Listening Comprehension
Listening comprehension is the second written domain. It tests understanding of spoken English at CEFR B1 or B2: main idea, specific detail, speaker's purpose, attitude, agreement and implied meaning. The exam catalogue treats listening as a separate objective domain. Recordings are played twice, and tasks may include multiple choice, matching, note completion and true/false. The language is natural, with hesitation, repair and discourse markers, so you must follow meaning rather than individual words.
Core rules
- Use the pause before the recording to predict what kind of information is missing: a number, a place, a reason, a feeling.
- Listen for discourse markers. 'Actually', 'the thing is' and 'however' often introduce the answer or correct an earlier statement.
- Distinguish real from unreal. 'I was going to drive' means the speaker did not drive; 'I should have booked' means they did not book.
- For note completion, respect the word limit and copy the exact spelling. Check that the completed note is grammatical.
- Use the second listening to confirm the item you are unsure about, not to re-answer everything.
Worked example
Transcript: 'I was going to drive to the conference, but the train was cheaper and I could work on the way. The only problem was that the 7:15 was cancelled, so I had to take the 8:05 and missed the opening talk.' Question: Why did the speaker miss the opening talk? A They drove and got stuck in traffic. B They chose a cheaper train. C An earlier train was cancelled. D They had to work on the train. Reasoning: 'Was going to drive' signals an abandoned plan, so A is wrong. The cheaper train explains the choice of transport, not the missed talk, so B is a distractor. The cancellation of the 7:15 forced the later 8:05, which caused the missed opening talk; C is correct. D is a detail about working on the train, not the cause.
Traps that cost marks
Hearing a word from an option is not enough; the option must answer the question. Numbers and times are often corrected mid-sentence ('the 7:15 - sorry, the 8:05'). In matching tasks, one speaker may mention several topics before choosing one. In note completion, grammar errors and spelling mistakes lose marks even when the meaning is right. Finally, do not let one unknown word stop you; keep following the speaker's argument.