IELTS Listening Short-Answer Questions: Practice and Answers

Answer the particular factual question. A correct detail from the recording is still wrong if it answers a different question.

Original LingoLeap mini-exercise with synthesized English audio. It is shorter than an IELTS section and is not an official exam item or full practice test. Updated 4 October 2026.

Short-Answer Questions listening practice exercise

Read the questions first. Listen once without opening the transcript, write your answers, then check the explanations. Replay afterwards to identify what you missed. In the real IELTS test you hear each recording once.

Download this original MP3

Write NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS for each answer.

Enter answers here as you listen. Your entries stay in this tab and are not saved or submitted. For letter questions, enter the letter only. The checker ignores case and extra spaces, but not extra words or different spellings.

1. Where does the event take place?
2. Which items cannot be repaired because the specialist is away?
3. Where should visitors leave their items?

After listening, check your answers and review the evidence. Without JavaScript, use the answer key below.

Answers and distractors explained

Show answers after listening

1. school hall
The school hall hosts the event; the library is only the waiting area.
2. phones
The absent specialist repairs phones. Furniture is excluded for a different reason.
3. registration desk
Items are left at the registration desk, not in the library.

Count correct answers to this drill only. Do not convert this short exercise into an IELTS band: an exam Listening result uses all 40 questions. See the IELTS band score calculator for full-test score guidance.

How to answer IELTS Listening short-answer questions questions

Underline what the question asks: location, object, reason or time.
Avoid copying extra words that break the stated word limit.
Check that an answer addresses the question rather than a related detail.

Review the evidence, not just your score

For each mistake, locate the exact phrase in the transcript and decide whether you lost the answer through vocabulary, a changed decision, spelling or the instructions. Replay that phrase with the transcript, then listen again without it. Repeating an answer you now remember is not the same as understanding a new recording; use a different question type next.

Practice audio transcript

Open the transcript for review or accessible reading

The community repair event takes place in the school hall. Doors open at nine, but repairs start at ten. Bring a small electrical item or a piece of clothing, not large furniture. Volunteers cannot repair phones this month because the specialist is away. There is no fixed charge; visitors may make a donation. Please leave your item at the registration desk when you arrive. After registering, you can wait in the library, where tea and water are available.

Make the next attempt count

Write down the words that support each missed answer, not just the correct answer itself.
Replay the recording while reading the transcript. Notice the correction or paraphrase you missed.
Close the transcript and replay once. Check whether you can now hear the evidence.
Try a different exercise to test the skill on unfamiliar content. This recording alone cannot establish exam readiness.

For a full Listening test, use the official preparation materials below. LingoLeap’s app practice focuses on Speaking and Writing; these Listening drills are completed here.