IELTS Listening · Practice test
Westhaven: IELTS Listening practice test
Swimming lessons, a country park walk, a bakery case study and a lecture on why birds sing.
- 4 parts
- 40 questions
- About 35 minutes
Part 1 · Questions 1–10
Enrolling in swimming lessons
You will hear a conversation between a man and the person who organises swimming lessons at a pool.
Questions 1–5
Complete the table below.
Write ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.
Swimming classes at Westhaven Pool
| Class | Age | Day | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starfish | 3–5 | Tuesday | a 1 must be in the water too |
| Otters | 6–8 | 2 | lessons last 30 minutes |
| Seals | 8–11 | Saturday | held in the 3 pool |
| Dolphins | 11+ | Sunday | must swim 4 metres unaided |
| Adults | 16+ | Wednesday | maximum of 5 in a class |
Questions 6–10
Complete the form below.
Write ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.
Enrolment
Part 2 · Questions 11–20
A country park walk
You will hear a park warden welcoming visitors at the start of a guided walk around a country park.
Questions 11–15
Choose the correct letter, A, B or C.
- 11Before it became a park, the site was
- Afarmland.
- Ba quarry.
- Ca private garden.
- 12Visitors are told that the lake
- Amust not be swum in.
- Bis closed to boats in summer.
- Cis shallow at the edges.
- 13Dogs must be kept on a lead
- Aeverywhere in the park.
- Bin the meadow in spring and early summer.
- Cnear the woodland feeders.
- 14What has been added to the park this year?
- Aa boardwalk
- Ba second car park
- Ca new entrance
- 15Deer are most likely to be seen
- Aearly in the morning.
- Bin the late afternoon.
- Cat weekends in summer.
Questions 16–20
Label the plan below. Write the correct letter, A–H, next to questions 16–20.
- 16Play area
- 17Cafe
- 18Wildflower meadow
- 19Boathouse
- 20Bird hide
Part 3 · Questions 21–30
A bakery case study
You will hear two business students, Femi and Grace, preparing a case study presentation.
Questions 21–26
Choose the correct letter, A, B or C.
- 21Femi says the usual explanation does not fit because
- Athe company grew while supermarkets expanded.
- Bsupermarket bread was more expensive.
- Cthe company had no town-centre shops.
- 22What do the students conclude caused the company's near-collapse?
- Acompetition from supermarkets
- Bopening too many shops too quickly
- Ca fall in the quality of its bread
- 23Grace says the wholesale business is valuable mainly because it is
- Amore profitable.
- Beasier to manage.
- Cmore predictable.
- 24What do they decide is the company's greatest strength?
- Aits brand
- Bits trained staff
- Cits shop locations
- 25How will they divide the presentation?
- Aone speaker for each half
- Bone speaker for each argument
- Calternating slide by slide
- 26How many slides do they agree to use?
- Aten
- Bfifteen
- Ctwenty-six
Questions 27–30
How will the students use each of the following sources? Choose the correct letter, A–F, next to questions 27–30.
Uses
- Aas the source of all their figures
- Bas a quotation to begin with
- Cfor comparison with the rest of the industry
- Dnot at all, because it is inaccurate
- Ewith a warning about who commissioned it
- Fonly in the written report
- 27the annual accounts
- 28the interview with the founder's daughter
- 29the bakers' association report
- 30the newspaper coverage
Part 4 · Questions 31–40
Why birds sing
You will hear part of a lecture about birdsong.
Questions 31–40
Complete the summary below.
Write ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.
Birdsong
Birds do not use a larynx. Sound is produced in the 31, which lies where the windpipe divides, and because it has two branches a bird can sing 32 notes at the same time. The song of a wren, a bird weighing only about ten grams, carries as far as 33 metres.
Song is not a sign of contentment but of 34: it advertises both a territory and a male's condition. In one experiment, territories in which recorded song was played through 35 stayed empty far longer than silent ones.
Only the group known as 36 learn and sing true songs; a gull or a duck merely calls. The belief that only males sing reflects a 37 bias, since female song and duetting are common in the tropics.
Young birds memorise song during a sensitive period, which in the chaffinch closes at about 38 months. They then practise a quiet, rambling version called 39, comparing it with the memorised template. Because song is learned, populations develop local 40, much as human speakers do.