IELTS Summary Completion Reading Practice

To answer a summary question in IELTS reading, you should skim read the passage and then spend time reading through the summary to predict answers and prepare paraphrases. This is a practice lesson for summaries.

Fermented Foods

Fermentation is a process in which an agent [typically bacteria and yeast] cause an organic substance to break down into simpler substances; especially, the anaerobic [no oxygen] breakdown of sugar into alcohol, i.e. the making of beer or wine. Fermentation in food processing is the conversion of carbohydrates (plant foods) to alcohols and carbon dioxide, or organic acids, using yeasts, bacteria, or a combination thereof, under anaerobic (no oxygen) conditions. Fermentation usually implies that the action of microorganisms is desirable, and the process is used to produce alcoholic beverages such as wine, beer, and cider. Fermentation is also employed in the leavening of bread, and for preservation techniques to create lactic acid in sour foods such as sauerkraut, dry sausages, kimchi and yogurt, or vinegar (acetic acid) for use in pickling foods.

Nobel Prize winner Dr. Elie Metchnikoff was one of the first scientists to recognize the benefits of eating fermented foods. His research in the early 1900’s focused on the Bulgarians. He believed the daily ingestion of yogurt was a major contribution to their superior health and longevity.

Bulgarians perfected the art of detoxifying and preserving milk (removing the lactose and predigesting the proteins) and transforming it into yogurt and cheese. For centuries, Europeans used wine as a source of clean, durable water. The Caucasians used Kefir grains for the same purpose: detoxify milk products to make Kefir. Vegetables were also fermented to preserve them from spoilage, such as kimchi in Korea. Most of the pickled products found on our grocery shelves were at one time a fermented product: pickles, saurkraut, and even catsup (a Chinese word for pickled fish brine). However, since fermentation isn’t always a uniform process, manufacturers found another way to make these products.

Questions 1-6

Complete the summary using the list of words (A-J) below. Write the correct letter on your answer sheet, in boxes 1-6

 International Uses for Fermentation

At the start of the 20th century, Dr. Elie Metchnikoff put forward his belief that the 1.  ……………… and good health of Bulgarians could be attributed to eating fermented food each day. By 2. ……………. and preserving milk, they were able to convert it into 3……………… and 4. …………………. In other parts of Europe, fermented 5. ……………… was consumed as a replacement for clean water. Some 6. ……………….. were fermented which gave them a longer lifespan but nowadays this is done by pickling.

A) ingesting     B) yoghurt      C )  longevity     D) pickled products    E) wine    F) food    G) kimchi    H) cheese   I) detoxifying    J) vegetables

Answers

Click below to reveal the answers.

Answers
  1. C
  2. I
  3. B (any order)
  4. H (any order)
  5. E
  6. J

Passage from healing naturally by bee.com

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

Liz

 

Recommended

IELTS Reading: Sentence Completion Practice, click here

Comments

  1. Nwachukwu Bertha Nkeiruka says

    Thank you so much Liz
    your tips really are wonderful and helped me most
    I finished in 4mins, and scored 6/6

  2. cris511 says

    Hii Liz,

    I completed this test within 5 minutes and scored a perfect 6/6. I want to know about the difficulty of this test and it would be a great help if you could give me a confirmation whether I should feel ready for the IELTS test or need to practice more. My goal is to score at least 8 in reading.

    Thank you

    • My lessons are used to build confidence and to learn new skills. You should also use authentic IELTS tests at home for your practice to know the real level of the test. Please get the IELTS Cambridge test books which are published each year by IELTS.

  3. Fatwa Amalia says

    dear Liz, i want to say thankyou for your lesson. its helpfull me to study IELTS. 🙂

  4. Zarina says

    Hi Liz, your lesson especially this part is a huge help to me, I am really poor in reading, but your tips help me gain hope. Hope you be able to teach and give faith to all the IELTS test takers. More power to your website and good health to you. Love lots

  5. jackson chuks says

    i got 5/6 i love your website liz thank you for everything

  6. Liz site is simply the best and a way out for all that wanted to excel in IELTS exam. Thanks ma.

  7. Thank you Liz. You are God sent.

  8. Maria says

    Thank you soooooo much for your help!! This is by far the most helpful site for IELTS preparation. Thanks a bunch, Liz!!!

  9. Hi maam,
    Im from India, im very very thankful to you for providing online prepration stuff and techniques. There are great amount of fees which im unable to pay because of my financial issue due to COVID. The information and the way you teach is mind blowing.

    Thank yiu very much
    Harjinder Paul

  10. Javaria Irfan says

    Thank you so much. This is very helpful for me.

  11. Hi Liz,

    Thank you very much for your constant support of IELTS preparation. In two summary completion questions I did, the answer is ‘dehydration’, but only ‘dehydrated’ appears in the text. Another one is that the answer is ‘period’, but in the text it shows ‘periods’. Am I allowed to change word formats to get the sentence grammatically correct? Thank you.

    • I don’t understand. Those options are not given on the page above. Are you referring to this page or something else? If you are referring to something else, you have to write the passage text, question text and the instructions as well – along with the source of your example.

      • Dear Liz,

        Thank you for your reply. I refer to other sources from IELTS Reading Practice Test. Here are the examples. My question is can I change the words to make the sentence grammatically correct?

        Text: Most of (At least nine species of) crocodilian are thought to aestivate during dry periods. Kennett and Christian’s six-year study of Australian freshwater crocodiles – Crocodylus johnstoni (the King Crocodiles)…Furthermore, though the animals lost water and body mass (just over one-tenth of their initial mass) while underground, the losses were proportional: on emergence, the aestivating crocodiles were not dehydrated and exhibited no other detrimental effects such as a decreased growth rate.

        Questions: Complete the summary and write the correct answer (NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS OR A NUMBER).
        In many places inhabited by crocodilians, most types of the crocodile have evolved a successful scheme to survive in the drought brought by a ……………………… According to Kennett and Christian’s six-year study of Australian freshwater crocodiles’ aestivation, The absolute size of body water pools declined proportionately with body mass; thus there is no sign of……………………… and other health-damaging impact in the crocodiles even after an aestivation period.

        Answers: dry period
        dehydration

        Text: Around 1606, he had studied dispersion in prisms, measured the refractive indices of different liquids placed in a hollow glass prism, studied refraction in crystal spheres, and correctly understood refraction in the rainbow before Descartes.

        Question: Answer the questions using NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the passage for each answer.
        One result, for example, corrected the misconception about the idea of ………………….
        Answer: (the) rainbow refraction/ refraction in rainbow

        • That is not an authentic IELTS test. It was not written by IELTS. IELTS Summary questions always have very clear instructions, for example: “Choose one word only from the passage for each answer” – those are from summary questions. Other instructions say “complete the summary using the list of words, A-F, below” – those instructions are when they give you a box of words to choose from.
          So, you can see that authentic IELTS tests have very clear instructions so that you know where to take the words from for your answers to summary questions.
          There are lots of practice books out there. They provide useful practise. But always follow official IELTS test books (IELTS Cambridge test books) when you doubt such things.

          For your second question, the answer options are given. If you don’t understand the use of brackets, please use the search box on this site to locate information to help you.

  12. Neva Lyn Machica says

    Hi Liz,
    Thanks for being best of my source while im in Quarantine.
    I really enjoy and motivated.
    I got 6/6 for this practice test.Thanks a lot and Keep safe.😘😘😘

  13. Benny says

    Hi Liz,
    I got 5/6…….Thank you so much.
    You are the best

  14. Sai Balai says

    Thanks Liz.
    I have scored 5/6.

  15. Thanks Liz, I attain 5/6 in this type which is great achievement for me, because this was arduous kind and I always afraid from this.Thanks a lot for doing great work.

  16. Thanks Liz, I got 6/6. I pray it cones this easy for me on my exam date. Is a strong fate that I have.
    Thanks for your help.
    Pls do get well soon. Much love!

    • Thanks. Once you are familiar with the types of questions and have developed an understanding of areas you need to be careful of, it will be time for you to do real IELTS tests at home. Get the IELTS Cambridge test books.

  17. Rajbir says

    Hi ,Liz your all lessons are very helpful but I am very weak in reading to found headings please make a video for tips to find headings please….

    • I’ll put that on the list of videos to make. However, I won’t be making any videos until my health problems clear up – maybe later next year if I’m lucky.

      • Sachini Dahanayake says

        Hi Liz!

        Wishing you a speedy recovery as you are the best tutor which I ever know and there are lack of beautiful souls like you!!!! Lots of Hugs & Kisses xoxoxoxo

        Much Love,
        Sachini

        • Thank you for your kind comment 🙂

        • Carmen says

          Hey Liz! Your videos help me to be ready for my IELTS exam answer even I do not know you in person, I admire your passion for sharing knowledge.
          I hope you could be much better in the next months.
          My best wishes for you recovery.

      • Evelyn says

        You deserve more than luck, you deserve mercy and grace and that’s what you’ll get; total healing and restoration to live long, healthy and happy in Jesus Name.
        You’re such a sweet soul, hugs and kisses Liz.

      • I’ve got 6 out 6. Thank you for your helpful tips! I really need to get a higher score in reading since it is one of my weaknesses.

      • Get well soon Liz. I pray Allah for your good health 🙂

      • Liza , I pray to God that you get well soon!!

      • Hi Liz,

        Hope you are doing well. You are one of the best teachers I have come across, you explain very clearly and precisely. May God give you a good health always.

      • I hope you are better this new year. Happy new year dear Liz…

  18. I think the answer to 1 should be longevity but the right answer is ingestion , i didn’t understand this

  19. Wilhemina Asante says

    Thanks so much Liz and especially for your tutorials 6/6 correct this time

  20. Imran says

    Hi Liz,

    What an exceptional help from you ! I have never ever found such a gr8 teacher.
    Thanks again for all your efforts towards us!

    Wish you a healthy life ahead!

  21. prahlad says

    scored 6/6

  22. Cambridge practice test is so hard. My question is it as hard in real test?.
    And thank u Liz ur practice materials are awesome

    • The IELTS Cambridge books are real IELTS test published by IELTS.

      • Hi Liz,
        Thanks a million for putting all this wealth of information out here ! This is been of tremendous help
        Is the difficulty level in Cambridge Test Series for GT same as the real IELTS Exam.

        I have tried using other websites like – IELTSFEVER , MINI IELTS but i feel sometimes their practice tests have errors. Sometimes the speaking is speaking really fast – it feels awkward ! / the reading section answers seem to be in correct. (for example in one case their provided answer (exact word) was not in the passage !
        I think the anwer/word has to come from the passage in the Reading Section – correct ? We cannot provide out own word

        the case was – “These take various forms but the main materials are workbooks which are designed for use alongside applications software,and allow to work your way through at your own pace ”

        WRITE NO MORE THAN 3 WORDS
        Question – ” Computer curses that are not instructor -led for undergraduate and postgraduates can last as long as students like because they are ————

        ANSWER GIVEN -“SELF-PACED”

        Is this correct ?

        Should I just stick to Cambridge test series – i have 7-13. Please advise.

        • Don’t use any websites like that. There is no point learning from fault materials. Use real, authentic tests. Unless you know exactly who has written the materials and you know their name, their qualifications etc, don’t use the materials.

          • Thanks Liz. Thanks a million for such a quick reply 🙂

            1. So this question that I pasted above – the answer is WRONG – Correct
            We cannot use our own words in the Reading Section – it should Always come from the Passage – Correct

            2. Is the difficulty level in IELTS GT same as that in the Cambridge Series ?
            I read somewhere – people said real IELTS is much harder than these Cambridge Test Series (as they are very old)
            Please advise

            • The answer comes from the passage.
              I don’t understand your other question. The IELTS Cambridge test books are real tests published by IELTS. They are real, authentic – they are IELTS tests. They are not very old at all. Book 13 is new. Furthermore, the test hasn’t changed. However, I would still recommend using the most recently published.

  23. 6/6 by prediction without even looking at the passage. Can it be this easy in the real exam?

    • No. These are just practice lessons to help you develop skills and confidence. You should also do real IELTS tests at home from the IELTS Cambridge books 1 to 13.

  24. Henriatha says

    i scored 6/6 thank you

  25. I got 6/6 thank you Liz.

    You have been so helpful.

  26. TAQIYA says

    I got 6/6. Thank you liz!!

  27. Rooma says

    I got 6/6. Thank you liz!!
    your tips are really great and easy to understand the mistakes.

  28. Ritu says

    6/6

  29. Swosti Shrestha says

    6/6 Yeah! 🙂 You are a real help Liz. Thank You very much.

  30. Ameer says

    6/6 my first time I could answerall the questions , thank you Liz , God bless you

  31. Dhairya says

    I am curious to know for avoiding mistakes in writing some answer where first letter should be capital, is it okay to write all answers in complete capital letters?

    • It is recommended that ALL ANSWERS BE WRITTEN USING CAPITAL LETTERS FOR READING AND LISTENING.

  32. 5/6
    I was confused about the last space between j and d. Finally, I choose d. The wrong answer.

  33. Abuzaineh says

    My experience in learning English with Liz is really invaluable. The way you Liz explain topics, the tips, the instructions, providing answers and enrich the learner’s vocabulary are unique. All in all, thank you for the great job you have done.

  34. Vishal Soni says

    One of the most wonderful websites for IELTS prep. Really appreciate what you are doing here.

  35. Maria Laskova says

    Kind Regards from Bulgaria 🇧🇬!
    Wish everyone luck on the exam!
    Very useful and helpful site!
    Thank you, Liz for all your incredible work and support!
    🤗

  36. Bolade Balogun says

    I got 6/6 in less than 5minutes. Thanks

  37. Vimal Kamothi says

    Hi Liz,

    Thanks for your kind support in helping students like us who wants to achieve a good score in IELTS. Your website and guidance are an immense resources for the same.

    I am taking few mock tests and observed that the answer for a question was not correct. Can you please help me on this ?

    Reading:
    Complete the summary below. Choose no more than three words and/or numbers from the passage and write them in boxes

    The question was – It has been established that children can speak independently at age _____

    I provided my answer as “three or four”, but the answer was wrong and the correct answer was “3 or 4” or “3-4 years”.

    Regards,
    Vimal

  38. yeshwanthi says

    HI Liz,
    Do we get similar kind of questions in IELTS GT or difficult than the sample question posted above?

    • IELTS GT passages are based on different topics. I suggest you get the IELTS Cambridge test books for GT IELTS – they are real tests published by IELTS. All students should practice with them before their real test.

  39. Omodara says

    hello Liz, for the reading test, will I have my question paper for the whole 1 hour or will it be it collected after going through it before answering the question.

    • I do not understand what you mean. You have one hour to answer 40 questions. Nobody will remove your reading question paper during that 1 hour.

  40. SaraOhj says

    6/6 in 5 minutes. 🙂

  41. Thanks Liz

    I practiced it and it developed my skill.

  42. Farheen says

    I finally got 6/6 in 6 minutes. I have my ilets in December. I hope i would do better. Your guidance for the ilets is very helpful.

  43. MD SHAHJAHAN says

    Hi Liz
    How are you? Undoubtedly well. I wish so. Thank you so much for your wonderful arrangement. I got 6/6. Pray for me.

  44. 6/6

  45. Jeny jozen says

    Hi Ms. Liz.. i feel very delighted knowing all the sample questions and practices you have provided are all beneficial. It gives me more reason to review and allowing my self to learn more. Thank you so kuch Ms. Liz..

  46. Gaolatlhe Gibson says

    Can’t stop smiling…
    My exam is on the 20th July… I am a bit nervous but with your help I am going to nail it😘

  47. abdul asad says

    thanks mam…..i am very much inspired when i follow your rules….thanks

  48. Angela says

    Hi, thanks so much for this. I got 6/6 in just 3 mins and 29 secs

  49. Elizabeth W. says

    Aaaaaaw thanks so very much dear Liz… Your guidance made me felt like I can do this better than I ever imagined. Be blessed .

  50. Fatemeh says

    Hi Liz,
    I got 6/6, Thank you for your effort.

  51. Arun Chauhan says

    Mam I did all correct in 8minutes and 30 sec am I going well?

  52. Rahel says

    Hi liz,

    No words to express to what extent your materials are helping me…

    I am booked for 25th March and gaining a lot more from your study resources

    stay safe and blessed liz

    • I’m glad you feel you are learning and developing. Good luck!! Keep positive 🙂

  53. Dear Liz,
    Recognize or recognise? Which spelling will be marked correct in IELTS?
    Thanks…

  54. hi Liz,
    I am Grace and trying my best to review IELTs on youtube when i saw your video and got interested on it. I found it very helpfull for revising.
    I am about to start my Reading test practice and while downloading the practice area i have notice that all the tool wasnt for printing. Would it be possible to print them all? please.

  55. hey liz,
    Your site is too good.
    Just wanted to ask, are the reading sections ever repeated?

  56. sujit kumar biswas says

    Hi dear liz
    i got 6/6 . what should i say without thank you!

  57. Mam I Raman mam your website is very lucrative for me .mam my exam is on 3rd of November mam plz advised me what can i do more for achieving 8 bands

    • Hitting band 8 is about having excellent English with almost no errors as well as strong IELTS skills.

  58. Karen Tayag says

    Hello Liz…. I’m Karen a Filipino Nurse currently working in Saudi Arabia. I just want to extend my happiness and satisfaction in your site, this is really a great one. I’m planning to take the UKVI IELTS soon. I easily understand your lectures in Youtube. I even do great on the practice test you’ve given. Thank you and may Father God continue to bless you abundantly. 😘😘😘😘

  59. ashok m says

    Hi,i have one doubt
    can i use captial letters in reading and listening sections?

  60. Claudia says

    Hello Liz,

    I’m having a hard time with reading category especially in T,F,NG or Y,N,NG part. Please I need more tips for that. I want to improve my reading category scores so badly. Thank you Liz.
    You are such a blessing. I hope to hear from you soon.

  61. Sapient says

    Liz,

    You are a God.

    Nothing more to say.

  62. Kavita Pathak says

    Hi,
    It was great going through your work. I have a question for you. Will the answers to the question regarding ‘Complete the Summary.’ be always in order from the passage?
    Please answer asap. I have my IELTS exam dis week.
    Thank You!!
    Cheers!!

  63. Archana says

    I got 6/6.I m jst worried abt Y/N/NG and multiple choice questions bcoz every time I answer,I do mistakes and I have also watched your video tips but I m not getting it.Please help me.

  64. I got 6/6. but I have two option for Q.6 D and J but Finally I selected J option bcoz in passage “Most of the Pickled Products…” and In summary “Some……”. My trick is perfect??

  65. Dear Liz,
    i did a summary completion test on the http://www.ielts-exam.net but i got confused. The question was “Complete the summary with the list of words A-P below.”
    Below the summary there was a table with words listed as A., B. C…..P. The problem is that i answered using the letters (A-P), but when i saw the correct answers, they were written as words not as letters. My question is why should i had written the words instead of letters? Will it be wrong, according to that example, if i use the letters?

    • If the instructions ask you to choose a letter, then your answer will be a letter, not a word. You should use real exam papers to practice reading from the IELTS Cambridge books 1 to 10 in order to avoid author errors.
      All the best
      Liz

  66. Hi Liz,

    I would like to thank you for this helpful website!! I wish you were in Australia to be my teacher 🙂 Your videos are so clear, thank you very much for helping us to achieve our result! I´m going to my second IELTS, my problem is in the reading part… I find to hard to deal with the time. Hopefully next time I will pass!

    • Good luck. Make sure you read all my tips about increasing your score in reading.
      All the best
      Liz

  67. khalid Hamed says

    Hi,Liz

    my scored is 5/6
    my error is number 6 i selected number D
    kind regards

  68. Hi Liz, I just skim the paragraphs and I got 6/6. That’s the power of skimming.

    • Skimming is to read without trying to understand deeply. Scanning is locating information and answers. Well done!
      Liz

  69. ameen88m says

    In this type of question,what should be read first questions or passage?

    • For all questions, except matching headings, you should skim the passage first. This is not the same as reading, it is skimming.
      All the best
      Liz

      • ameen88m says

        Thanks for your respond
        Actually I am having a serious problem with skimming skill .I need to know what exactly is it . I’ve found millions of definition but none of them seems to be helpful with me .
        when I try to skim a passage I just pass my eyes over it but I can not understand anything. maybe the reason is my lack of vocabularies.
        my exam was sat after 45 days so am confused I need some advice about skimming in specific and reading in general
        thank you

        • When you skim read, you are not trying to understand. Skim reading is to get an idea of the layout and topic not to understand detail. Skimming a whole passage should take about 2 minutes. Then you focus on preparing questions. If you try to understand the whole passage in detail, you will run out of time. IELTS is testing your ability to locate information and understand detail presented in a few sentences – academic skills.
          Liz

  70. Hi, Liz.
    Please, I find this reading paragraph is very helpful and useful for me.
    please explain ‘,, how wine replaced by the clean water, In my opinion
    I,IS totally different we can not consume wine like water.

    I f you find this email please let me now.

    Thanks

  71. Marion says

    helo Liz,
    my question is: in the exam, will they always give us words to choose from to fill the blanks of the summary? or some some summaries you have to get the words from the passage by your self?

    • There are two types of reading summary questions. For one type, you are given a box of words to choose from for your answers. The other type is when you must choose the words from the passage.
      All the best
      Liz

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