ALPT B1 cheat sheet

In a multiple-choice listening task, the correct option usually paraphrases the audio rather than repeating its exact words; verbatim matches are often distractors.

Numbers, times, and prices are frequent traps: audio often states one figure then corrects it ("actually, make that..."), so the final value is the answer.

Speakers signal contrast with but, however, although, and actually; the information after these markers usually overrides what came before.

British English vowel contrasts to expect: /æ/ vs /ʌ/ (cat/cut), /ɒ/ vs /ɔː/ (cot/caught), and dropped /r/ after vowels.

Connected speech reduces words: "going to" → gonna, "want to" → wanna, "did you" → /dɪdʒə/; recognizing these forms prevents mishearing.

Signpost phrases ("first", "on the other hand", "to sum up") mark structure, so answers to main-idea questions often follow them.

In note-completion tasks, the answer is usually a single noun or number; check that the word class fits the gap before writing.

Negative questions ("Why doesn't she...?") expect a reason for a problem, not a statement of what she does; the polarity of the question controls the answer type.

Skimming gives gist in 2-3 minutes: read title, first sentence of each paragraph, and the conclusion before answering detail questions.

Scanning targets a specific form (capital letter, digit, date) rather than meaning; locate the token, then read the surrounding sentence for the answer.

For True/False/Not Given items: True = stated or paraphrased in text; False = text states the opposite; Not Given = no information either way.

Reference words (this, it, they, such) point backward to the nearest compatible noun phrase; resolve the reference before interpreting the sentence.

Main-idea answers must cover the whole passage; an option true of only one paragraph is a detail distractor.

Inference questions require a conclusion necessarily implied by the text, not merely plausible in the real world.

Cohesive devices (however, therefore, in addition) signal whether the next sentence supports, contrasts, or concludes from the previous one.

Matching-headings tasks: match the topic sentence of each paragraph, not its most memorable example.

Present perfect (have/has + past participle) links past to present and is incompatible with finished past time markers like yesterday or last year.

Past simple is required for a specific finished time: "I saw him on Monday"; "I have seen him on Monday" is ungrammatical.

Third conditional form: if + past perfect, would have + past participle - used for unreal past situations.

Reported speech shifts tense back one step (present → past, will → would) and adjusts time/place words (today → that day, here → there).

Passive voice = be + past participle; the agent is introduced by by and omitted when unknown or unimportant.

Relative clauses: use who/that for people, which/that for things; a non-defining clause takes commas and cannot use that.

Articles: a/an for first mention and countable singulars; the for specific or previously mentioned nouns; zero article for general plurals and abstracts.

Subject-verb agreement must ignore intervening phrases: "The list of items is long" - the verb agrees with list, not items.

Collocation pairs to know: make a decision, do homework, take part in, pay attention to, keep a promise, break the news.

Dependent prepositions: interested in, good at, afraid of, depend on, apologize for, succeed in, responsible for.

Phrasal verbs change meaning with the particle: give up (quit), give in (surrender), give out (distribute), give away (donate).

Formal vs informal register: require/request/assist (formal) vs need/ask/help (neutral); exam writing favors neutral-to-formal.

Word families: decide (verb) → decision (noun) → decisive (adjective) → decisively (adverb); check the suffix fits the gap's word class.

False friends and near-synonyms differ in collocation: "do a mistake" is wrong; the correct form is "make a mistake".

Linking words by function: addition (moreover), contrast (nevertheless), cause (owing to), result (consequently), example (for instance).

Countability traps: advice, information, furniture, and news are uncountable and take no plural -s and no a/an.

Paragraph structure: topic sentence states the claim, 2-3 supporting sentences give evidence or example, closing sentence links to the next paragraph.

Formal email frame: greeting (Dear Mr X), opening purpose sentence (I am writing to...), body, closing (I look forward to hearing from you), sign-off (Yours sincerely / Best regards).

Cohesion is scored via linkers and pronouns; vary them (however, in addition, as a result) rather than repeating and/but/so.

Word-count rules: stay within 10% of the required length; under-length answers lose task-achievement marks even if accurate.

Punctuation rule: a comma splice (two independent clauses joined by only a comma) is an error; use a full stop, semicolon, or conjunction.

For opinion essays, state a clear position in the introduction and restate it in the conclusion; a balanced essay still needs a stated stance.

Proofreading checklist order: verb tense, subject-verb agreement, articles, spelling - the four highest-frequency error types.

Fluency markers (well, you know, I mean, to be honest) buy planning time and are treated as natural, not as errors.

For opinion questions, the frame "I'd say... because... For example..." produces a complete answer with reason and example in three moves.

Pronunciation: -ed endings are /t/ after voiceless sounds (worked), /d/ after voiced (played), /ɪd/ after t or d (wanted).

Word stress in two-syllable nouns usually falls on the first syllable (PREsent, REcord); as verbs it shifts to the second (preSENT, reCORD).

Question intonation rises for yes/no questions and falls for wh-questions; a flat contour on wh-questions can sound abrupt.

Turn-taking signals: "Sorry to interrupt", "Could I just add...", "Going back to what you said" manage interaction in paired tasks.

Part 2-style long turns: use a note-based structure (what, when, why, how you felt) to fill 1-2 minutes without repetition.

Self-correction is scored positively if fluent: "He go- he goes to..." shows monitoring; long silent pauses cost more than quick repairs.