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How PTE Academic works
Understand the three test parts, their timing and the 22 scored task types.
All 22 task types
Learn what to do, how to prepare and what to check for each task.
10–90 score guide
Understand partial credit, negative marking and integrated skills.
Prepare for your appointment
Check identification, arrival, check-in and equipment expectations before test day.
Your weekly study plan
Set aside time to learn, practise, review and check progress before your test date.
PTE mock-test preparation
Learn the flow before trying a longer session with all task types in order.
Choose a section, then choose the exact task
PTE Speaking practice
Read aloud, repeat what you hear, describe visuals, and organise a spoken response to a lecture, discussion or situation.
PTE Writing practice
Compress a passage into one sentence or develop an essay that answers the exact question within the time and word limits.
PTE Reading practice
Use context, grammar and links between ideas to complete texts, order paragraphs and choose supported answers.
PTE Listening practice
Follow one-play recordings, separate main ideas from details, and practise accurate selection, note-taking and spelling.
What each PTE task asks you to do
Explore all 22 scored tasks below. Each guide explains the approach, practice drills and review checks. Tasks are grouped by their practice section; some score more than one skill.
Speaking task types
Read aloud, repeat what you hear, describe visuals, and organise a spoken response to a lecture, discussion or situation.
Read Aloud
A written passage of up to 60 words appears on screen.
- Time
- Varies by item
- Skills
- Speaking
- Practise
- Read the passage silently. Notice where each idea begins and ends, and practise any word that might interrupt you.
Repeat Sentence
You receive 10-12 Repeat Sentence items, each with a sentence lasting about 3-9 seconds.
- Time
- 15 seconds
- Skills
- Listening and Speaking
- Practise
- Picture the meaning while hearing the whole sentence. Group words into a few connected phrases.
Describe Image
An image such as a chart, graph, map, process or photograph appears on screen.
- Time
- 40 seconds
- Skills
- Speaking
- Practise
- During preparation, read the title, labels, units and key. Decide whether the image shows a comparison, a change, a process or a scene.
Retell Lecture
You listen to or watch an academic lecture lasting up to 90 seconds.
- Time
- 40 seconds
- Skills
- Listening and Speaking
- Practise
- Listen for the topic and central message, then note key support with short phrases. Use arrows for cause, contrast or sequence.
Answer Short Question
You hear a short question lasting about 3-9 seconds; an image may also appear.
- Time
- 10 seconds
- Skills
- Listening
- Practise
- Listen for whether the answer should be a person, place, object, quantity or concept. Attend to the whole question.
Summarize Group Discussion
You listen once to a discussion between three people lasting up to three minutes.
- Time
- 2 minutes
- Skills
- Listening and Speaking
- Practise
- Give each speaker a note column. Record their main position and one useful reason, without trying to transcribe the conversation.
Respond to a Situation
You listen to and read a short description of an everyday situation.
- Time
- 40 seconds
- Skills
- Speaking
- Practise
- Read and listen for who you are, whom you are addressing and your purpose. Match the level of formality to that relationship.
Writing task types
Compress a passage into one sentence or develop an essay that answers the exact question within the time and word limits.
Summarize Written Text
You read an academic passage of up to 300 words.
- Time
- 10 minutes
- Skills
- Reading and Writing
- Practise
- Identify the topic and what the author says about it. Notice an important contrast, cause or qualification.
Write Essay
A 2-3 sentence prompt presents an academic or social topic and a writing instruction.
- Time
- 20 minutes
- Skills
- Writing
- Practise
- Read the full prompt and decide what position or explanation it requires. Note both sides or both questions when requested.
Reading task types
Use context, grammar and links between ideas to complete texts, order paragraphs and choose supported answers.
Reorder Paragraph
Several text boxes from one passage appear in a random order.
- Time
- No separate item timer
- Skills
- Reading
- Practise
- Look for an introduction that makes sense without an earlier reference. Check any pronoun or phrase such as this change before placing it first.
Fill in the Blanks (Drag and Drop)
A passage of up to 80 words appears with several gaps.
- Time
- No separate item timer
- Skills
- Reading
- Practise
- Establish the topic and direction of the text before moving words from the bank.
Fill in the Blanks (Dropdown)
A passage of up to 200 words appears with several dropdown gaps.
- Time
- No separate item timer
- Skills
- Reading
- Practise
- Read through the text and note whether the ideas explain, contrast or develop a claim.
Multiple Choice, Multiple Answers
You read a passage of up to 350 words.
- Time
- No separate item timer
- Skills
- Reading
- Practise
- Read what the question asks and note that several answers may be correct.
Multiple Choice, Single Answer
You read a passage of up to 110 words.
- Time
- No separate item timer
- Skills
- Reading
- Practise
- Identify whether it asks for a detail, main idea, inference or purpose, including any negative wording.
Listening task types
Follow one-play recordings, separate main ideas from details, and practise accurate selection, note-taking and spelling.
Write from Dictation
You hear a sentence lasting about 3-5 seconds.
- Time
- No separate item timer
- Skills
- Listening and Writing
- Practise
- Retain the complete message and its order. Attach articles, prepositions and endings to the phrase they belong to.
Summarize Spoken Text
A 60-90 second recording plays automatically and cannot be replayed.
- Time
- 10 minutes total
- Skills
- Listening and Writing
- Practise
- Note the topic and main claim first. Add important support using keywords and relationship symbols.
Highlight Incorrect Words
A transcript appears and you have about 10 seconds to skim it before the audio.
- Time
- No separate item timer
- Skills
- Listening and Reading
- Practise
- Skim for the topic and layout. Position your attention at the start when playback begins.
Fill in the Blanks (Type In)
An incomplete transcript appears and you have about seven seconds to skim it.
- Time
- No separate item timer
- Skills
- Listening
- Practise
- Use the short preview to locate each gap and its surrounding words. Notice the likely word form without deciding the answer early.
Highlight Correct Summary
You hear a 30-90 second recording once.
- Time
- No separate item timer
- Skills
- Listening and Reading
- Practise
- Note the topic, central claim and key supporting relationship. Avoid trying to read every long option during the audio.
Multiple Choice, Multiple Answers
You hear or watch a recording lasting about 80-120 seconds.
- Time
- No separate item timer
- Skills
- Listening
- Practise
- Identify what information you need and remember that more than one option may be correct.
Multiple Choice, Single Answer
You hear a recording lasting about 30-60 seconds.
- Time
- No separate item timer
- Skills
- Listening
- Practise
- If visible before playback, read what you need to identify: a detail, purpose, attitude or main point.
Select Missing Word
You hear a recording lasting about 20-70 seconds.
- Time
- No separate item timer
- Skills
- Listening
- Practise
- Listen from the start for the topic and whether the speaker is explaining, contrasting or drawing a conclusion.
Choose your next step
| Goal | Best resource | Use it when |
|---|---|---|
| Understand a task | PTE task library | You want to learn the steps before trying an exercise. |
| Work on one skill | Practice Hub | You know the task and have a specific goal for the next attempt. |
| Bring the tasks together | Try a full practice session | You are ready to work on test order, pacing and concentration. |
| Organise the last week | PTE in 7 days | You need to balance focused practice, review and rest. |
| Check preparation | Ready checklist | You want to check format knowledge and setup before a mock. |
| Review your progress | Previous attempts | You want to identify a recurring issue before the next session. |
Free PTE tools and planners
PTE to IELTS & CEFR
Map any PTE score to its IELTS band and CEFR level, in either direction.
PTE word counter
Check your essay and summary length against the real PTE form gates as you type.
Study plan generator
Turn your test date and level into a dated, week-by-week plan.
Score target planner
Turn four skill estimates into a focused seven-session practice sequence.
Learn the rules as well as the language
Some tasks have their own response timer; others share the section time. Reading practice targets are study aids, not separate official item limits. Use the format guide to understand the difference.
Plan a score target and check the exact requirements of your institution or visa route.
Make the next attempt more useful
- Compare your answer with the source or task instructions before focusing on the score.
- Name the issue: recall, missing content, fluency, grammar, spelling, interpretation or pacing.
- Use the matching task guide to rehearse that part, then try a new question under test conditions.
Review previous attempts to check whether the same issue keeps returning.
Check the official test instructions
These guides help you learn and practise. PrepEx is independent of Pearson, and practice estimates are not official PTE scores. Check Pearson's current instructions before test day.
Task instructions and timing checked October 15, 2026. The study suggestions are independent preparation guidance.