IELTS Reading: Short-answer questions
Answer factual questions with a few words or a number from the passage. The answers follow the order of the text.
144 practice sets · 653 questions · each set is timed at about 90 seconds per question
How to answer
- Note the question word (what, which, how many) so you know what kind of answer to look for.
- Scan for names, numbers or other easily spotted details from the question.
- Write only the words needed, never a full sentence.
Common traps
- Answering with words that aren't in the passage.
- Going over the word limit by copying a whole phrase.
Short-answer questions practice sets
| Passage | Questions | Level | |
|---|---|---|---|
| From Bean to Bar Academic Reading Practice Test 4 · Part 1 | 11–13 (3) | Standard | Practise |
| The Story of Tea Academic Reading Practice Test 10 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Standard | Practise |
| Lifting Boats: Canals and Locks Academic Reading Practice Test 17 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Easier | Practise |
| The Race to the South Pole Academic Reading Practice Test 24 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Easier | Practise |
| The Thread of the Silk Moth Academic Reading Practice Test 31 · Part 1 | 1–6 (6) | Harder | Practise |
| Fat, Ash and Water: A History of Soap Academic Reading Practice Test 38 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Easier | Practise |
| The Magnetic Compass: From Chinese Lodestone to Ocean Navigation Academic Reading Practice Test 45 · Part 1 | 1–6 (6) | Standard | Practise |
| The Humble Steel Box Academic Reading Practice Test 52 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Standard | Practise |
| The Dead Sea Scrolls Academic Reading Practice Test 59 · Part 1 | 1–6 (6) | Harder | Practise |
| Games of the Sacred Truce Academic Reading Practice Test 66 · Part 1 | 1–6 (6) | Standard | Practise |
| The Rays that Changed Medicine Academic Reading Practice Test 73 · Part 1 | 1–6 (6) | Harder | Practise |
| The Living Library: Botanical Gardens Through Time Academic Reading Practice Test 87 · Part 1 | 7–13 (7) | Easier | Practise |
| Bringing Drawings to Life: A Short History of Animation Academic Reading Practice Test 94 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Standard | Practise |
| The Tube That Carried the Mail Academic Reading Practice Test 107 · Part 1 | 1–5 (5) | Easier | Practise |
| Making Light Work: A Short History of the Laser Academic Reading Practice Test 114 · Part 1 | 7–13 (7) | Standard | Practise |
| Adding Instead of Multiplying Academic Reading Practice Test 121 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Standard | Practise |
| The Rise of the Compact Disc Academic Reading Practice Test 128 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Standard | Practise |
| The Network That Started It All Academic Reading Practice Test 135 · Part 1 | 1–6 (6) | Standard | Practise |
| Cutting the Cord: How Bluetooth Escaped the Cable Academic Reading Practice Test 141 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Easier | Practise |
| A Spark for a Failing Heart Academic Reading Practice Test 154 · Part 1 | 7–13 (7) | Easier | Practise |
| The Alarm on the Ceiling Academic Reading Practice Test 159 · Part 1 | 1–5 (5) | Standard | Practise |
| The Accidental Adhesive Academic Reading Practice Test 171 · Part 1 | 9–13 (5) | Standard | Practise |
| Playing for a Penny Academic Reading Practice Test 178 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Standard | Practise |
| Dust and Suction: The Making of the Vacuum Cleaner Academic Reading Practice Test 186 · Part 1 | 1–6 (6) | Easier | Practise |
| A Signal from the Ground Academic Reading Practice Test 190 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Easier | Practise |
| Counting the Seconds: the rise of the digital watch Academic Reading Practice Test 203 · Part 1 | 9–13 (5) | Easier | Practise |
| The Alphabet the Phoenicians Carried Academic Reading Practice Test 213 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Standard | Practise |
| Skin, Ink and Time Academic Reading Practice Test 217 · Part 2 | 24–26 (3) | Standard | Practise |
| Trajan's Column Academic Reading Practice Test 219 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Easier | Practise |
| The California Gold Rush Academic Reading Practice Test 225 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Standard | Practise |
| The Business of Salvation Academic Reading Practice Test 229 · Part 2 | 24–26 (3) | Standard | Practise |
| Silver Across the Atlantic Academic Reading Practice Test 231 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Standard | Practise |
| The Amber Road Academic Reading Practice Test 235 · Part 2 | 24–26 (3) | Standard | Practise |
| The Golden Pilgrimage: Mansa Musa and the Empire of Mali Academic Reading Practice Test 237 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Standard | Practise |
| A Promise to Pay: The Bill of Exchange Academic Reading Practice Test 241 · Part 2 | 24–26 (3) | Standard | Practise |
| The Cave Paintings of Lascaux Academic Reading Practice Test 243 · Part 1 | 9–13 (5) | Easier | Practise |
| The Loudest Sound Ever Heard Academic Reading Practice Test 247 · Part 2 | 24–26 (3) | Standard | Practise |
| The English Longbow in the Hundred Years' War Academic Reading Practice Test 249 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Easier | Practise |
| From Electrum to the Milled Edge: A History of Coin-Making Academic Reading Practice Test 253 · Part 2 | 24–26 (3) | Easier | Practise |
| The Gate of Ishtar Academic Reading Practice Test 255 · Part 1 | 1–6 (6) | Easier | Practise |
| How Oil Painting Arrived Academic Reading Practice Test 259 · Part 2 | 24–26 (3) | Easier | Practise |
| The Codebreakers of Bletchley Park Academic Reading Practice Test 261 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Easier | Practise |
| The Georgian Terraced House Academic Reading Practice Test 265 · Part 2 | 24–26 (3) | Easier | Practise |
| The Ship beneath the Mounds Academic Reading Practice Test 267 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Easier | Practise |
| The Examination That Ran for Thirteen Centuries Academic Reading Practice Test 273 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Standard | Practise |
| Lighting the Night Streets Academic Reading Practice Test 277 · Part 2 | 24–26 (3) | Easier | Practise |
| The First Fleet to Australia Academic Reading Practice Test 279 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Easier | Practise |
| Drawing Plants for Science Academic Reading Practice Test 283 · Part 2 | 24–26 (3) | Easier | Practise |
| The Camps of the Roman Legions Academic Reading Practice Test 285 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Easier | Practise |
| Water for the Ottoman Capital Academic Reading Practice Test 289 · Part 2 | 24–26 (3) | Easier | Practise |
| Building a Capital in the Marshes Academic Reading Practice Test 291 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Easier | Practise |
| Letters from the Counting House Academic Reading Practice Test 295 · Part 2 | 24–26 (3) | Standard | Practise |
| The Great Houses of Chaco Canyon Academic Reading Practice Test 297 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Easier | Practise |
| Counting the Romans Academic Reading Practice Test 301 · Part 2 | 24–26 (3) | Standard | Practise |
| The People's Charter Academic Reading Practice Test 303 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Standard | Practise |
| Vesalius and the Fabric of the Human Body Academic Reading Practice Test 311 · Part 1 | 1–6 (6) | Standard | Practise |
| The Body's Chemical Works Academic Reading Practice Test 313 · Part 2 | 23–26 (4) | Standard | Practise |
| The Mosquito Proof Academic Reading Practice Test 317 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Easier | Practise |
| How the Eye Brings Light into Focus Academic Reading Practice Test 321 · Part 2 | 25–26 (2) | Easier | Practise |
| The Door She Forced Open Academic Reading Practice Test 323 · Part 1 | 9–13 (5) | Easier | Practise |
| Two Brothers in Boston Academic Reading Practice Test 329 · Part 1 | 1–6 (6) | Easier | Practise |
| Building a Fair Test Academic Reading Practice Test 329 · Part 2 | 23–26 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| The Birth of the Blood Bank Academic Reading Practice Test 335 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Standard | Practise |
| How the Arch of the Foot Carries Our Weight Academic Reading Practice Test 337 · Part 2 | 23–26 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| The Campaign Against Guinea Worm Academic Reading Practice Test 341 · Part 1 | 1–6 (6) | Easier | Practise |
| The Body's Own Pharmacy Academic Reading Practice Test 345 · Part 2 | 23–26 (4) | Standard | Practise |
| The Cook Who Carried Typhoid Academic Reading Practice Test 347 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Standard | Practise |
| The Making of the Pill Academic Reading Practice Test 353 · Part 1 | 1–6 (6) | Standard | Practise |
| The Organ That Feeds a Baby Academic Reading Practice Test 353 · Part 2 | 23–26 (4) | Standard | Practise |
| Quinine and the Fever Tree Academic Reading Practice Test 359 · Part 1 | 1–6 (6) | Harder | Practise |
| Caffeine and the Body Academic Reading Practice Test 361 · Part 2 | 23–26 (4) | Standard | Practise |
| The Making of Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Academic Reading Practice Test 365 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Harder | Practise |
| How Arteries Become Blocked Academic Reading Practice Test 369 · Part 2 | 23–26 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| An Ambulance with Wings Academic Reading Practice Test 371 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Easier | Practise |
| Growing the Measles Vaccine Academic Reading Practice Test 377 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Easier | Practise |
| The Mathematics of the Herd Academic Reading Practice Test 377 · Part 2 | 23–26 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| From Willow Bark to Aspirin Academic Reading Practice Test 383 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Harder | Practise |
| The Pharmacy in the Leaf Academic Reading Practice Test 385 · Part 2 | 23–26 (4) | Harder | Practise |
| Pushing the Cloud Aside: The Oldest Cataract Operation Academic Reading Practice Test 389 · Part 1 | 1–6 (6) | Standard | Practise |
| How Skin Grafts Take Hold Academic Reading Practice Test 393 · Part 2 | 23–26 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| The End of the Cattle Plague Academic Reading Practice Test 395 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Harder | Practise |
| The Man Who Read the Cells Academic Reading Practice Test 401 · Part 1 | 8–13 (6) | Standard | Practise |
| Judging the Test, Not the Disease Academic Reading Practice Test 401 · Part 2 | 23–26 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| The Edwin Smith Papyrus Academic Reading Practice Test 407 · Part 1 | 1–6 (6) | Easier | Practise |
| Drinking the Sea Academic Reading Practice Test 408 · Part 2 | 24–26 (3) | Easier | Practise |
| The Lewis Chessmen Academic Reading Practice Test 409 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| Pushing the Load: How the Shopping Trolley Changed the Store Academic Reading Practice Test 410 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| The Gundestrup Cauldron Academic Reading Practice Test 412 · Part 1 | 11–13 (3) | Easier | Practise |
| The Wandering Albatross Academic Reading Practice Test 414 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| The Cassowary of Northern Australia Academic Reading Practice Test 417 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| How Sourdough Fermentation Works Academic Reading Practice Test 418 · Part 2 | 24–26 (3) | Standard | Practise |
| The Hanging Gardens of Babylon: Myth or History? Academic Reading Practice Test 419 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| The Sea Otter's Remarkable Life Academic Reading Practice Test 420 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| Eyes in the Road: Percy Shaw and the cat's eye Academic Reading Practice Test 422 · Part 1 | 11–13 (3) | Easier | Practise |
| The Vanishing Vaquita Academic Reading Practice Test 424 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Standard | Practise |
| The Okapi: Africa's Forest Giraffe Academic Reading Practice Test 427 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| How People Judge Risk Academic Reading Practice Test 428 · Part 2 | 24–26 (3) | Easier | Practise |
| The Salt Mine of Wieliczka Academic Reading Practice Test 429 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| The Horse That Came Back Academic Reading Practice Test 430 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Standard | Practise |
| The Book Nobody Can Read Academic Reading Practice Test 432 · Part 1 | 11–13 (3) | Easier | Practise |
| The Ethiopian Wolf Academic Reading Practice Test 434 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| The Story of Vanilla Academic Reading Practice Test 437 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Standard | Practise |
| Why Dry Land Turns to Dust Academic Reading Practice Test 438 · Part 2 | 24–26 (3) | Standard | Practise |
| The Karst Hills of Guilin Academic Reading Practice Test 439 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| A Gallery in the Sahara Academic Reading Practice Test 440 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Standard | Practise |
| The Invention of the Safety Match Academic Reading Practice Test 442 · Part 1 | 11–13 (3) | Easier | Practise |
| The Bowerbird's Theatre Academic Reading Practice Test 444 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| The World's Largest Lizard Academic Reading Practice Test 447 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| Why the Chameleon Changes Colour Academic Reading Practice Test 448 · Part 2 | 24–26 (3) | Standard | Practise |
| The Uffington White Horse Academic Reading Practice Test 449 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| The Emperor Penguin's Winter Academic Reading Practice Test 450 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| The Slow Arrival of the Tomato Academic Reading Practice Test 452 · Part 1 | 11–13 (3) | Harder | Practise |
| The Seals of Lake Baikal Academic Reading Practice Test 454 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Standard | Practise |
| The Sea Unicorn Academic Reading Practice Test 457 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Standard | Practise |
| How We Read Emotions in Voices Academic Reading Practice Test 458 · Part 2 | 24–26 (3) | Easier | Practise |
| Sigiriya: The Rock Fortress of Sri Lanka Academic Reading Practice Test 459 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| The Red Crab Migration Academic Reading Practice Test 460 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| The Long Road to the Paper Bag Academic Reading Practice Test 462 · Part 1 | 11–13 (3) | Harder | Practise |
| Bringing Back the White Antelope Academic Reading Practice Test 464 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| The Fire Fox of the Himalayas Academic Reading Practice Test 467 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| How the Ear Turns Sound into Signals Academic Reading Practice Test 468 · Part 2 | 24–26 (3) | Easier | Practise |
| The Moche of Peru's Desert Coast Academic Reading Practice Test 469 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| The Largest Animal That Has Ever Lived Academic Reading Practice Test 470 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| A Grid of Thirty Words Academic Reading Practice Test 472 · Part 1 | 11–13 (3) | Easier | Practise |
| The Platypus: An Improbable Mammal Academic Reading Practice Test 474 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| The Pink Dolphin of the Flooded Forest Academic Reading Practice Test 477 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| Why Some Cities Are Sinking Academic Reading Practice Test 478 · Part 2 | 24–26 (3) | Easier | Practise |
| The Cliff Dwellings of Mesa Verde Academic Reading Practice Test 479 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Standard | Practise |
| The Giant Sequoia Academic Reading Practice Test 480 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| The Story of the Michelin Guide Academic Reading Practice Test 482 · Part 1 | 11–13 (3) | Easier | Practise |
| The Giant Tortoise of the Galápagos Academic Reading Practice Test 484 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| The Kea: New Zealand's Mountain Parrot Academic Reading Practice Test 487 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Standard | Practise |
| Why the Ground Opens Up Academic Reading Practice Test 488 · Part 2 | 24–26 (3) | Standard | Practise |
| The Books of the Maya Academic Reading Practice Test 489 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Standard | Practise |
| The Atlantic Puffin Academic Reading Practice Test 490 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| Riding the Moving Staircase Academic Reading Practice Test 492 · Part 1 | 11–13 (3) | Easier | Practise |
| The Fish That Came Back Academic Reading Practice Test 494 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Standard | Practise |
| The Snowy Owl Academic Reading Practice Test 497 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| Can animals sense a coming earthquake? Academic Reading Practice Test 498 · Part 2 | 24–26 (3) | Standard | Practise |
| The Kingdom on the Hill Academic Reading Practice Test 499 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| The Honey Badger Academic Reading Practice Test 500 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Standard | Practise |
| Turning the Glass: A History of the Hourglass Academic Reading Practice Test 502 · Part 1 | 11–13 (3) | Easier | Practise |
| The Tasmanian Devil Academic Reading Practice Test 504 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Easier | Practise |
| The Fox at the Top of the World Academic Reading Practice Test 507 · Part 1 | 10–13 (4) | Easier | Practise |
Other question types: True / False / Not Given · Yes / No / Not Given · Multiple choice · Matching headings · Matching information · Matching features · Matching sentence endings · Sentence completion · Summary completion · Note, table and flow-chart completion · Diagram label completion