IELTS sentence and summary completion: how to score well
Sentence and summary completion ask you to fill gaps with words taken from the passage or recording, within a word limit. The winning habits are predicting the part of speech the gap needs, copying the word exactly, and never exceeding the stated limit.
How to answer
- •Read the sentence and predict what type of word fits: a noun, a verb, a number.
- •For reading, the answer is usually a word that appears in the passage; for listening, it is spoken aloud.
- •Check the completed sentence is grammatically correct, and stay within the word limit.
Frequently asked questions
Do the words have to come from the text?
Yes, in most completion tasks you must use words from the passage or recording, unchanged; you cannot paraphrase.
What happens if I write too many words?
An answer over the stated word limit is marked wrong, even if it contains the correct word.
Related guides
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