IELTS Listening

The Listening Module is typically considered one of the easiest by most students.

The Listening test is between 30 to 40 minutes and you will have to answer 40 questions across 4 different sections. An audio recording will be played, typically a conversation between two people on an everyday topic or a monologue of an academic subject; like a lecture. You will have to answer a set of questions based on the audio being played.

The audio will be mostly in a British/Australian accent and you can only listen to the audio once.

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Click here to listen to a sample listening audio and answer the questions below:

You will hear a conversation between a clerk at the enquiries desk of a transport company and a man who is asking for travel information.
Please answer questions based on that.

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Transport from Bayswater
Express train leaves at 1.________________

Nearest station is 2._____________

Number 706 bus goes to 3.___________

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Please watch the video where we give a brief overview of the Listening module below.

Listening Tips & Strategies

• Increased Playback Speed when Practising
  When practicing Listening, try to practice with a 1.25X or 1.5X playback speed so that when you listen at the real exam, you'll feel like hearing words in slow motion and you'll be able to comprehend better.
• Instructions when practicing Maps
  • There is a high possibility that the maps start is usually from the Southern side.
  • Due to the above mentioned reason, there is also a high possibility that the first answer of the map lies someplace on the Southern side.
  • DIRECTIONS are an essential aspect in maps. This means a candidate should be very well versed with the map directions, especially North, South, East and West and so on.
  • HIDDEN DETAILS: In maps it is significant to identify certain important things that may not be marked particularly in the map. The candidate should be able to identify these hidden details. (P.S: Candidates should make a note of this during the reading time given in between the audio.)
  • FOCUS POINT: Most of the time there is a possibility that there will one focus point around which the answers maybe. (For eg: a bridge or a corridor and this will be constantly used in order to give the locations and answers) P.S: there is a high possibility that the focal point is the hidden detail in the map.
• Order of attempting Listening Questions
  When practicing Listening, try attempting more questions from the last part of Listening audio as Questions 20-40 tend to be harder than Questions 1-20.
• Trust your intuition
  In Quantitative sections like Listening & Reading, the first answer which comes to your mind is more likely to be the right one. So, if you're ever in doubt, best to go with your first gut-answer.