PTE reading practise: a practice test for all five question types

The PTE Academic reading part runs 23–30 minutes and has five question types. Pearson, the test owner, offers free guided practice for it in a myPTE account. This page explains each type, how it is scored, and gives you our own five-question reading practice test with an answer key and a reason for every answer.

Pearson's PTE Academic page gives the timing for the whole part.

Pearson lists "Time to answer: Not applicable" for each Reading type and gives a time only for the whole part. Our reading: treat the 23–30 minutes as one pool and practise with a timer running.

PTE Core, which Pearson describes as "For IRCC permanent residency (PR) and citizenship applications in Canada", also has a Reading part with five question types. Our PTE fill in the blanks page covers the two fill-in tasks in more detail.

The practical points are these. Fill every blank, because each correct blank earns credit. In Multiple Choice, Multiple Answers, tick only options you can defend, because a wrong tick loses marks. In Reorder Paragraph Pearson's Score Guide gives a point for each pair of correct adjacent text boxes, so a nearly right order still scores. If you are unsure of the whole order, get the pairs right: find the sentences that must sit side by side.

Our drill for each tip

Pearson puts its free practice inside a myPTE account.

Pearson's own advice for its guided practice is to look at the answers you got wrong and try again.

We have not found a free, full-length sample reading test published by Pearson. The sectional guided tests and the AI Practice diagnostic are the closest free official options. Our five-question test below gives you extra practice, and our PTE practice test and free mock test page compares all the options.

These passages are our own writing. They are not copied from any test owner, and they are only practice. Do all five, then check the key.

Question 1: fill in the blanks (drop-down)

Tidal power uses the regular rise and fall of the sea to generate electricity. Because tides can be [1] years in advance, engineers can plan output with unusual confidence. However, building a barrage across an estuary [2] the habitat of birds and fish, so many projects have faced strong local opposition. Newer designs place turbines directly in fast-moving water and [3] far less disruption. Supporters believe these [4] could supply a steady share of a region's energy.

Question 2: multiple choice, multiple answers

Since more companies adopted remote work, city-centre cafés have reported a change in their customers. Weekday mornings are quieter, but mid-afternoons now draw people with laptops who stay for hours. Café owners say these customers spend less per visit, yet they also come more often. Landlords worry that falling demand for offices will lower rents, while some councils hope that people working near home will bring new life to suburban high streets.

Which statements does the passage support? Select all that apply, and remember a wrong tick costs a mark.

• A. Weekday mornings in city-centre cafés are quieter.
• B. Customers with laptops spend more per visit than other customers.
• C. Café owners say customers with laptops come more often.
• D. Landlords expect rents to rise because of remote work.
• E. Some councils hope suburban high streets will benefit.

Question 3: reorder paragraph

• A. Merchants therefore began to accept metal coins whose value everyone recognised.
• B. Early cities relied on markets where goods were exchanged directly.
• C. Over time, coins made it possible to compare prices and save wealth for the future.
• D. However, it became awkward as trade expanded, because each side had to want exactly what the other held.
• E. This barter system worked well when people wanted what their neighbours had to offer.

Question 4: fill in the blanks (drag and drop)

Noise is often treated as a minor nuisance, but research links long-term exposure to [1] sleep and raised stress. Cities have therefore introduced [2] such as quieter road surfaces and limits on night-time deliveries. Residents say these rules work best when they are enforced [3], and when complaints receive a [4] reply.

Word box: disturbed, measures, consistently, prompt, disturb, consistency.

Question 5: multiple choice, single answer

Many cities are replacing street lamps with LED lights, which use far less electricity and last longer. Early installations, however, produced a harsh blue-white glare that residents disliked and that, according to some astronomers, brightened the night sky. Manufacturers now offer warmer tones and shields that direct light downwards, and several councils are retrofitting lamps installed in the last few years.

What is the main point of the passage?

• A. LED lamps use more electricity than older lamps.
• B. Early LED street lighting caused complaints, and newer designs are addressing them.
• C. Astronomers have asked councils to stop using street lamps.
• D. Manufacturers have stopped producing blue-white lamps because they are expensive.

To mark yourself, give a point for each correct blank, a point for each correct option in question 2 minus a point for each wrong tick (never below zero), and a point for each pair of neighbouring boxes in the right order in question 3. This is our own simple method and is not how a test owner converts your score.

1. Take it once under a timer and without notes, then mark it.
2. For every wrong answer, write one line on what the cue was and what you missed.
3. Wait a few days and redo only the items you got wrong, without the key.
4. Make your own version. Write a short paragraph, remove a few words, and swap with a study partner.
5. Then use the free guided practice for the same types, and compare how you did.

Common questions