IELTS Listening Practice Test 27
4 parts · 40 questions · about 30 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 Ms. Weaver, Anna, and Pete about a new assignment.
Questions 1–6
Complete the notes below.
Write ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.
Flour Baby Assignment
- Topic: a show on single
- Must experience yourselves
- The 'babies' are bags of
- Duration: days
- Instruction: Do not leave babies
Anna's Baby
- Organic and grain
Questions 7–10
Choose the correct letter, A, B or C.
Part 2: Questions 11–20
You will hear a radio report about Mary Kay Cosmetics and its founder.
Questions 11–15
Complete the sentences below.
Write ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.
Questions 16–20
Choose the correct letter, A–F, next to Questions 16–20.
- A a top prize for sales
- B a charity goal to prevent violence against women
- C a husband who died of cancer
- D books written by Mary Kay
- E selling products in homes
- F research on cancers affecting women
Part 3: Questions 21–30
You will hear part of a podcast interview with a NASA scientist about an instrument that studies carbon dioxide.
Questions 21–22
Choose TWO letters, A–E.
Questions 23–24
Choose TWO letters, A–E.
Questions 25–30
Complete the summary using the list of words, A–I, below.
Annmarie explains that OCO-3 studies the sources and Drop or choose answer of carbon dioxide. Because the northern hemisphere contains much more Drop or choose answer than the south, the arrival of spring makes carbon dioxide amounts go Drop or choose answer. When the plants die off in autumn and winter, the gas is Drop or choose answer back into the atmosphere. These yearly Drop or choose answer make it look as though the Earth is breathing. On top of this, there is an overall Drop or choose answer from year to year.
- A absorbed
- B down
- C increase
- D land
- E ocean
- F released
- G sinks
- H sources
- I swings
Part 4: Questions 31–40
You will hear a talk about two recent scientific studies of ancient genes and the meeting of humans and Neanderthals.
Questions 31–35
Complete the summary below.
Write ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.
Two studies of ancient genes
Two new studies have added detail about when Neanderthals and Homo sapiens met and mated. One team examined genetic material from six individuals who lived about 45,000 years ago – the oldest Homo sapiens genes ever . Some of the genes came from bones found in a in a German village. The researchers estimated that mixing took place between about 49,000 and 45,000 years ago, and published their findings in the journal .
A second team looked at genetic material from present-day and ancient Homo sapiens. Their study, in Science, put the mixing at about 50,500 to 43,500 years ago. The scientists believe the contact went on over many .
Questions 36–40
Complete the notes below.
Write NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS for each answer.
Further findings
- Where the mixing probably happened: the
- Traits linked to Neanderthals: skin colour, hair colour and
- Our genes also link to another group of human
- Neanderthal genes may have helped people deal with climate and in new places
- Rick Potts hopes future will teach scientists more
About this listening test
| Part | Recording | Questions | Question types |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The flour baby project | 1–10 | Note completion, Multiple choice |
| 2 | Mary Kay | 11–20 | Sentence completion, Matching features |
| 3 | Earth's breathing | 21–30 | Multiple choice (choose more than one), Summary completion (word list) |
| 4 | Humans and Neanderthals | 31–40 | Summary completion, Note 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: Let's Learn English, Lesson 17: Flour Baby, Part 1 / Let's Learn English, Lesson 18: Flour Baby, Part 2. VOA Learning English (learningenglish.voanews.com), public domain
- Part 2: Mary Kay: A Leader in the Beauty Product Industry. VOA Learning English (learningenglish.voanews.com), public domain
- Part 3: Breath of the Earth (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 4: Scientists Use Ancient Genes to Estimate Contact Between Humans, Neanderthals. VOA Learning English (learningenglish.voanews.com), public domain