PEIC Level 4 (C1) flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Inference in listening

A conclusion the listener draws from tone, hedging, or contrast rather than an explicit statement. C1 tasks often place the answer here, so literal matching alone is unreliable.

Concession clause

A subordinate clause introduced by although, while, or admittedly that grants an opposing point. It is usually background information, not the speaker's main claim.

Signposting language

Discourse markers such as however, that said, or to sum up that signal the direction of an argument. They help listeners predict whether a contrast or conclusion follows.

Self-correction distractor

A speaker's mid-sentence revision of a number, name, or date. In listening tasks the corrected value, not the first one stated, is normally the intended answer.

Rising intonation

A pitch rise on a statement that can signal uncertainty, a challenge, or an unfinished list. It changes the meaning a listener should attribute to the utterance.

Note-taking by keywords

Recording content words and logical links such as cause, contrast, and example instead of full sentences. It preserves attention for the next point in extended listening.

Nominalisation in lectures

Turning verbs or adjectives into nouns, as in the implementation of the policy. It is typical of formal academic speech and creates dense noun phrases that are harder to parse.

Hedging verb

A verb such as suggest, appear, or seem that weakens a claim. In listening and reading it marks a reported or tentative position rather than an established fact.

Head noun

The central noun of a long noun phrase, to which pre-modifiers and post-modifiers attach. Identifying it first makes complex C1 subjects easier to parse.

Cohesive reference

Use of this, such, the former, or do so to point back to earlier text. Resolving the referent is necessary before answering detail or inference questions.

Matching headings strategy

Matching a paragraph's topic sentence and repeated lexis rather than one keyword. Single keywords often appear in distractor headings that misstate the paragraph's function.

Entailment versus assumption

An entailment is logically supported by the passage; an assumption is a plausible real-world belief. Inference questions reward the entailment and penalise the assumption.

Grammatical fit in gap-fill

Checking part of speech, number, and article for a gap as well as meaning. A semantically plausible word that breaks the grammar is still wrong.

Evaluative verb

A verb such as boast, concede, lament, or dismiss that reveals the writer's attitude. It carries stance that a neutral paraphrase would lose.

Punctuation functions

Dashes and parentheses mark asides; a colon introduces explanation or a list; a semicolon joins related independent clauses. Each signals how information is structured.

Complex nominal group

A noun phrase with multiple pre-modifiers and a post-modifying clause or phrase. It is a hallmark of C1 academic prose and a frequent source of misreading.

Circumlocution strategy

Describing a word you cannot recall, as in a tool you use to cut. It keeps speech fluent and is preferable to a long silent pause.

Hedging in speech

Softening a claim with tends to, arguably, or to some extent. It shows C1 control of modality, whereas absolute modals like always sound overstated.

Turn-management markers

Phrases such as moving on, that said, or to come back to your point that organise a long turn or hand the floor back. They support coherence in interaction.

Unobtrusive self-repair

Correcting an error quickly with I mean or rather instead of restarting the clause. It maintains fluency and is rewarded in speaking assessment.

Connected speech

Weak forms, elision, and linking that occur in natural pronunciation. At C1, sentence stress should fall on the informative words of an utterance.

Long-turn structure

A stance followed by two supporting reasons and a brief acknowledged counter-argument. This shape sustains a coherent extended answer in discussion tasks.

Interactive response

Building on the interlocutor's idea, asking back, or disagreeing politely. It demonstrates the interactive competence assessed in paired speaking tasks.

Paraphrase for fluency

Restating an idea in simpler words when precise lexis is unavailable. It keeps the message moving and avoids breakdown in communication.

Controlling idea

The single claim a paragraph develops, usually stated in its topic sentence. Each following sentence should support or qualify it rather than introduce a new topic.

Register consistency

Maintaining one level of formality throughout a text. Formal writing avoids contractions, vague quantifiers, and informal phrasal verbs where a single verb exists.

Substitution in cohesion

Replacing a repeated word or clause with this trend, such measures, or doing so. It creates cohesion without repeating basic linkers.

Developed support

A claim followed by evidence or an example and then an evaluation of it. An unevaluated example alone does not count as developed argument at C1.

Cautious language

Hedging such as it could be argued or this may suggest. It is expected in discursive and report writing to avoid unsupported certainty.

Sentence variety

Mixing simple, compound, and complex sentences. Relying on one pattern limits the range score even when grammar is accurate.

Genre conventions

Expected features of a text type, such as a purpose statement, clear paragraphs or headings, and a closing action point in formal letters and reports.

Editing checklist

A final review of subject-verb agreement in long phrases, article use with abstract nouns, and tense consistency within a paragraph. It targets frequent C1 errors.