PTE Academic · Reading
PTE Reading Multiple Choice, Multiple Answers
Read a text, then tick every option it supports. More than one is correct, and a wrong tick costs you.
A text of up to 350 words appears on screen with a question about it. You read, then tick the options the text supports. More than one is correct, and Pearson does not tell you how many. Every correct option you tick earns a point, every incorrect option you tick takes one away, and your score on the question never goes below zero. The task counts towards your Reading score only.
How the task works
Read, test each option against the text, tick only what you can support
Pearson gives no separate time for each question. The whole Reading section runs for roughly 23 to 30 minutes, so the minutes you spend here are minutes you don't have for the other Reading tasks.
Read the question first
Knowing what you're asked before you read tells you what to look for. Check whether it asks what the text states, what it suggests, or what the writer thinks — each one sends you looking for something different.
Read for what the author says, not only what is mentioned
Note what the author claims about each idea. A topic that appears in the text is not the same as a claim the text makes about it.
Give every option its own verdict
Each option stands or falls on its own, so test it against the text one at a time. Tick the ones the text clearly supports, and leave alone any you can't point to a sentence for.
How Pearson scores it
A point for every right tick, a point off for every wrong one
Each option is scored on its own. A correct option you tick earns a point, an incorrect option you tick loses one, and an option you leave alone changes nothing.
Correct and incorrect ticks
You earn a point for every correct option you tick, and lose a point for every incorrect option you tick. Your total on the question can never drop below zero.
Multiple Choice, Multiple Answers counts towards your Reading score only. Two or three of these appear in a test, and because a wrong tick costs what a right one earns, ticking every option that merely sounds plausible works against you.
What usually goes wrong
Where students lose points
Ticking everything that sounds plausible
An option can be sensible, or even true in real life, without being something the text says. Each such tick takes a point back, so tick only what you can support from the text.
Ticking the two surest options and stopping
The question asks for more than one, but nothing tells you how many. Once you've found the obvious ones, go back through the rest before you decide you're finished.
Choosing options that repeat the text's words
A wrong option is often built from words that really appear in the text, joined to a claim the text doesn't make. Match meaning, not vocabulary.
Worked example
One text, five options — and where a tick that sounded right cost a point
Here is a text of the kind you read in this task: “Many cities have begun to replace tarmac in car parks with pale, reflective paving. On a hot afternoon, a pale surface can be several degrees cooler than a dark one, because it reflects sunlight instead of absorbing it. Planners had once dismissed the idea as cosmetic. However, cooler ground also means cooler air nearby, which lowers the demand for air conditioning in surrounding buildings. Critics point out that reflective surfaces can dazzle drivers and wear more quickly under heavy traffic, so the material is best suited to areas used mainly by pedestrians and parked cars.” The question: “According to the text, which statements about reflective paving are correct?” The options: (a) It stays cooler than dark surfaces on hot days; (b) It can reduce the demand for air conditioning nearby; (c) It is cheaper to lay than tarmac; (d) It can dazzle drivers; (e) It suits motorways best. Below is what one student ticked: (a), (b), (c) and (d).
The five options and how each tick was judged
- Ticks that earned a point Options (a), (b) and (d) The text says a pale surface can be several degrees cooler, that cooler air lowers the demand for air conditioning nearby, and that reflective surfaces can dazzle drivers. Each option follows the text, so each tick earned its point.
- A tick that cost a point Option (c) The text never mentions cost. It sounds like a sensible advantage of a new material, but nothing in the text supports it, and ticking it took back a point.
- Left alone, correctly Option (e) The text warns that reflective surfaces wear more quickly under heavy traffic, which argues against motorways. Leaving it alone cost nothing.
- What it adds up to Where the points went The right ticks each earned a point, and the wrong one took a point back. Leaving option (c) unticked would have kept it.
What the text actually supports
Reflective paving is cooler than dark surfaces, can lower the demand for air conditioning nearby, and can dazzle drivers.
Strategy tip: Before you tick an option, find the sentence that supports it. If you can't point to one, the option is a guess, and a wrong guess costs you.
The student read the text well and found every correct option. The one lost point came from a tick added because the option sounded like a benefit, not because the text said so.
Practising here
See which ticks scored, and which cost you
You practise on real-style texts and see the reasoning behind every option after you check your answer.
Tick your options and check
Read the text, tick the options you think are correct and check. The question is scored the way Pearson scores it: a point for each right tick, a point off for each wrong one, never below zero.
Every option marked in place
After you check, each option shows what happened to it: a correct option you ticked, a correct option you missed, or an incorrect option you ticked. You see at a glance whether you over-ticked or left something behind.
The reasoning behind each option
Where an explanation is written, each option carries its own note on why the text supports it or rules it out, so a tempting distractor doesn't stay a mystery.
A tip and your earlier attempts
Questions can come with a strategy tip and an explanation of the answer, and your earlier attempts on the same question are listed, so you can see whether you are still ticking too much or too little.
Practise the way that suits you
Work through all questions, go back to Mistakes only, or keep a set of Bookmarked only questions to revisit.
Common questions
Multiple Choice, Multiple Answers, answered
How long is the text?
Up to 350 words.
How many options are correct?
More than one, but Pearson doesn't say how many. Judge each option against the text on its own, and don't expect a fixed number.
What happens if I tick an incorrect option?
It costs you a point, the same as a correct option earns you one. An option you leave alone never costs you anything, whether it was right or wrong.
Can my score go below zero?
No. The minimum score on the question is zero.
How much time do I get for each question?
Pearson gives no time for each question. The whole Reading section takes roughly 23 to 30 minutes.
Which score does this task count towards?
Reading only.
How many of these are in the test?
Two or three, depending on the test you get.
Try it with a short text
Read the text, tick only the options it supports, and see which ticks earned a point and which one cost you.