IELTS Listening Practice Test 84
4 parts · 40 questions · about 33 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 podcast interview about the history of military construction projects in the United States.
Questions 1–10
Complete the notes below.
Write NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.
Early Missile Construction
Organisational reach
- Workforce comprises eight divisions and district offices.
- Initial Cape Canaveral building work started in May .
Early launch pad
- Pad three was designed for early military missiles on low Earth .
- Trials tested engines, airframes, and control systems.
Site selection
- Chosen partly because it was , limiting risk to people.
Programme escalation
- Priority rose in 1954 because of Cold War tension and advances in armaments.
- Design and construction advanced , sometimes causing demolition.
Construction challenges
- Changes to missile design often meant removing .
- Protection was gradually made more .
- Conditions could be , including winter work in a northern state.
Part 2: Questions 11–20
You will hear a talk for international students about university admissions tests in the United States.
Questions 11–16
Complete the table below.
Write NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.
Features of the Two Main Admissions Tests
| Test | Aspect | Detail |
|---|---|---|
SAT | Structure | sections in total |
SAT | Maximum mark | |
SAT | Format | — the questions depend on the candidate's previous response |
ACT | Consistency | the test is identical for everyone sitting it on a given |
Both | Delivery | taken on a |
Both | Overseas venues | administered at abroad |
Questions 17–18
Choose TWO letters, A–E.
Questions 19–20
Choose TWO letters, A–E.
Part 3: Questions 21–30
You will hear a conversation between a host and a scientist about nuisance flooding in coastal areas.
Questions 21–26
Choose SIX answers from the box and write the correct letter, A–H, next to Questions 21–26.
- A It relies on historical data to inform long-range predictions.
- B It is responsible for predicting tropical cyclone activity.
- C Its infrastructure has been adapted to withstand frequent storms.
- D Its observations are crucial for mapping areas of repeated impact.
- E It offers protection only to a limited zone.
- F It involves public feedback to assess consequences.
- G It tracks the formation of weather systems that could cause flooding.
- H It issues initial warnings when water levels are forecast to exceed local thresholds.
Questions 27–30
Choose the correct letter, A, B or C.
Part 4: Questions 31–40
You will hear a personal account from an emergency official about responding to a major hurricane.
Questions 31–35
Complete the sentences below.
Write ONE WORD ONLY for each answer.
Questions 36–40
Complete the summary below.
Write ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.
Wider Consequences
Although the initial storm devastated several states, the situation deteriorated when a second cyclone approached western Louisiana. Hurricane Rita was slightly smaller yet almost equally destructive, eventually affecting a total of states. By that stage, emergency resources were already , while the scale of the problems continued to expand. Along the industrialized Louisiana coast, packaged materials intended for offshore oil and gas operations were scattered across urban areas and . In the subsequent months, responders removed more than 17,000 drums and containers of material in south-east Louisiana alone. Moreover, over a thousand boats—ranging from shrimp trawlers to barges—were sunk, wrecked or left stranded, thereby generating hazards.
About this listening test
| Part | Recording | Questions | Question types |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Early Military Construction Projects | 1–10 | Note completion |
| 2 | Choosing Between Standardised Tests | 11–20 | Table completion, Multiple choice (choose more than one) |
| 3 | Coastal Flooding Challenges | 21–30 | Matching features, Multiple choice |
| 4 | Coordinating a Hurricane Response | 31–40 | Sentence completion, Summary 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: Constructing NASA Infrastructure (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: What International Students Should Know about SAT and ACT. VOA Learning English (learningenglish.voanews.com), public domain
- Part 3: Nuisance Flooding (NOAA Diving Deeper podcast). NOAA National Ocean Service, Diving Deeper podcast (work of the US federal government, public domain)
- Part 4: Hurricane Katrina: 10 Years Later (NOAA Diving Deeper podcast). NOAA National Ocean Service, Diving Deeper podcast (work of the US federal government, public domain)