The four parts of the Listening test
The Listening test has 40 questions in four parts and lasts about 30 minutes. You hear each recording once only.
- Part 1: a conversation between two people in an everyday situation, such as booking a hotel or registering at a gym. Often a form or notes to complete.
- Part 2: one speaker in an everyday context, for example a tour guide or a talk about local facilities. Map and plan questions often appear here.
- Part 3: a discussion between two or three speakers in an academic setting, such as students planning a project with a tutor.
- Part 4: a lecture by one speaker on an academic topic, with no break in the middle.
In the computer-delivered test you have two minutes at the end to check your answers. In the paper test you get ten minutes to transfer answers to the answer sheet.
To reach band 7, you typically need around 30 out of 40 correct.
Accents you will hear
IELTS uses a range of English accents, including British, Australian, North American and New Zealand. Many people in Muscat hear a lot of English every day, but mostly in South Asian, Filipino and Gulf accents or in American films and series. British and Australian speech can feel faster at first, with sounds dropped or joined.
Our 88 practice sets are recorded with British voices, the accent you are most likely to meet in the test. Listening to British radio, podcasts and news for 15 minutes a day, perhaps in the car on Sultan Qaboos Street or on the drive to work in Seeb, trains your ear between practice sessions.
Spelling and numbers: easy marks to lose
A correct answer with a spelling mistake scores zero. This catches many candidates.
- Letters spelled out. In Part 1, names and addresses are often spelled letter by letter. Practise the English alphabet aloud. Arabic speakers sometimes confuse e and i or b and p; South Asian speakers sometimes mix up v and w.
- Double letters. "Double s" or "double l" are common in names and addresses.
- Numbers. "Fifteen" and "fifty" sound similar; listen for the stress. Phone numbers may use "double five" or "oh" for zero.
- Common IELTS words. Learn to spell words like accommodation, environment, government, necessary, temperature, Wednesday and February.
- Plurals. If the speaker says "tickets", "ticket" is wrong.
Maps, plans and diagrams
Map questions in Part 2 worry many students. A few habits help:
- Before the audio starts, find the "you are here" point or the entrance and the compass direction.
- Learn the language of location: opposite, next to, beside, at the far end, on the corner, clockwise, adjacent to.
- Follow the speaker with your finger or the cursor as they move.
- On screen, labels are often chosen from a list; make sure you know which letter belongs to which place.
Answers come in question order
In IELTS Listening, the answers follow the order of the questions, and our sets work the same way. If you miss question 14 and hear the answer to 15, leave 14, move on and make a guess at the end. Students who freeze on one missed answer often miss the next three.
Common errors and how to fix them
- Writing the first thing you hear. Speakers often correct themselves: "the meeting is on Tuesday... sorry, no, Thursday". Wait for the final answer.
- Ignoring the word limit. "ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER" means exactly that.
- Losing focus in Part 4. The lecture is long and there is no break. Read the headings in the notes first so you know where you are.
- Not reading ahead. Use every pause to read the next set of questions and underline key words.
How to practise well
Use headphones for every session. Many people in Muscat live in busy homes or shared flats, and a household TV or air conditioner can drown out a key word. The computer-delivered test uses a headset, so practise the same way.
Do one part at a time on weekdays, around 10 minutes each, and a full four-part set at the weekend. Each set is marked instantly, and wrong answers go to your Mistake Notebook. When you are regularly scoring above 30, move on to the harder Charged Listening sets.
This kind of IELTS Listening practice fits well around work in Ruwi or classes in Al Khoudh. Try a free sample set now, then unlock all 88 sets with Full Access for $12 for 2 months. Sign up free or see the practice tests.