Fill in the Blanks in PTE Reading

It is well-known that the Pearson Test of English, like its other language testing counterparts, puts equal importance on the four basic language skills – Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking. So, as an aspiring candidate for the PTE exam, you must be aware of each and every minute details of this exam.

The second component of the test, PTE Reading, will last roughly 30-40 minutes. It consists of five challenges in total. This section’s reading materials are all real literature on a wide range of academic areas, including humanities, natural sciences, and social sciences. Don’t worry; you won’t need to be highly educated about these subjects because the texts provide all of the information you’ll need to answer the questions.

One of the most crucial question types in the Reading Module is ‘Fill in the Blanks’. In this article, we will discuss the fundamental questions about this type, like what is ‘fill in the blanks’, how many fill in the blanks in pte reading, etc and also try out some samples. Before that, check out the PTE Score Chart for a better understanding of the scoring criteria!

What is ‘Fill In The Blanks’ in PTE?

For the “Fill in the blanks” exercise, you will be given a reading text of 80 words or less. The blanks are presented as an empty textbox in the paragraph. You’ll see a set of given individual words enclosed in small boxes at the bottom of the screen. Drag the proper word to its appropriate blank area in the text with your mouse. You will be given credit for each accurate word you place into the text, so don’t leave any of it blank, even if you’re unsure of your answer.

It should be noted by the test givers that there are more words in the answer choices than blank spaces. Therefore you will not use all of the provided words. This question type will assess your grammar abilities as well as your context reliability. Should you not handle this activity efficiently, it may take up more of your time than necessary. This task requires both speed and accuracy. You will receive one credit for each correct answer and one credit for each wrong response. This question type has no negative scoring.

How Many Fill In The Blank questions Will be Present in the Reading Module?

To clarify, a question paragraph up to 80 words long with some missing words is presented on the screen in Fill in the Blanks exercises, and you must complete the blanks from a list of words put in a blue box. The PTE Academic test typically includes 4-5 questions in the ‘Fill in the Blanks’ format.

How to Attempt Fill In The Blanks?

It is also critical that you understand that none of the reading exercises will be timed individually. This means you will have a fixed period of time given to you to finish the entire reading part and need to prioritise your time for each job.

You will have 30 to 40 minutes to finish the entire PTE Reading section. Hence it is vital that you practice the ‘Fill In The Blanks’ question type to attain the maximum score possible for this skill.

One most important way to excel at Fill in the Blanks exercises is to expand your vocabulary and have a good understanding of collocations in English.

Collocations are clusters of two or more words that are frequently used together. These are natural word combinations that are closely related to one another. “Pay attention,” “fast food,” “make an effort,” and “powerful engine” are some examples.

Take a look at the sample question and answers given below to understand this task in depth.

For Practice

Look at the text below with blanks. Choose the appropriate word from the provided lists for each blank.

Question 1 (Easy)

The problem caused by plastic pollution is getting out of hand, but public [1__________] and intervention are about to change that. About 9 billion kilograms of plastic waste reaches the world’s ocean from coastal areas annually. This plastic causes [2___________] and harm to the marine creatures such as turtles, whales, and seabirds that starve because their bellies are full of plastic particles leaving no room for real food. A [3________________] study about the potential adverse impacts of tiny pieces of plastic in the marine food chain says that it might adversely [4__________] human health and food security.

Word List:

• affect
• awareness
• recent
• stress

Question 2 (Difficult)

Movement in painting that originated in France in the 1860s and had enormous influence in European and North American painting in the late 19th century.

The [1__________] wanted to depict real life, to paint straight from nature, and to capture the changing effects of light. The term was first used abusively to describe Claude Monet’s painting Impression: Sunrise (1872). The other leading Impressionists included Paul Cezanne, Edgar Degas, Edouard Manet, Camille Pissarro, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, and Alfred Sisley, but only Monet remained [2____________] Impressionist ideas throughout his career

The core of the Impressionist group was formed in the early 1860s by Monet, Renoir, and Sisley, who met as students and enjoyed painting in the open air -one of the hallmarks of Impressionism. They met other members of the Impressionist circle through Paris café society. They never made up a formal group, but they organized eight group [3_____________] between 1874 and 1886, at the first of which the name Impressionism was applied. Their styles were diverse, but all experimented with effects of light and movement created with distinct brushstrokes and fragments of color dabbed side-by-side on the canvas rather than mixed on the [4_______________]. By the 1880s the movement’s central impulse had dispersed, and a number of new styles were emerging, later described as post-Impressionism.

British Impressionism had a major [5_________________] on the more experimental and progressive British painters in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Many of the painters were affected in the circle of Walter Sicken, who spent much of his career in France and was an influential figure who inspired many younger artists. His friend and exact contemporary Philip Wilson Steer is generally regarded as the most outstanding British Impressionist.

Word List:

• Impressionists
• opportunists
• artists
• enthusiastic
• interested
• devoted
• hatred
• exhibitions
• discussion
• formation
• palette
• surface
• influence
• betrayal

To Sum Up

By practising ‘Fill In The Blanks’ thoroughly, you can attain a perfect score in this section as it is one of the high-scoring categories in the PTE. The best way to prepare is to study past year’s papers and learn directly from PTE Expert tutors.

ANSWER KEY

Question 1:

1. awareness
2. stress
3. recent
4. affect

Question 2:

1. impressionists
2. devoted
3. exhibitions
4. palette
5. influence