IELTS Listening Practice Test 159
4 parts · 40 questions · about 31 minutes of audio. Below are all the questions. Take the test in your free dashboard to play the recordings, answer as you listen, and get your band score with the transcript of every answer.
Part 1: Questions 1–10
You will hear a conversation between a host and a public affairs officer about a long-term research facility.
Questions 1–5
Complete the table below.
Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.
Facility Profile
| Feature | Description |
|---|---|
Overall scale | the most extensive ever constructed by humans |
Operational timeline | components have been in orbit since |
Duration of habitation | people have lived there continuously for over years |
Environmental protection | the station remains within the planet’s |
Orbital zone | it is positioned in |
Questions 6–10
Complete the notes below.
Write NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.
Operational Notes
Return and rescue
- A Soyuz can bring the crew back within a
- The facility is officially categorised as
- Certain Soyuz transits have taken only
Difficulties and future aims
- Travel to the station remains complex and involves
- Long-term ambitions include expansion across the
Part 2: Questions 11–20
You will hear a podcast interview about a project that monitors how people use digital devices.
Questions 11–12
Choose TWO letters, A–E.
Questions 13–14
Choose TWO letters, A–E.
Questions 15–20
Complete the notes below.
Write NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.
Project Update
Development timeline
- Completing the Apple version is expected to require before deployment.
- The technical work is described as far from .
Participant safeguards
- Information must be gathered in a fashion.
- The software must not impair the of users' handsets.
Project priorities
- The organisation's chief objective is to provide access for .
- David compares the venture to establishing a .
Part 3: Questions 21–30
You will hear a science podcast interview about a survey of veterinary laboratory equipment.
Questions 21–26
Choose SIX answers from the box and write the correct letter, A–G, next to Questions 21–26.
- A caused a new machine to fail immediately after connection
- B was restricted to laboratories in a single region
- C was attempted without relevant experience
- D supported discussion of ways to reduce waste
- E produced consistent observations in numerous locations
- F sought to replace informal reports with empirical evidence
- G left premises occupied by unusable equipment
Questions 27–30
Choose the correct letter, A, B or C.
Part 4: Questions 31–40
You will hear a researcher discussing an investigation of historical museum specimens.
Questions 31–35
Complete the summary below.
Write ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.
Museum Specimen Study
Earlier research used preserved specimens to determine whether a pathogen was newly introduced or had existed unnoticed for a long period. The team therefore examined museum collections in Switzerland, including institutions with extensive snake holdings. Their earliest positive material dated from , comparable with an earlier study's 1945 sample. After screening more than specimens for external signs, they identified characteristic on the animals. To limit damage to the collections, they removed only a tiny piece of affected from each selected individual; one portion was then inspected under a .
Questions 36–40
Complete the sentences below.
Write NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.
About this listening test
| Part | Recording | Questions | Question types |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Describing a Research Facility | 1–10 | Table completion, Note completion |
| 2 | Studying Online Behaviour at Scale | 11–20 | Multiple choice (choose more than one), Note completion |
| 3 | Surveying Veterinary Laboratory Equipment | 21–30 | Matching features, Multiple choice |
| 4 | Detecting Fungal Infection in Museum Snakes | 31–40 | Summary completion, Sentence completion |
How to use it
- Open the test in your dashboard. Each part has its own track with the spoken instructions and the time to read the questions, as in the real exam.
- For exam practice, play each part once at 1× speed. To train your ear, slow it down or replay sections.
- Select words in a question to highlight the keywords you are listening for.
- After submitting, use “Show in transcript” to see exactly where each answer was said.
Audio sources
The recordings are real, copyright-free audio. The questions are written by Sprechify, and the spoken instructions use a synthetic voice.
- Part 1: International Space Station (NASA Houston We Have a Podcast). NASA Johnson Space Center, Houston We Have a Podcast (NASA audio is generally not subject to copyright in the US)
- Part 2: Unraveling the Digital Tapestry: Pitfalls and Potential for Impact (CDC podcast). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, CDC podcast (work of the US federal government, public domain)
- Part 3: Global Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory Equipment Management and Sustainability and Implications for Pandemic Preparedness Priorities (CDC, Emerging Infectious Diseases podcast). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Emerging Infectious Diseases podcast (work of the US federal government, public domain)
- Part 4: Ophidiomyces ophiodiicola, Etiologic Agent of Snake Fungal Disease, in Europe since Late 1950s (CDC, Emerging Infectious Diseases podcast). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Emerging Infectious Diseases podcast (work of the US federal government, public domain)