PTE Core · Part 2 · Reading
PTE Core Reading: Multiple Choice, Single Answer
One or two texts, each with one question and a list of options of which exactly one is right. One point, no partial credit, no penalty. It is the quickest item in the reading section, and the one where reading the question first saves the most time.
- Questions in the test
- 1–2
- Time
- shares the reading clock
- Scoring
- Correct / incorrect
- Traits scored
- Correct option
18 real Reading: Multiple Choice, Single Answer questions inside
A glimpse of the bank. The full prompt, audio and scoring open after you sign in.
- 1There was a marked difference of quality between the…
- 2During the early twentieth century, the United States…
- 3There are the changes in occupational distribution in…
What the task asks
A text appears on the left of the screen, a question and a list of options on the right. Only one option is correct. You click it and move on; clicking a different option replaces your choice. There is no timer for the item. It runs on the Part 2 reading clock shared with every other reading task, so the sensible aim is to answer it quickly and bank the time for the longer items.
The texts are short and practical, a notice, an extract from a guide, a paragraph of local news, and the questions come in a few recognisable types. Some ask for the main idea or the writer's purpose. Some ask for a detail: what, when, how many. Some ask what the writer implies or what can be inferred. Some ask about tone or attitude. Each type calls for a slightly different way of reading the text, and identifying the type before you read is the first step.
How it is scored
The scoring is as simple as it gets. The correct option earns one point; any other option, or no option, earns zero. There is no partial credit and no negative marking. The item contributes to your Reading score only.
| Trait | What is measured | Scale |
|---|---|---|
| Correct option | Whether the option you selected is the one the text supports. | 1 or 0 |
Because a wrong answer costs nothing beyond the missed point, there is never a reason to leave the item unanswered. And because the item is worth one point however long you spend on it, there is never a reason to spend five minutes. The strategy that follows from both facts is to narrow the options fast, choose the best one, and go.
How our practice scorer grades it
When you submit an answer here it is marked automatically and exactly by that rule: one point for the right option, zero otherwise. The answer is revealed instantly, with the correct option marked, your option marked if different, and a short explanation that quotes the part of the text that settles the question and names the kind of trap each wrong option represents. Your score across items appears on the 10 to 90 scale with the CLB level next to it.
It is a practice estimate. Same rule as the real scorer, our questions, no view of your actual test.
A worked example
From January the library will lend tools as well as books. Members can borrow drills, sanders, ladders and garden equipment for up to a week at no charge, provided they have completed a short safety briefing. The scheme was proposed by a residents' group that noticed how many households were buying tools for a single job. The library says the aim is to save members money and reduce waste, not to compete with local hardware shops, and it will not lend anything that a shop in the area sells for under twenty dollars.
What is the main purpose of the text?
A. To explain why local hardware shops oppose the scheme.
B. To announce a new lending service and explain its purpose.
C. To describe the safety briefing that members must complete.
D. To report that households buy too many tools.
The question asks for the main purpose, so the answer must cover the whole text, not one sentence of it. A is not in the text; the shops are mentioned, but nothing says they oppose anything. C is a detail, one clause in the second sentence. D is the residents' observation, which explains how the scheme started, not what the text is for. B covers the first sentence, the middle and the end. The three wrong options are the three classic traps: not stated, too narrow, and a supporting detail promoted to the main idea.
Five habits that raise the score
- Read the question first and name its type. Main idea, detail, inference, purpose, tone. The type tells you whether to read for the whole or for a line.
- For main-idea questions, check whether the option covers the whole text. An option that describes one sentence is a detail, however true.
- For detail questions, find the line. Locate the sentence that answers it and read it twice. Most wrong options change one word in that sentence.
- Eliminate before you select. Cross out what is contradicted, what is not mentioned, and what is too narrow. What remains is usually one option.
- Set a cap of about ninety seconds. One point, no penalty. Decide, click, move on to the items that carry more.
The mistakes that cost the most
- Choosing an option because it is true in general. The question is about this text. What you know about libraries is not evidence.
- Choosing an option because its words appear in the text. Word matching is how the wrong options are built. Meaning matching is how the right one is found.
- Reading the whole text before the question. You will read it again once you know what to look for. Question first.
- Overthinking a clear answer. When three options are eliminated, the fourth is the answer. Second-guessing at that point rarely helps.
- Leaving it blank to save time. Ten seconds and a guess is worth more than nothing.
Quick answers
How many Reading: Multiple Choice, Single Answer items are in PTE Core?
One or two, in Part 2. The exam guide shows where it sits among the reading tasks.
Is there any negative marking?
No. That belongs to the multiple-answer version. Here a wrong choice simply scores zero.
How much time should I spend?
Around a minute to ninety seconds. It is a one-point item on a shared clock, and the fill-in-the-blanks items that follow carry several points each.
Does this task count toward any other skill?
No. It is Reading only. The CLB converter shows what your Reading score means for an application.