to write a summary of the passage in one sentence (no longer than 75 words).

Write Essay

A prompt will appear on the screen. You will have 20 minutes to write a 200–300-word essay in response to the topic given.

Part 2: Reading

Reading & Writing: Fill in the Blanks

A passage with several gaps will appear on the screen. Fill in the blanks by selecting the most suitable word or phrase from the drop-down list of choices below each gap.

Multiple Choice, Multiple Answer

A passage will appear on the screen, along with a multiple-choice question about its content or tone. Answer the question by selecting more than one response.

Re-order Paragraphs

4-5 text boxes will appear on the screen in a random order. Put the text boxes in the correct order to form a coherent paragraph.

Reading: Fill in the Blanks

A passage with some missing words will appear on the screen. Drag words from the box below to the correct gap in the text.

Multiple Choice, Single Answer

A passage will appear on the screen, along with a multiple-choice question about its content or tone. Answer the question by selecting only one response.

Part 3: Listening

Summarize Spoken Text

A recording of a lecture or interview will be played. You will have 10 minutes to write a 50-70 word summary on the key points of the recording.

Multiple Choice, Multiple Answers

You will hear a recording. Answer a multiple-choice question on the content or tone of the recording by selecting more than one response.

Fill in the Blanks

A transcript of a recording will appear on the screen, with several gaps. While listening to the recording, type the missing word in each gap to complete the transcript.

Highlight Correct Summary

You will hear a recording. Select the paragraph that best summarizes the recording.

Multiple Choice, Single Answer

You will hear a recording. Answer a multiple-choice question on the content or tone of the recording by selecting only one response.

Select Missing Word

You will hear a recording about a given topic. At the end of the recording, the last word or phrase has been replaced by a beep. Select the correct option to complete the recording.

Highlight Incorrect Words

A transcript of a recording will appear on the screen. While listening to the recording, identify the words in the transcript that do not match what the speaker says.