Improve your IELTS Listening score Completion Questions Format

Lesson 17, Topic 2

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Lesson 17

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There are five different types of completion questions that may appear in the IELTS listening test:

- Form completion
- Note completion
- Table completion
- Flow-chart completion
- Summary completion

Let’s see the format of these completion questions in the paper-based test, and a sample of a note completion question in the computer-delivered test.

Paper-based

Form completion

This question type is almost always found in Part 1 of the listening test, and it introduces a conversation between 2 people. The conversations will be about everyday topics or needs such as making travel arrangements, or joining a study course or sports club. The answers will require you to record factual information such as number, dates and addresses.

Questions 1 – 4

Complete the form. Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER in each gap.

Hiking Club
Membership Form

Name: 1 ____________

Student Number: 2 _____________

Telephone Number: 65 78 94 89

University Degree: Bachelor of 3 ____________

How he found out about the club 4 ____________

Note completion
This question type is used to summarise main ideas and its layout shows how different items relate to each other. The missing information is shown in bullet points and not often in full sentences. There are headings for the different parts of the talk. This can be quite useful when listening to and following the ideas in the talk.
Questions 1 – 6
Complete the notes. Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS in each gap.
Indoor Noise Pollution
Definition
Noise pollution can be defined as any 1 _______________ sounds that unreasonably disturb daily lives.
Reducing noise pollution
- 2 _______________ on dead-end streets
- Create the maximum separation between roads and 3 _______________
- Locate bedrooms away from the front entrance of the house
Quiet Buildings
To reduce noise pollution in a house:
- Use 4 _______________ walls
- Seal all gaps and openings around doors and windows.
Health Issues
Research has shown that people living with noise pollution:
- have a higher incidence of 5 _______________
- take more sleeping pills and sedatives
- are more prone to 6 _______________
- are more likely to seek psychiatric treatment.
Table completion

This type of question is very common in the listening test, especially in Parts 2 and 4. The table summarises information from a conversation or a lecture, and this is arranged in columns and rows, and under clear categories, such as colour, type, date, use, etc.
The answers require specific information such as numbers or words and these will come in the same order as the questions in the table.
Questions 11 – 13
Complete the table. Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER in each gap.
Flow-chart completion

A flow chart is used to summarise a process which is shown in stages. For example, it shows the process of how new employees are recruited to a company; or how something is grown, like seeds in a greenhouse; or even how something is made, such as cheese in a cheese factory. The direction of the process is usually shown by arrows.
Questions 11 - 14
Complete the flow chart using NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS for each answer.
Summary completion
Summary completion questions may occur in any of the four parts of the listening test; however, they are more common in parts 3 and 4, making them one of the most difficult question types. You will listen to a passage, usually a lecture; and you are required to read the summary and fill in the missing information. The information from the talk is summarised in a paragraph, and the missing information is presented in full sentences.
They may come with or without a list of possible answers, as shown below.
With a list
Questions 8 – 10
Complete the summary using the list of words.
Hemp can be a source of foods and health products. It can produce 8 _______________ containing a higher level of protein. It has many applications in the home. Paint made from hemp is 9 _______________. It grows well under 10 __________ conditions. It is an environmentally-friendly solution to many problems.
- - cheese
    flour
    long-lasting
    non-toxic
    shady
    versatile
Without a list
Questions 8 – 10
Complete the summary. Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS in each gap.
Hemp can be a source of foods and health products. It can produce 8 _______________ containing a higher level of protein. It has many applications in the home. Paint made from hemp is 9 _____________. It grows well under 10 _______________ conditions. It is an environmentally friendly solution to many problems.