Matching paragraph information question in IELTS reading requires you to match the sentences given with information that is contained in different paragraphs. You must have strong skills of paraphrasing for this type of question. See if you can complete this practise lesson which I have written for you.
IELTS Reading Paragraph Matching Tips
There are two types of questions in IELTS reading that people confuse: Matching Headings and Matching Paragraph Information. They are not the same questions. Matching Headings requires you to choose the best heading for the paragraph. A heading is a title. Matching Paragraph Information requires you to locate specific information in one of the paragraphs.
- The question will be in the form of a statement containing information.
- The information in the statement given needs to be located in one of the paragraphs.
- The paragraphs in the reading passage will be labelled with letters: A, B, C etc.
- You need to locate the paragraph that contains the information given in the statement.
- Sometimes a single paragraph might contain the answer to more than one question. IELTS will always indicate this in the instructions:
- Letters may be used more than once.
- Always look out for that kind of instruction.
- Your answer will always be a letter. If you write any words, they will be marked wrong.
- Look for keywords in the question statement.
- keywords are words that will help you find the same information in the passage.
- Keywords are often paraphrased.
- Think about these possible paraphrases BEFORE you look at the passage to locate the answer.
- Answers do not come in order.
- This means you could choose to tackle the questions in any order you want.
- So, you could start with the easiest questions first
- Paragraphs usually have a central topic and that can help you decide which paragraph is likely to contain the information you are looking for.
IELTS Matching Paragraph Information Practice
Below is a reading lesson to practice Matching Paragraph Information questions.
Amundsen’s Expedition to the South Pole
A ) The first expedition to reach the geographic South Pole was led by the Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen. He and four others arrived at the pole on 14 December 1911, five weeks ahead of a British party led by Robert Falcon Scott as part of the Terra Nova Expedition. Amundsen and his team returned safely to their base, and later learned that Scott and his four companions had died on their return journey.
B ) Amundsen’s plans had focused on the Arctic and the conquest of the North Pole by means of an extended drift in an icebound ship. He obtained the use of Fridtjof Nansen’s polar exploration ship Fram, and undertook extensive fundraising. Preparations for this expedition were disrupted when, in 1909, the rival American explorers Frederick Cook and Robert E. Peary each claimed to have reached the North Pole. Amundsen then changed his plan and began to prepare for a conquest of the South Pole; uncertain of the extent to which the public and his backers would support him, he kept this revised objective secret. When he set out in June 1910, even most of his crew believed they were embarking on an Arctic drift.
C ) The expedition’s success was widely applauded. The story of Scott’s heroic failure overshadowed its achievement in the United Kingdom, unable to accept that a Norwegian had been the first person to set foot in the South Pole, but not in the rest of the world. Amundsen’s decision to keep his true plans secret until the last moment was criticised by some. Recent polar historians have more fully recognised the skill and courage of Amundsen’s party; the permanent scientific base at the pole bears his name, together with that of Scott. (passage from wiki)
Questions 1-6
In which paragraph (A-C) is the following information found. Letters may be used more than once.
- The success of Roald Amundsen was celebrated worldwide, except in one country.
- Amundsen only heard about the death of Scott after he had reached the South Pole.
- The base at the South Pole bears both Amundsen’s name and Scott’s.
- Amundsen had originally planned an expedition to the North Pole.
- When Amundsen decided to aim for the South Pole he did not reveal his intentions.
- The British did not celebrate Amundsen’s success as did other countries due to the death of Scott.
ANSWERS
Click below to reveal the answers.
ANSWERS- C
- A
- C
- B
- B
- C
.
RECOMMENDED FOR YOU
- More IELTS Matching Paragraph Information Practice
- Matching Sentence Endings
- Yes No Not Given Reading
- ALL READING PRACTICE LESSONS & TIPS
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Hi Liz, I got 5/6 put I didn’t understand all the vocabulary in the passage.
Thank you Liz,
I got 6/6 in this but in the Cambridge Test Series, there are some question models needed to match the heading for each paragraph and I lost the total mark in these sessions, could you please help me?
Those types of questions are called matching headings. The lesson on the page above is matching paragraph information, which are much easier questions. For matching headings practice, go to the main reading page: https://ieltsliz.com/ielts-reading-lessons-information-and-tips/. Your aim with matching headings is to match the heading with the whole paragraph aim (not just with a sentence in the paragraph).
please can this question repeat again
I don’t fully understand your question. Matching Headings questions and Matching Paragraph Information questions can appear in any passage of the reading test. I’ve got practice lessons and tips for different kinds of reading questions on this page: https://ieltsliz.com/ielts-reading-lessons-information-and-tips/. Go the page and choose the type of reading question that you want to practice.
Of course, you probably have to face with each and every types of questions regarding to the reading test. Better to understand with all types of questions as I am also preparing IELTS from Nepal.
Thanks for everything you do Liz, may God bless you in all your endeavours. I got a 7.5 band score after studying with your site.
Thanks for what you do
That’s great! Well done 🙂
I got it all correct. Thank you Liz for the tips !
Great
A student of mine couldn’t understand how you got the answer C for question 6. I agree with her. There is no mention of Scott’s death in paragraph C. The answer should be based on the actual text presented, not on the student’s general knowledge.
Thanks, Tony
There is no general knowledge needed at all for this question. The passage has already told you that Scott’s team failed to arrive first and also that they all died (see paragraph A “Scott and his four companions had died on their return journey.”). In question number 6, it refers to “Scott’s heroic failure” – this is about Scott’s expedition and death. So, paragraph C contains all information necessary for number 6. Try not to match words. Just because the word “death” doesn’t appear in paragraph C doesn’t mean there is no reference to it. You must take context into consideration for reading passages.
HELPFUL 🙂
I got 6/6. Thanks.I need more efforts. I drift a lot while reading.
Thank you Liz,got 6/6,but I spent 11 minutes on it,just worried about the time spent
Kisses,you are really doing a nice job.
At this point in your training, time isn’t an issue. Start developing skills and gain awareness of question types, keywords, paraphrasing etc. Then once you feel confident, do real tests at home and develop speed.
Hi Liz,
Is the 4th question supposed to be ‘expedition’ ? I cannot find the word exhibition in the paragraph B.
Can’t believe I missed that one. Very well spotted 🙂
I got 5 out of 6 within 3 minutes..
Thanks Liz , I got 6/6. Your site is the best site to guide me. I find it very interesting. I owe you
omg thanks for your lessons! you`re great
I got 6/6 in 4 minutes
Hey Liz, Got 6/6. Thank you so much for helping lot of students for their IELTS Preparation. I am going to write my test on Dec 8th and I am scared. But your practice sections help me a lot. :))
Good luck! Also make sure you do FULL real tests at home.
Thank you very much mam Liz.. first time got full marks in this test…please keep on updating some other question for pratice
Thanks man I got 6/6
I got 6/6
but in 20 min
6/6
6/6. encouraged to practice more
6/6.
wow am motivated to do more.thanks liz
bukky
6/6
I didn’t observe time.
7 min 6/6
Scored 6/6 in 5 mins. Thank you so much for such wonderful practice tests
I got 6/6 in 8 mins. This is my thierd try.
Thank you Liz you are doing a wonderful job.
hi,
5/6 i got ,but i took more time.
5/6 in 7 minutes
but i am practicing ……
6/6 🙂
6/ 6 ☺
Got 6/6 in 5 minutes.
I’ve got 6/6. Thanks Liz!
I got 4/6. Not bad! Next time i can do better! For now i need more practice. Btw thank you Liz to your example exams:)
6/6 in 9 minutes, I should buckle down to reduce the answering time!
6/6, Pretty easy passage but i did not understand question 4, can you please help me to find it out in the passage
Thanks for great help and great material, you are an awesome teacher!
You can find it here:
“Amundsen’s plans had focused on the Arctic and the conquest of the North Pole……………. Preparations for this expedition were disrupted.., in 1909, ……… Amundsen then changed his plan and began to prepare for a conquest of the South Pole ……”
Don’t always think that the answer will be in one sentence. You need to locate key words and then read around that area – usually three, four of five sentences need to be read – or possibly a whole paragraph.
GOT 6/6 IN 4 MIN, ,THANKS …
5/6 in 5 mintues
5/6 sad but making progress
6/6
6/6, am really proud of myself
Hello Liz…Hope you are doing fine!
As per passage A, Amundsen reached base and later heard about death of Scott. However Q2 says…”Amundsen reached South pole and later heard about Scott’s death”. This information does not match with what has given in the passage. Can the answer to this Q be “Not Available in any paragraph”…NA?
The paragraph states that Amundsen and his team reached the South Pole. After that they “returned to base” when they heard about the death. This means they had been at the Pole and returned to base. It is complete information. Always read the sentences around the key words – the answer is not usually held just in one sentence.
Thank you for a wonderful explanation 😊
Hi Liz,
I gave my IELTS recently and got S7 L6 R6.5 W6. Prior to the test I was practicing only sample papers. Not aware of all these strategies. After visiting your blog, I was like, oh my god.. I never knew this .. I am planning to take my test again in August.. will I be able to achieve 7 to 7.5 in all the modules ? Or do I need more time to improve my level from 6 to 7. Please advice me the correct steps to follow to achieve the desired score. Thanks!
It is not possible to estimate your potential score. IELTS is also a language test so it depends on your knowledge, range and accuracy in English. However, review all tips and make sure you learn how your speaking and writing are scored. Good luck!
Thank u Liz..
Got 6/6 getting confidence now.
6/6 thank you Liz. why did not i get good score while doing the whole 3 passges i got just 15/40 how can i improve my reading this is toughest module to me
See this page: https://ieltsliz.com/ielts-reading-tips-how-can-i-improve-my-score/
Thanks for your blog. it very useful .plz am confuse. in reading part 3 how many passage is being given?
In the Academic reading test, each part is one passage. See the practice test on this page: https://ieltsliz.com/useful-websites-and-resources-for-ielts/ or get the IELTS Cambridge Test books from 1 to 11 – you should never enter the test without having done a few full practice tests at home.
I would like to appear at IELTS Test very soon.
May I have a candidate to speak?
HI Liz
Thank you so much for running a wonder blog. I’m pretty sure it helps lots of people around the globe. I just have started to learn your tips in regards to doing well in reading.
I’m glad that I’ve scored 6/6 in this passage. Feeling good and got hope to get my desire score.
Thank you.
-Arif
6/6 thank you so much 🤓
Thank you so much for your assistance,, everytime i visit your blog, the new information i will get to know .. 🙂
words are really inadequate to express my gratitude ……
God bless u!!!!!
jagruthi.
Hi Liz,
I am from Nepal. Why all of these passage are very short, I think it a very short passage for IELTS exam. Can you please provide me the link of longer Reading passage .
Thanks!
These are practice IELTS reading not full practice test passages. For full tests, see my useful website page. You can find a link in the right hand side column.
All the best
Liz
6/6!
Improving myself more with this AWESOME blog! Thanks Liz!! 🙂
Hi
What is the best method to find questions which aren’t com in order? Foe example in ielts 5 camberidg book answer questio 1 is in paragraph E, and answer question 2 is in paragraph B.serch for find key word take alot of time.
When the answer do not come in order, you can start with any question you want. I also read all the question and then choose the one that is easiest. It is often easiest because there are clear key words which will help me locate the answer in the passage.
Liz
6/6
thanks Liz
Kind regards
6/6
thanks Liz
Kind regards
Hi Liz,
Although i have scored 6/6. However, i am still confused for 6th question. Can you please help me to locate it exactly in the paragraph?
Regards
Akriti
The key is in this sentence: “The story of Scott’s heroic failure overshadowed its achievement in the United Kingdom, unable to accept that a Norwegian had been the first person to set foot in the South Pole, but not in the rest of the world.”. It shows that his failure overshadowed his achievement in the UK.
All the best
Liz
6/6…..
thanks Liz!
Respected Teacher,Liz
I hope that you are well.
Your efforts to bring innovative and best possible associative learning, in IELTS is highly applouded.
I did many attempts in it and succeded to get L7,R6.R7.5,S8 but in my all exams my score in R was stagnant, at 6.
I am appearing on 1st August 2015 but it would be my last attempt after that i would give up.
I have gone through your all teaching modules but mainly focussing on reading.
Any suggestion for me in reading to get over it,i would truly appreciate.
Look forward to hearing form you.
Kind regards,
Dr Arshad
Anaesthetist,Doha
Make a list of all the paraphrases you come across in all exercises and practice tests. This way you will start think more automatically of paraphrasing and remember more. Also start reviewing the limitations of words. It is not enough to know just the meaning, you need to know when a word can be used and it’s possible collocations in the reading test.
All the best
Liz
Most kind of you for the best tip, which i was not exercising,it would make the difference certainly.Some people do two to three category questions altogether to save time,instead of having skimming and scanning of whole passage.They go on reading in the descending order and complete 13 set of questions.Time management is another big barrier that every one have to overcome in the test.What you recommend in this contxt?
Regards & best wishes,arshad.
The advice was for your training, not during the test. The idea is that you train yourself on particular types of questions one at a time. That is how it is usually taught in schools. You need to develop techniques for each type of question before you enter the test. During the test, you do the questions in order. For time, only you can build your speed though focused practice on scanning.
All the best
Liz
I am grateful for your all best guidance.
Kindest regards,arshad
6 out of 6. This is gud site where we can practise for ielts. Thanks so much liz
You’re welcome 🙂