PTE Core · Part 3 · Listening
PTE Core Select Missing Word
One or two short recordings, each heard once, where the last word or phrase has been replaced by a beep. You choose from a list the word that should have been there. It is a one-point item that rewards one skill: following the direction of what someone is saying closely enough to finish their sentence.
- Questions in the test
- 1–2
- Time
- shares the listening clock
- Scoring
- Correct / incorrect
- Traits scored
- Correct option
36 real Select Missing Word questions inside
A glimpse of the bank. The full prompt, audio and scoring open after you sign in.
- 1He won a gold medal in economics and initially wanted to be…
- 2It took me a long time to get to the office in the morning.…
- 3Let me share with you an introduction and a story about US…
What the task asks
A line on screen tells you what the recording is about, and below it is a list of options. After a short pause the recording plays, once. It is a brief talk or explanation, and at the very end, where the final word or short phrase should be, there is a beep instead. You select the option that best completes what the speaker was saying, and click Next. There is no item timer; the task runs on the shared Part 3 listening clock.
What makes the task fair rather than a guessing game is that speakers signal where they are going. A sentence that begins the real problem, though, is is about to name a problem. A sentence that lists two advantages and starts and the third is about to add one more of the same kind. A speaker who has spent twenty seconds explaining why a plan failed will end with a word like abandoned, not celebrated. The missing word is the one the whole recording has been building toward, and the options are designed so that only one of them fits that build-up.
How it is scored
The correct option scores one point; any other option, or none, scores zero. There is no partial credit and no negative marking. The item contributes to your Listening score only.
| Trait | What is measured | Scale |
|---|---|---|
| Correct option | Whether the option you selected is the word or phrase the speaker actually said in place of the beep. | 1 or 0 |
As with every no-penalty item, always select something, and do not spend long. The recording is short, the decision is binary, and the time saved here belongs to Write from Dictation at the end of the section.
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 correct option, zero otherwise. The answer is revealed instantly, with the correct option marked, yours marked if different, and a short explanation that quotes the last sentence of the recording and points to the words before the beep that predicted the ending. Your score across items is shown on the 10 to 90 scale with the CLB level beside it.
It is a practice estimate. The rule matches the real scorer; the recordings are ours; nothing here sees your actual test.
A worked example
Topic shown on screen: a community garden. When we opened the garden five years ago, most of the plots went to retired people who had time during the day. That has changed. Families now take about half the plots, and the committee has added a sandpit and a small play area at one end. We still get the occasional complaint about noise from the older members, but the committee's view is that if a garden is going to survive in a town like this, it has to belong to everyone, not just to the people who [beep].
A. started it B. complain C. live nearby D. pay the most
The last sentence sets up a contrast: everyone, not just the people who .... The recording has been about one group, the retired founders, and a newer group, the families. The contrast the speaker has been building is between the garden belonging to its founders and belonging to everyone, so A, started it, is the word that completes the thought. B is tempting because complaints were just mentioned, but it makes the sentence a dig at the older members rather than a point about ownership, which is not the tone of the talk. C and D introduce ideas the recording never raised.
A listener who predicted the ending before looking at the options, something like not just the original members, would have found A immediately. That is the habit the task rewards.
Five habits that raise the score
- Read the topic line and the options before the audio. Knowing the four candidates lets you listen for which one the talk is heading toward.
- Follow the argument, not the facts. Is the speaker praising, warning, contrasting, concluding? The missing word matches the direction of the argument.
- Listen hardest to the last sentence. Its grammar, not just the people who, often rules out half the options on its own.
- Predict the word before you look down. Say the ending in your head at the beep, then find the option closest to it.
- Click and move on. One point, no penalty, and a decision that does not improve with time.
The mistakes that cost the most
- Choosing the option that echoes the last thing you heard. Complain after a mention of complaints. Recency is not meaning.
- Ignoring the grammar of the final sentence. If the sentence needs a verb and the option is a noun, it is wrong regardless of meaning.
- Losing the thread in the middle. The beep comes at the end, but the clue is the whole talk. Stay with it.
- Not reading the options first. Then the beep arrives and you are reading four choices while trying to remember the sentence.
- Leaving it blank. There is no penalty for a guess.
Quick answers
How many Select Missing Word items are in PTE Core?
One or two, in Part 3. The exam guide shows the full order of the listening section.
Is the missing part always one word?
It is a word or a short phrase. The options show you which, so read them before the audio starts.
Is there negative marking?
No. A wrong choice scores zero, nothing more.
Can I hear the recording again?
No. It plays once, which is why predicting the ending as you listen matters more than remembering details afterwards.