PTE Academic · Speaking
PTE Repeat Sentence
You hear a short sentence once. You say it back exactly as you heard it.
A recorded sentence plays, and then you repeat it. There is nothing to read and the sentences are short and plain. The difficulty is memory: you have to hold the whole sentence in your head for a few seconds, then say it back word for word, in the same rhythm. It is a listening task and a speaking task at once.
How the task works
Listen once, then say it back
There is no text on screen and no time to prepare. The sentence plays, and then it is your turn.
Listen to the sentence
Pearson's advice is to listen to the phrasing: a sentence falls into meaningful groups of words with small breaks between them. Hear those groups and the sentence is much easier to hold in your head. You cannot replay the audio.
Repeat it
Say the sentence as you heard it, using the same words in the same order. Pearson also suggests copying the stress and intonation of the speaker, because that carries the meaning.
Do not stop in the middle
Pearson warns that if you stop for more than a second or two, the recording may end early and cut off your answer. If you slip on a word, carry on to the end of the sentence.
How Pearson scores it
Three things are marked, and Content is about the words
Pearson marks Repeat Sentence on three traits. The task is scored by computer, and you can earn part of the marks, so a slip on one word does not cost the whole sentence.
Content
How many of the words you heard you said back, in the right order. Only three kinds of error count: a word replaced by another, a word left out, and a word added. Hesitations, filled or unfilled pauses, and anything you say before or after the sentence are ignored. Saying every word in the right order earns the top mark of 3. At least half of the words in the right order earns 2, less than half earns 1, and almost nothing from the sentence earns 0.
Oral Fluency
How smooth your speech is. The best speech has a smooth rhythm and phrasing, with no hesitations, repetitions or false starts. Speech that is staccato, or that stops and restarts, scores lower.
Pronunciation
How clear and easy to understand your speech is. Pearson looks at how you say vowels and consonants and where you put the stress in a word. You do not need a particular accent.
Repeat Sentence counts towards both your Listening and your Speaking scores. The Content mark is only about words, so a sentence you repeat fluently but with a word changed still loses marks.
What usually goes wrong
Where students lose marks
Trying to remember the sounds
If you try to keep the exact sounds in your head, the sentence is gone within a couple of seconds. Hold the meaning instead, in the small groups of words you heard, and say it back from that. Meaning is much easier to remember than a string of sounds.
Restarting after a slip
Content counts only replacements, omissions and insertions, and a hesitation is ignored. Starting again does not remove the error, and it uses up your recording time. Carry on from where you are and finish the sentence.
Adding words
Every word you add is an error, even one that sounds natural, such as “the” or “also”. If you are unsure of a word, it is better to say the words you are sure of than to fill the gap with a guess.
Flattening the voice
Pearson advises copying the stress and intonation of what you heard. A flat, word-by-word repeat is harder to follow and sounds hesitant, which is what Oral Fluency looks for.
A worked example
Sentences from our practice, and what to keep
Here are five sentences of the kind you will hear. Read each one, cover it, and say it aloud from memory. Then look at the note. The note shows the group of words to hold on to, and the word that is easiest to lose.
Sentences and what to keep
- Short and plain The results will be announced next week. Hold it as two groups: “the results will be announced” and “next week”. The easiest word to lose is “will”, so say the whole verb, not just “announced”.
- Short and plain Enrolment closes at the end of August. Hold “enrolment closes” and “at the end of August”. Small words such as “at” and “the” go missing first, and each one counts.
- A longer sentence Students should keep a record of all the sources they use. Hold three groups: “students should keep a record”, “of all the sources” and “they use”. Keep “all” in, because leaving it out is an omission.
- A longer sentence The new curriculum places greater emphasis on independent study. Hold “the new curriculum”, “places greater emphasis” and “on independent study”. “Curriculum” is the long word, so say it slowly and it will keep the rest steady.
- A longer sentence The report highlights the growing demand for renewable energy. Hold “the report highlights” and “the growing demand for renewable energy”. Do not swap “highlights” for a word that sounds close, such as “shows”: a replaced word is an error even when the meaning is the same.
How to say the last one
The report highlights the growing demand for renewable energy.
Strategy tip: As you listen, do not repeat the sentence in your head word by word. Split it into two or three groups as you hear the small breaks, and keep one picture of what the sentence says. When the recording opens, say the groups in order. The meaning gives you the words back.
Notice how short these sentences are and how ordinary the words are. Nothing here is hard to say. What costs marks is the small words in the middle, and the habit of swapping one word for another that means the same.
Practising here
See which words you kept
You hear a sentence, repeat it, and see the sentence again with your answer marked word by word.
The sentence, then the microphone
The sentence plays and the recording opens after it, so you practise the same rhythm of listen first, speak next.
Your answer, word by word
After you speak, the sentence comes back with your answer marked on it. You see the words you skipped, the words you said as something else, and the words you added.
Scored on the 0 to 3 scale
The words are marked the way the exam describes it: only replacements, omissions and insertions count, and hesitations are ignored.
Words to watch
The words that gave you trouble are listed together, so you know what to listen for on your next try.
Fluency shown separately
How smoothly you spoke is shown on its own, next to the words you got right, so you can tell whether it was the words or the delivery that held you back. You can also play your own recording back.
Common questions
Repeat Sentence, answered
How long is the sentence, and how long do I have to answer?
The audio is 3 to 9 seconds long, and you have 15 seconds to repeat it.
Can I hear the sentence again?
No. Pearson says you are not able to replay the audio, so the first listen is the only one you get.
How many Repeat Sentence questions are there in the test?
Ten to twelve, according to Pearson's score guide.
How is Repeat Sentence scored?
By computer, on three traits: Content, Oral Fluency and Pronunciation. Content looks at the words you said in the right order, and counts replaced, missing and added words as errors. Fluency looks at rhythm and phrasing, and Pronunciation at how clear your speech is. You can earn part of the marks.
Does Repeat Sentence count towards Listening or Speaking?
Both. Pearson lists Listening and Speaking as the skills this task is scored for.
What if I forget part of the sentence?
Say the words you do remember, in order, and stop when you have finished. Content is scored by how many of the words you say in the right order, so a part of the sentence still earns marks — the more of it you get right, the more you earn.
Do I lose marks for saying “um” or pausing?
Not for Content. Pearson ignores hesitations and pauses when it scores Content. They can still lower your Oral Fluency mark, and a long pause of a second or two may end the recording early.
Do I need an accent to score well?
No. Pearson looks at how clearly and easily you can be understood, including your vowels, consonants and word stress. It does not ask for a particular accent.
How do I practise Repeat Sentence here?
Sign in, open Repeat Sentence and listen to the sentence. Then repeat it and see your answer marked word by word, with the words to watch and your fluency shown separately.
Listen once, then hear how it went
Repeat a short sentence, then see which words you kept and which slipped away.