IELTS Listening Transcripts: When and How To Use Them

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Are you given the transcript in the IELTS Listening test? Why do IELTS put the transcript in the answer key of their IELTS Cambridge Test books? Why does Liz give the transcript to her listening lessons? Lets learn a bit about the use of transcripts for the listening test and listening exercises.

IELTS Listening Transcripts

Read through the questions and answers below to learn why you should use transcript, how to use them and how you can benefit from them.

What are transcripts in IELTS listening?

The transcript is the audio recording in written form, word for word, precisely as you hear it. 

Will you be given the transcript in the real test?

No. you will not be given the transcript. You will hear an audio recording and you must answer questions based on the recording you hear. You must listen, read the questions and answer the questions all at the same time. For the paper based test, you write your answers on the question paper and then have 10 mins to transfer your answers to the answer sheet at the end of the listening test. For the computer based test, you put your answers into the computer screen directly and are given only 2 mins at the end of the listening test to check and alter your answers. After the IELTS test is completely ended, you will not be given the transcript at that time either. The test will remain the property of IELTS. You can’t even remove the question paper from the test room. 

Will IELTS give me access to the transcript after the test?

No. IELTS do not release either the answers to your listening test or the transcript to your test.

Where can you find transcripts?

Transcripts are only given to you along with the answers in test books and on my website for my lessons. I only supply the transcript with the answers, not with the questions.

Are they useful?

Yes, transcripts are essential for you to use as part of your IELTS listening preparation which is why all my listening lessons provide the transcript with the answers.

What are transcripts used for in IELTS test preparation?

You can use transcripts in the following ways once you have finished your listening practice test or practice lesson.

  1. When you finish a listening lesson or a listening test, don’t just check the answers directly. Instead, listen again to the audio and read the transcript at the same time. This will allow you to check your answers while listening again and reading the words. You only do this after you have finished the listening lesson and you are sure if your answers. It is method of checking the answers which is more useful than just checking the answer key because it allows you to spot your mistakes which is highly beneficial for your training.
  2. When checking the list of answers, refer to the transcript. Find the location of the answer and see how the answer was presented in the recording. Read the sentences before and after each answer. This way you can see why you got the answer right or wrong.
  3. Go back to the transcript and make a note of the paraphrases used. This way you can increase your vocabulary and spot the reason why you might have missed the answer.
  4. Finally, read the transcript and listen to the audio together one last time to help your speaking skills and pronunciation. In fact, it’s a great way to improve speaking – listen, pause and repeat out loud.

As you can see, the transcripts can help you develop crucial awareness and skills needed to improve your score. Some people do practice test after practice test without improving. Now you know why. You need to analyse your mistakes, analyse why you got something wrong, note paraphrased and learn from mistakes. The transcript will help you a lot with all this.

IELTS Listening Free Tips & Practice Materials:

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IELTS Listening Practice Lesson: Job Application

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This listening practice lesson is based on IELTS Listening Section 1. The topic is a Job Application which is a very common topic in the listening test. Section 1 requires you to listen for specific information and is the easiest section in the listening test, which means you should aim to get at least 90% or, if possible, 100% right (for people aiming for a high band score).

This listening lesson focuses on two different types of IELTS listening questions i) form completion  ii) multiple choice. It is usual to get more than one type of question in one section of the listening test. In the real test, you will get 10 questions in section 1, but not all at the same time. IELTS usually break the questions into groups to make it easier. However, with my listening practice below, I’ve put them all together.

Instructions:

  1. Read through ALL questions from 1 to 10 so that you are prepared.
  2. Tip:
    1. Be ready for different accents
    2. The first question might be tough to answer but keep listening because the answer will be repeated again.
    3. Always keep calm, never panic and keep track of the questions
  3. Listen to the recording only once and note down your answers.
  4. Post your answers in the comments box at the bottom of the page.
  5. I’ll post the answers later this week with the transript.

Listening Section 1 Practice – Job Application

Questions 1- 3: Complete the notes below using no more than two words.

  1. Job Title Enquiry: (1) ……………
  2. Name: (2) ………………….
  3. Current Occupation: (3) ………………….

Questions 4-6: Choose the correct letter.

4. What work days will there be?

  • a) all week days plus one full weekend day
  • b) Monday to Friday only
  • c) all week days and half a day on weekends

5. How many hours will the job actually require in reality?

  • a) 40 hours
  • b) over 40 hours
  • c) 50 hours

6. What is the overall income per annum?

  • a) £2,000
  • b) £25,000
  • c) over £25,000

Questions 7-10: Complete the notes below using no more than two words and/or numbers.

7. Job Reference Number: ……………

8. First interview date: ………………..

9. HR contact: ……………….

10. Start date: ……………..

Audio Recording

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ANSWERS & TRANSCRIPT

Click below to reveal the answers and the transcript. The transcript is provided by me so you can check your answers whilst listening to the recording and reading the transcript. It’s a great way to improve your listening skills and develop your English. You won’t be given the transcript in the real test.

ANSWERS

  1. SALES REP
    1. This was tricky when you first heard it, but the answer was repeated twice more in the recording which should have given you a chance to get this right. A sales rep means a sales representative of a company.
  2. RACHEL / RACHAEL JONES
    1. You need both first name and last name for a correct answer.
    2. IELTS will often spell out names, but Rachael is a common name and you can find a list of common names with pronunciation in the Vocabulary section of this website.
  3. RECEPTIONIST
  4. c / C
    1. “Well, from Monday to Friday it’s 9am to 5pm and you’ll also have to work either a morning or an afternoon, which is about four hours, on either Saturday or Sunday.”
  5. b / B
    1. “…while the job is advertised as the standard 40 hours per week, it’ll go beyond that because of the weekend work”
    2. This question is testing your ability to differentiate between advertised hours and actual hours. The real hours will be more than 40 because of weekend work.
  6. c /  C
    1. “… you’ll get a guaranteed income of £2,000 per month which works out more or less at about £25,000 each year, but as you’ll definitely be earning commission as well, you can add that on top …”
    2. This question is testing your ability to hear the difference between guaranteed income and overall income, which means everything together.
    3. It is very common in IELTS to be given one answer but then more information comes along which changes the answer. This is something to be ready for in IELTS listening.
  7. A76401
  8. 3rd AUGUST / AUGUST 3rd
    1. “,,,to the initial round of interviews which are being held on August 3rd.”
    2. The other dates mentioned were for second and third interviews. The applicant first had to get through the first interview on Aug 3rd in order to do the other interviews.
  9. Bob Castor
    1. You need both names spelled correctly.
  10. AUGUST 30th
    1. “…we hope to get the lucky candidate signed up by 30th August”
    2. The following dates were about induction and training which happens after a person joins the company.
    3. This means the official start date for the job is August 30th. A start date for a job is when you sign a contract and become part of the company.

Please note that answers can be written using small or lower case letters. If you are taking the paper based test, writing in capitals for listening and reading answers will help the person marking to read your answer clearly.

These practice lessons are not about getting it all right. It’s about learning and developing. Make a note of which answers you got wrong and why you think you got them wrong. This way, you will improve next time.

All listening exercises on ieltsliz.com have been written by myself to help you prepare for your IELTS test.   

Liz 

TRANSCRIPT

  • B: Hello, XDM Sales, how can I help you?
  • A: Hi, I’m calling to apply for the job that you advertised this morning for a sales rep.
  • B: Certainly. First, I’ll need to take some details. Could you give me your full name?
  • A: Yes, it’s Rachel Jones.
  • B: Thank you. Are you working at the moment?
  • A: Yes, I’m working as a receptionist for a large multinational company.
  • B: And you’re interested to change your position? It’s quite a change to go from working as a receptionist to a sales rep.
  • A: I’m ready for a change. I want to do something more challenging. I feel my work as a receptionist has given me a lot of insight into customers and how to approach them. So, I think I’ll be well suited to work as a sales rep. Although, I would like to know a bit more about the position if that’s ok.
  • B: Of course. What would you like to know?
  • A: Could you tell me more about how many days and hours a week it involves.
  • B: Well, from Monday to Friday it’s 9am to 5pm and you’ll also have to work either a morning or an afternoon, which is about four hours, on either Saturday or Sunday. I know it isn’t ideal to have to give up part of your weekend, but it won’t be every weekend and you can apply for the occasional weekend off.  As for hours, while the job is advertised as the standard 40 hours per week, it’ll go beyond that because of the weekend work. Luckily, it isn’t likely to be as many as 50 hours per week.
  • A: OK. That sounds fine. How about the salary?
  • B: Well, you’ll get a guaranteed income of £2,000 per month which works out more or less at about £25,000 each year, but as you’ll definitely be earning commission as well, you can add that on top to make a nice bit extra over the course of the year.
  • A: That’s not bad, but I guess it depends how much commission I’ll earn. Still, I’d like to apply. Could you let me know the application procedure?
  • B: Yes, of course. You’ll find an application form to download on our website. Put both the job title and reference number: A76401 on the form. Then fill it in and email it to the applications department. Applications will be collected over the next five days. We’ll let you know if you’ve made it through to the initial round of interviews which are being held on August 3rd. For applicants making it through the first round, there will be two more sets of interviews on August 10th and August 21st. After that the final selection is made. If you don’t hear back from us regarding your application, please get in touch in case your application has ended up in spam or been misplaced.
  • A: Who should I call in that situation?
  • B: Call the senior HR manager, Bob Castor (that’s C A S T O R ), you’ll find his contact details on our website. He’ll let you know if you’re through to the interview round or not.
  • A: Great. Can you let me know when the job is due to start and whether there will be an induction or not?
  • B: Of course. As I said, the first set of interviews will be in early August and we hope to get the lucky candidate signed up by 30th August.  Once the sales rep officially becomes part of the team, there will be an induction period from August 30th to September 7th during which time the new sales rep will learn more about the company, products and sales procedures. After that, the new sales rep will shadow one of our more successful reps for 10 days to pick up extra tips.
  • A: That all sounds very exciting. I’ll get my application off today. Thanks.
  • B: Not at all. Best of luck with your application. Bye.

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Listening Multiple Choice Practice: Moles

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Below is a listening practice lesson for IELTS preparation. The questions are multiple choice questions which require you to pay very close attention to the paraphrases used and to pay close attention to the differences in the options given. Don’t expect only one option to be mentioned in the recording. You will likely hear words that relate to all options, but only one will be the real answer.

Instructions for Multiple Choice Listening

  • Always pay attention to the topic of the listening test which will help prepare you for the language in the recording. There will usually be a title given.
  • Read the questions before you listen to the recording.
  • Pay attention to keywords in the questions and the answer options.
  • Notice the similarity and differences between options. Sometimes the answer options can appear similar so spot the differences.
  • You might hear words for all answer options but only one answer option will be correct.
  • The questions will come in order but the answer options will not.
  • Be ready to listen only once. You can’t pause the recording in the real test.
  • Make sure you write a letter, not words, for your answer.

IELTS Listening Multiple Choice Questions 1-7

Choose the correct option for the statements below from a choice of A-C. Your answer will be a letter.

Moles & Mole Hills

  • 1. The mole hill idiom means …
    • a) making small things seem big.
    • b) make facts seem small.
    • c) making big things seem small.
  • 2. Most people are worried that mole hills …
    • a) damage lawns.
    • b) look ugly.
    • c) are a health concern.
  • 3. Moles …
    • a) are blind.
    • b) only eat worms.
    • c) can sense movement in the earth.
  • 4. Moles can dig …
    • a) over 200 yards daily.
    • b) just under 200 yards a day.
    • c) in an upward direction.
  • 5. Moles give birth ….
    • a) in a bedroom.
    • b) underground.
    • c) in a tunnel.
  • 6. The birthing chamber is …
    • a) below the largest mound of earth.
    • b) larger than a football.
    • c) where the male takes care of the young.
  • 7. Moles are equipped with ….
    • a) strong limbs for digging.
    • b) curved nails for digging.
    • c) immense hands for digging.

Recording

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TRANSCRIPT & ANSWERS

CLICK BELOW:

TRANSCRIPT

I give transcripts on my website to help you review your answers and analyse why you got an answer right or wrong. The transcript is not given with the multiple choice questions – it is given with the answers only. You won’t have access to the transcript in your listening test. You can also use the transcript to listen and repeat out loud to improve your pronunciation.

Transcript: Moles and Mole Hills. The earliest species of mole was found more or less 55 million years ago. Since then, they have developed into 42 species all of which are categorised as insectivores. Nowadays, most people in the UK come across moles when they discover mole hills on their lawns. It is from these mole hills that the idiom “making a mountain out of a mole hill” was formed. This is a very common idiom used by most native English speakers and means exaggerating something that is in fact quite small and trivial. Mole hills are created by the mole digging out earth to create tunnels and throwing the earth outwards into the garden which creates little mounds of earth on the surface. These mole hills do not cause the garden much damage but many people think they are unsightly. Moles can carry rabies which can cause serious illness if someone is bitten, but as most people rarely come into contact with a living mole, they are hardly considered a health risk. As people, particularly in the UK, are very proud of their gardens, the unsightly mole hills result in them laying down traps which kill the moles. Some people think moles are blind which is why they live underground in the dark. However, this is a myth. Although, it’s true that their eyes are very small and play little role in their life underground. They rely mostly on their sense of smell and hearing which they use to find food, such as worms. They are particularly sensitive to vibrations in the soil. A mole is capable of digging upward of 200 yards in a day, which considering that a mole only grows to about 15cm is a great achievement. They often use their tunnels as highways to travel from one place to another. They can run down their tunnels, go backwards and even do little somersaults all inside their tunnels. Their tunnel systems are also used to connect subterranean living chambers such as bedrooms and birthing chambers. The birthing chamber is about the size of a football and the female mole lines it with dry grass and leaves for the young. It’s easy to spot the breeding chamber because the mole hill above it is the biggest. She is the only adult mole who is responsible for taking care of the young. Moles are sweet looking creatures with massive hands, short limbs and strong claws all designed as excellent digging tools. Unfortunately, for moles, their skins used to be prized highly by British High Society for clothing which meant that many moles died for the vanity of people.

ANSWERS

Below are the answers to the multiple choice questions:

  1. The mole hill idiom means …
    • A
      • To exaggerate mean to make something small appear bigger than it is. Such as acting like a small spot on your face, it is huge tumour.
      • Also note, IELTS listening never tests your understanding of idioms. But in this question the meaning as given so it tested only your listening.
      • This isn’t a realistic question for IELTS listening because many of you could guess the answer. This isn’t normal for IELTS listening questions. But I thought you’d all enjoy the question anyway 🙂 
  2. Most people are worried that mole hills ….
    • B
      • The recording says “mole hills don’t cause much damage”. This means option A is wrong. Just because you hear the word “damage” which is also found in the question doesn’t mean it is the answer. Don’t try to match words.
      • The recording says “many people think they are unsightly”. The word “unsightly” means ugly. 
      • The recording says “Moles can carry rabies which can cause serious illness if someone is bitten, but as most people rarely come into contact with a living mole, they are hardly considered a health risk” This means that while moles can carry disease, they aren’t actually a risk.
  3. Moles …
    • C
      • The recording says that blind moles “are a myth”. This means it is not true.
      • The recording says they eat worms. But it does not say they eat “ONLY” worms. Pay attention to the word “only”. It means they eat worms and nothing else. 
      • The answer is found here “They are particularly sensitive to vibrations in the soil. ” This means they can feel movement in the earth.
  4. Moles can dig …
    • A
      • The recording says “A mole is capable of digging upward of 200 yards in a day”. The word “upward of” means “over”.
  5. Moles give birth ….
    • B
      • The recording says “Their tunnel systems are also used to connect subterranean living chambers such as bedrooms and birthing chambers. “. 
      • This was a difficult question. The birthing chamber is where moles give birth and the recording shows it is also one of the “subterranean living chamber”. This means “underground”.
      • You could also arrive at this answer by process of elimination. This means to delete the wrong answers. They don’t give birth in a bedroom, but in a birthing chamber and definitely not in a tunnel.
  6. The birthing chamber is …
    • A
      • the recording says “The birthing chamber is about the size of a football and the female mole lines it with dry grass and leaves for the young. It’s easy to spot the breeding chamber because the mole hill above it is the biggest. She is the only adult mole who is responsible for taking care of the young.”. This shows it is not specifically larger than a football and the “she mole” (not the males) cares for the young. This provides the only answer which is 100% accurate: “the mole hill above is the biggest” which means the chamber is below the biggest mole hill.
  7. Moles are equipped with …
    • C
      • The recording showed that moles have “massive hands, short limbs and strong claws all designed as excellent digging tools. “
      • Limbs are said to be short, no mention about strength. So, answer A is wrong.
      • Claws (nails) are strong, but no mention of being curved. So, answer B is wrong.
      • The word “immense” is the same as: huge, very big, massive.

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Listen & Write: Dealing with Natural Disasters

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This lesson is about listening to an audio recording, taking notes and then reproducing the full written text. This is not an IELTS test practice. It is just a practice exercise to develop sharper listening skills and check your accuracy of written English. Many people preparing for IELTS say they don’t know if their grammar is accurate or not. This is one way to check. When someone speaks aloud what they want you to write down, it is called Dictation. This is a dictation practice.

In this lesson, you will check your ability to:

  1. listen for keywords such as nouns
  2. make notes at the same time as listening 
  3. recreate what you hear in writing – produce a written script of what you hear
  4. check your grammar
  5. check your spelling
  6. check your basic punctuation

How to use this lesson:

  1. get a pen and paper
  2. listen and make notes at the same time
    1.  write down all the nouns you hear. Nouns are always the most important words to write down when you want to reproduce what you hear on paper. 
    2. the aim is not to pause the audio, but to keep it running while you make notes. Of course, the first time, you will only get about 15% of the words. But you can listen again to collect more nouns.
    3. when you write down the nouns, don’t worry about spelling the full word. You can edit all this later after you have finished listening three times.
    4. make sure you keep the order of nouns correct so that you can create the sentences afterwards. You will use those nouns to recreate the full script.
    5. Your aim is not to write all the words while listening. It is to write only key nouns and keywords so you can then recreate the script. This is the same as you do in a university lecture.
  3. listening again and add more nouns to your list
  4. Listen a third time and even a fourth if necessary. You can also write down other useful words as well.
  5. using the nouns you have written down, try to write the whole script on your paper. Don’t listen at this point. Just look at the nouns on your paper and recreate the passage. You will need to add verbs, adjectives, adverbs, articles (a/the) and any other words to make your writing grammatically accurate.
  6. review what you have written and put in full stops, commas and capital letters.
  7. when you think your writing is accurate, listen one more time to see what  words you have missed. 
  8. after those steps, when you are sure your writing is an accurate reproduction, check the answer.
    1. Check which words you are making mistakes with  – are they plurals, articles, verb agreement – which aspects of grammar do you make the most mistakes with
    2. check your spelling and punctuation

This is NOT an IELTS test. It is an opportunity to develop note taking skills at a high level and check the accuracy of your written language. 

Listen and Write: The Best Way to Deal with Natural Disasters

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Natural Disaster = tsunami, typhoon, earthquake etc

ANSWER

The answers are available by clicking below:

CLICK HERE: ANSWERS TO THIS LESSON

i hope you found this useful.

All the best,

Liz

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Listening Practice for IELTS: Plastic Straws

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This listening practice is about the current world issue of plastic straws and how they affect the environment. This is the type of listening you are likely to hear in section 4 of the listening test.  Furthermore, the ideas are useful to learn for your writing and speaking test. It is also something I feel very strongly about. We all know about the problems of plastic straws, but how many of us are choosing not to use them? Hopefully this listening practice will remind us all about the importance of not using such pollutants. 

In the IELTS listening test, you can listen only once. For this lesson, read the questions and make a note of keywords before you listen to the audio. You will always have time to do this in the real test.

Listening Practice Lesson for IELTS

Listening Questions 1- 6

Complete the sentences with words from the recording. Use no more than two words and/or a number.

  1. Plastic straws have a limited ……………… owing to their predominantly single usage.
  2. These straws do not …………….. and can pollute the environment for hundreds of years.
  3. ……………….. straws are thought to be used annually in the UK.
  4. Kasey Turner found ………… straws during her 20-minute ………………
  5. One plastic straw was even found in the airway of a …………………
  6. Understanding the relationship between what we do and the negative ……………. can be a motivation for ………..

Recording

Don’t forget that in the test, you can listen only once and you won’t be able to pause the recording.

Source: This article was adapted from 1millionwomen.com.au and also bbc.co.uk/news

ANSWERS & TRANSCRIPT

Please note, the transcript is something I usually offer with all listening lessons as a way to check your answers and improve your pronunciation by listening and repeating on your own. Transcripts are not given with questions and you won’t be given them in your test. 

Click to open:

ANSWERS

  1. LIFESPAN
    1. Plastic straws have a limited LIFESPAN owing to their predominantly single usage.
  2. BIODEGRADE / BREAK DOWN
    1. These straws do not BIODEGRADE and can pollute the environment for hundreds of years.
    2. Both options are correct. However, you must choose one only as
    3. You cannot have the answer “break down”. Biodegrade and break down are the same.
  3. 8.5 BILLION
    1. 8.5 BILLION straws are thought to be used annually in the UK.
  4. 319 SNORKEL
    1. Kasey Turner found 319 straws during her 20-minute SNORKEL.
    2. It is not necessary to use punctuation to separate the number and word. However, if you do use punctuation, your answer would still be marked correct.
    3. If you wrote “319 and SNORKEL”, it would be wrong because the word “and” is an extra word that is not given for the answer.
  5. SEA TURTLE
    1. One plastic straw was even found in the airway of a SEA TURTLE.
    2. If you wrote only “turtle”, the answer would be wrong.
  6. OUTCOMES CHANGE
  7. Understanding the relationship between what we do and the negative OUTCOMES can be a motivation for CHANGE.

 TRANSCRIPT

Use this to review the answers and improve your pronunciation.

TRANSCRIPT: Single use plastic is a particularly nasty form of plastic. These items have a shockingly short lifespan, normally used once and then discarded to landfill. Like other plastics they never biodegrade and take hundreds of years to break down. Plastic straws are one such single use item and are ending up in our oceans by the thousands. The Marine Conservation Society estimated that the UK uses 8.5 billion straws every year.

Avid scuba diver Kasey Turner was snorkelling after work recently at a popular dive site in Manly Australia. In the area, she found 319 straws on a single 20 minute snorkel. It can be hard to see how using one measly plastic straw is going to cause huge amounts of damage to the environment but let me put it into context for you. Recently a team of scientists in Costa Rica came across an endangered species of sea turtle with what they thought was a parasitic worm blocking its airway. They realised it was actually a plastic straw. Most people just do not realise that the majority of plastic straws are not recycled.

The simplest way you can eradicate straws from your life is to just stop using them at home. It’s as easy as that. Making a connection between our actions and the often devastating outcomes they can have on the environment acts as a catalyst for change.

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Raising Awareness of Plastic Straws

If you would like to learn about about the effects of plastic straws, watch the video footage of the endangered sea turtle mentioned above. Click here: Effect of Straws on a Sea Turtle. Warning: The video is distressing to watch – be warned!!

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Listening Practice Lesson: Sponsored Walk

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This listening practice lessons focuses on two types of questions: short answer questions and gap fill questions (sentence completions questions). The topic is based on an inspiring story of one person’s efforts to raise money to support doctors and nurses as well as patients in the UK during this coronavirus situation.

Listening Practice: Tom’s Sponsored Walk

Questions 1 – 8

  • Only one word or number for your answer.
  • Answers might come quickly, so be prepared to make notes rather than writing down full answers while you listen.
  • Read the questions very carefully before listening to the recording.
  • Note that some questions are short answer questions and others are gap fills.
  1. Does Tom currently serve in the army?
  2. How much did he hope to raise?
  3. Where was his sponsored walk to take place?
  4. Tom eventually raised a …………….. £21 million.
  5. Many hope that Tom will be …………….. for his efforts.
  6. Tom’s aims to support the NHS have struck a ………….. with many people in the UK.
  7. Tom has shown how a single person can …..….. the nation.
  8. Every ……….. helps.

Audio Recording

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Answers

The answers are now available.

CLICK HERE: ANSWERS TO THIS LESSON

All the best, Liz

Sir Tom Moore

2021 Update: Unfortunately Captain Sir Tom Moore died this year after eventually raising a total of £33 million. 

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Capital Letters in IELTS: Will it affect your score?

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When to use capital letters in your IELTS Listening, Reading and Writing test. Will you get a lower score if you make a mistake with capital letters? Can you write your answers in all capital letters? What are the rules for capital letters in IELTS? What about using capital letters in the computer based IELTS test? Read below to learn about this.

Using Capital Letters for IELTS Answers: Rules & Advice

Below you will find advice for using capital letters for writing your answers in IELTS Listening, Reading and Writing.

Capital Letters in IELTS Listening and Reading

In IELTS listening and reading, you can write all your answers in capital letters if you want. You can do this for the paper based test and the computer based test. It is completely up to you. There is no rule stating whether you should use capital or lower case.

  • You can write your answers in small letters if you want.
  • You can write in all capital letters.

Examples of capital letters in listening and reading:

  • HOSPITAL = correct / hospital = correct / 9am = correct / 9AM = correct 

Which is best? Capital letters or lower case?

I recommend writing your listening and reading answers in capital letters for the paper based test. This avoids any problems of markers struggling to read your handwriting. For the computer based test, it doesn’t matter. Both lower case and upper case will be easy to read. 

Transferring Answers in Listening & Reading

In IELTS listening, you will be given 10 mins extra to transfer your answers to your answer sheet in the paper based test. Check your answers and check your spelling – then write your answers on the answer sheet.  If your handwriting is poor, write using all capital letters so it is easy to read. For the computer based test, you do not need to transfer answers. You only need to check what you have already put into the computer. For this reason, you will be given only 2 mins to check your answers after the recording ends.

In IELTS reading, you will not get 10 extra mins to transfer your answers. You must write your answers directly on your answer sheet. But it is completely your choice how to write your answers. The most important factor is clear writing for the paper based test. Use all capital letters if your handwriting isn’t clear.

Capital Letters in IELTS Writing

In IELTS Writing, you can choose to write your essay in capital letters. But I would not recommend it because:

  1. you WILL be marked on punctuation so the use of capital letters and lower case is important to show. You must have a capital letter at the start of a sentence, for example.
  2. you have a strict time limit and it takes too long to write in capital letters

So, write your essay in lower case and remember to use capital letters when grammatically appropriate. The examiner will mark you down if you use capital letters incorrectly. Here is a list of typical words that use capital letters:

When to use capital letters in English grammar

  • Days/ Months = Thursday / September
  • Names and Titles = Mrs J Blogs / Dr Author Jones
  • Countries / Cities = India / Vietnam / Paris / Hong Kong
  • Names of Places = University of London
  • Acronyms = BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation)
  • Start of a Sentence = “The majority of people use cars to go to work these days. However, it would be better if they used healthier means of transport such as the bicycle.”

Biggest Mistake with Capital Letters

  • but / because / and
    • These linking words should NEVER be used to start a sentence in formal writing. See my page of linking words for writing task 2 to learn tips and get a useful list: IELTS Writing Task 2 Linking Words

What about speaking part 2? Well, the notes you make for your talk are not marked and only you see them. The examiner will not check them or mark them. So, don’t write sentences or bother with punctuation, just write words, ideas and tips to help you present a good talk.

More IELTS Tips

What about using a pen or pencil? Click on this link: IELTS Pen or Pencil

How are words counted in IELTS Listening? Click on this link: How Words are Counted in IELTS

Can I use “I” or “my” in writing task 2? Click on this link: How to express your opinion in IELTS WT2

Tips & Practice for Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking:

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IELTS Listening Test Changes Jan 2020

by 61 Comments

Starting January 4th, the IELTS listening test will have the following changes:

IELTS Listening Test Change 1

There will be no example played in part 1. Usually there would be an example answer for you to listen to at the start of the recording. This helped you get used to the accent and check the volume if you were using headphones. This example has now been removed. This is a very important change that you need to be ready for. You must listen carefully from the start of the recording for answer 1.

IELTS Listening Test Change 2

The word “sections” will now be changed to “parts”. This won’t affect the actual test, but it is something that is useful to know.

IELTS Listening Test Change 3

There will be no page number references. But there will still be references to question number. Again, this is no big change for you, but it is something to be aware of.

There are no other changes to the IELTS Listening Test or the Reading, Writing or Speaking Tests. For pros and cons of the computer based test, see this page: Computer based IELTS. For useful information about the IELTS test does and don’ts, see this page: IELTS FAQ Visit the Official IELTS page for verification of the above changes: IELTS Listening Test Format

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