IELTS Reading: how to finish all 40 questions in 60 minutes

The most common complaint about IELTS Academic Reading isn’t that the passages are too hard. It’s that there isn’t enough time. Three long passages and 40 questions in 60 minutes leaves no room to read every word carefully. You need a plan.

The format

• 3 passages, 40 questions, 60 minutes.
• Passages come from books, journals, magazines and newspapers, and get harder as the test goes on.
• No extra transfer time. Your answers must be written within the hour.

A time plan that works

Wear a watch or keep an eye on the on-screen timer. If a passage’s time runs out, guess the remaining answers and move on. A blank answer can never score; a guess sometimes does.

Skim first, then scan

Skim (2–3 minutes): read the title, the first sentence of each paragraph and any headings. You’re building a map: what each paragraph is about.

Scan for each question: find the key word in the question, especially names, dates, numbers and technical terms, then jump to where it appears in the passage. Read that part carefully.

True / False / Not Given, explained

This question type costs more marks than any other, mostly because of one confusion.

• True: the passage says the same thing as the statement, usually in different words.
• False: the passage says the opposite.
• Not Given: the passage says nothing about it, either way.

Example statement: “The bridge was the longest in Europe when it opened.”

• If the passage says it was the longest in Europe at opening → True.
• If it says a longer bridge already existed → False.
• If it gives the bridge’s length but never compares it → Not Given.

Don’t use your own knowledge. Judge only by what the passage says. Yes / No / Not Given works the same way but asks about the writer’s opinion rather than facts.

Matching headings

1. Read all the headings first, and cross out any example already used.
2. For each paragraph, read the first and last sentences: the main idea is often there.
3. Choose the heading that sums up the whole paragraph, not one detail in it.
4. Watch for headings that repeat a word from the paragraph but mean something else. They’re traps.

Sentence and summary completion

• Check the word limit before you write anything.
• The answer must fit grammatically. If the gap follows a, the answer is a singular noun.
• Copy the spelling exactly from the passage.

Questions usually follow the passage order

For most question types, such as completion and True/False/Not Given, the answers appear in the same order as the passage. If you’ve found the answer to question 5, the answer to question 6 comes after it. Matching questions are the exception.

Build speed between tests

Speed comes from reading a lot, not only doing test papers:

• Read one English article a day from a quality source: science, history, economics.
• Time yourself on single passages and keep a record of your minutes per passage.
• After every practice test, sort your mistakes by question type. Fix your weakest type first.

Practise on Prepyo

Prepyo’s reading practice is organised by question type, so you can drill True/False/Not Given or matching headings on their own, then sit a timed reading mock with full passages graded instantly. See IELTS Academic preparation for details.