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B1–C2 · IELTS General Training

IELTS General Training Practice Test 46

AI-generated practice paper in the style of IELTS General Training — original material, not a reproduction of any real exam paper, following the official four-module structure (Listening, Reading, Writing, Speaking). Listening audio is read aloud by your browser's voice, Writing tasks can be scored by AI, and for Speaking you can record yourself and compare with a model answer.

Listening

Part 1

Listen and answer questions 1–10.

Complete the notes below. Write NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.

1. Group's destination: ______

2. Return date: ______ September

3. Number of travellers: ______

4. Group fare per person: ______ pounds

5. Deposit per person: ______ pounds

6. Group leader's surname: ______

7. Booking reference begins with: ______

Choose the correct letter, A, B or C.

8. The group members will have

9. For their large rucksacks, the group can use

10. Which of these applies to children?

Part 2

Listen and answer questions 11–20.

Complete the notes below. Write NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.

11. Ferry frequency: every ______ minutes

12. Single fare with a paper ticket: ______ dollars

13. Travel time to Manly: about ______ minutes

What does the speaker say about each of the following areas? Choose the correct letter, A-F, for questions 4 to 7.

14. Circular Quay

15. Watsons Bay

16. Cockatoo Island

17. The Lower Deck

Choose the correct letter, A, B or C.

18. A smart card fare costs

19. Folding bikes

20. Life jackets are stored

Part 3

Listen and answer questions 21–30.

21. What did Dr. Lee like most about the opening?

22. What will the students do about David's slides?

23. What does Dr. Lee suggest David uses to remember his points?

24. How long should Carla spend on the funding model?

25. What was missing from the presentation?

26. What does Dr. Lee advise doing if a question can't be answered?

27. What percentage of the module mark is the presentation worth?

What will each student do next? Choose your answers from the list, A-E: A Prepare for questions about polluted soil; B Write the written summary; C Cut the funding section; D Collect two interview quotations; E Send the marking sheet.

28. Carla, for the missing section

29. David, for the question session

30. Dr. Lee, this afternoon

Part 4

Listen and answer questions 31–40.

Complete the notes below. Write NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS for each answer.

31. Jet lag is caused by a mismatch between the internal circadian clock and the new local ______ cycle.

32. The internal clock is governed by a brain region that responds to ______.

33. Jet lag can cause measurable ______ disturbance because the gut has its own rhythm.

34. Flying ______ is generally reported as harder to adjust to than flying west.

35. Eastward travel requires the body to shift onto an artificially shortened ______.

36. Full adjustment typically requires about one day per ______ crossed.

37. A traveller crossing eight time zones might expect roughly a full ______.

38. Bright light exposure at the destination can speed up the ______ process.

39. Shifting mealtimes and sleep schedules should start before ______.

40. ______ supplements have shown benefit when timed carefully.

Reading

Section 1: Notices

You should spend about 20 minutes on Section 1.

NOTICE A — Riverside Runners: Route Change Notice The Tuesday evening group run will follow a revised route from next week, moving away from the towpath section between the old mill and the second bridge, which has become increasingly waterlogged and hazardous underfoot following recent heavy rainfall. The new route instead follows the quieter residential streets on the opposite side of the river before rejoining the usual path near the park entrance, adding approximately half a kilometre to the total distance. Run leaders will carry a torch and reflective vest as usual, and all runners are reminded to wear appropriate reflective clothing given the darker evenings during the autumn and winter months. The usual meeting point and start time of 6:30pm outside the sports centre remain unchanged. Runners of all abilities are welcome, with the group naturally splitting into faster and more relaxed paces shortly after the start, regrouping at the halfway water stop. NOTICE B — Hollyfield Court: Roof Repair Works Scaffolding will be erected around Block C next week in preparation for essential roof repair works, expected to take approximately three weeks to complete, weather permitting. Residents in Block C should expect some noise during working hours, generally 8am to 5pm on weekdays, and are advised to keep windows closed during the noisiest periods if possible. The scaffolding will restrict access to the rear garden area temporarily, with an alternative route to the bin store clearly signposted for the duration of the works. Residents with balconies should remove any items that could be affected by falling debris or dust before work begins, as the building's insurance does not cover damage to personal items left on balconies during building works of this kind. A dedicated contact number for the roofing contractor will be provided for residents with urgent concerns during the works.

Questions 1–3. Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.

1. Why is the Tuesday evening run route changing?

2. How long are the roof repair works expected to take?

3. What should residents with balconies do before the works begin?

Questions 4–6. Do the following statements agree with the information in Notice A? Write TRUE if the statement agrees, FALSE if it contradicts, or NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this.

4. The new route adds approximately half a kilometre to the total distance.

5. The meeting point and start time will change along with the route.

6. Runners of all abilities are welcome on the Tuesday evening group run.

Questions 7–8. Complete the sentence below. Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from Notice A for each answer.

7. The group naturally splits into faster and more relaxed paces, regrouping at the __________.

8. The new route follows quieter residential streets before rejoining the usual path near the __________.

Question 9. Answer the question below. Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from Notice A.

9. What will run leaders carry as usual, besides a reflective vest?

Questions 10–11. Do the following statements agree with the information in Notice B? Write TRUE if the statement agrees, FALSE if it contradicts, or NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this.

10. An alternative route to the bin store will be signposted during the works.

11. The building's insurance covers damage to personal items left on balconies during the works.

Question 12. Complete the sentence below. Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from Notice B for each answer.

12. Residents should keep windows closed during the noisiest periods, generally 8am to __________ on weekdays.

Questions 13–14. Answer the question below. Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from Notice B.

13. What will be provided for residents with urgent concerns during the works?

14. What area will have restricted access temporarily due to the scaffolding?

Section 2: Workplace

You should spend about 20 minutes on Section 2.

TEXT A — Compliance Team: New Anti-Bribery and Corruption Policy A strengthened anti-bribery and corruption policy will take effect from next month, prohibiting staff from accepting or offering any gift or hospitality valued over £50 without prior approval logged through the company's gifts and hospitality register. Gifts below this threshold do not require prior approval but must still be logged retrospectively within one week of receipt, to maintain a complete and transparent record for audit purposes. Facilitation payments, informal payments made to expedite routine administrative processes in some overseas jurisdictions, remain strictly prohibited under all circumstances, regardless of local business custom or common practice in a specific country or region. All staff whose role involves regular contact with external suppliers, clients, or government officials must complete a specific supplementary training module on this policy within one month, in addition to the standard annual compliance refresher required of all staff generally. Any staff member uncertain whether a specific gift or hospitality offer falls within policy should consult the compliance team before accepting rather than after the fact. TEXT B — Fleet Management: Staff Shuttle Bus Timetable Change The shuttle bus service connecting the main office to the overflow car park will operate on a revised timetable from next month, increasing frequency during peak commuting hours from every twenty minutes to every ten minutes, while reducing frequency during quieter midday hours from every twenty minutes to every thirty minutes, based on analysis of actual passenger usage data collected over the past six months. The service will continue to operate from 7am to 7pm on weekdays only, with no weekend service currently planned given historically very low weekend demand. A live tracking feature has also been added to the staff shuttle app, allowing staff to see the bus's real-time location and estimated arrival time rather than relying on the fixed printed timetable alone. Staff with feedback on the revised timetable are encouraged to submit this through the shuttle app's feedback function, which will inform any further adjustments made after an initial three-month trial period.

Questions 15–17. Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.

15. What value threshold requires prior approval for gifts under the new policy?

16. How often will the shuttle bus run during peak commuting hours under the new timetable?

17. How long is the initial trial period for the revised timetable?

Questions 18–20. Do the following statements agree with the information in Text A? Write TRUE if the statement agrees, FALSE if it contradicts, or NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this.

18. Gifts below the threshold must still be logged retrospectively within one week.

19. Facilitation payments are permitted in countries where they are common local business custom.

20. The supplementary training module is in addition to the standard annual compliance refresher required of all staff.

Question 21. Complete the sentence below. Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from Text A for each answer.

21. Staff with regular contact with suppliers, clients, or officials must complete a supplementary training module within __________.

Question 22. Answer the question below. Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from Text A.

22. Who should staff consult if uncertain whether a gift falls within policy?

Questions 23–24. Do the following statements agree with the information in Text B? Write TRUE if the statement agrees, FALSE if it contradicts, or NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this.

23. The shuttle bus will now operate on weekends as well as weekdays.

24. A live tracking feature has been added to the staff shuttle app.

Questions 25–26. Complete the sentence below. Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from Text B for each answer.

25. The revised timetable is based on analysis of actual __________ collected over six months.

26. During quieter midday hours, frequency will reduce from every twenty minutes to every __________.

Question 27. Answer the question below. Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from Text B.

27. Where can staff submit feedback on the revised shuttle timetable?

Section 3: The Psychology of Nostalgia

You should spend about 20 minutes on Section 3.

Nostalgia, the sentimental longing for a fondly remembered period from one's own personal past, was historically viewed by physicians and early psychologists in a distinctly negative clinical light, first coined as a medical diagnostic term in the seventeenth century by a Swiss physician describing a severe, sometimes genuinely debilitating homesickness observed specifically among soldiers stationed far from home, a condition treated at the time as a genuine and potentially serious medical ailment requiring active clinical intervention. Contemporary psychological research has dramatically and substantially revised this originally negative historical clinical view, with a large and rapidly growing body of empirical evidence now consistently suggesting nostalgia serves several genuinely beneficial and adaptive psychological functions rather than representing a problematic ailment requiring clinical treatment. Nostalgic reflection has been repeatedly and consistently shown in controlled studies to reliably boost mood, increase subjective feelings of social connectedness even when reflecting alone in a research laboratory setting, and measurably strengthen an individual's sense of personal meaning and life continuity, particularly during periods of significant personal transition, disruption, or genuine uncertainty in a person's present circumstances. Research conducted by psychologist Constantine Sedikides and his research collaborators has been particularly influential and widely cited in fundamentally reshaping this understanding, with numerous experiments consistently finding that deliberately experimentally induced nostalgic reflection, achieved simply by asking research participants to recall and describe a specific cherished personal memory in some detail, measurably reduces self-reported loneliness and increases optimism about the future, even though the specific recalled content is, by definition, exclusively about the past rather than the future itself. This apparent paradox, researchers propose, arises because nostalgic reflection functions psychologically as a genuine and readily available resource, a kind of reliable, self-generated psychological resilience mechanism that people can deliberately draw upon during difficult, stressful, or uncertain present moments to reliably reaffirm their sense of enduring self-worth and secure social belonging. Interestingly, and somewhat counterintuitively at first glance, research consistently finds that people experience nostalgia measurably more frequently during personally difficult periods rather than during comfortable, contented times, precisely because nostalgia's specific psychological function as an active coping and emotional-regulation mechanism becomes most needed and most actively and unconsciously recruited by the mind precisely when present circumstances feel genuinely challenging, unstable, or unsatisfying, a pattern that further and quite strongly supports its now well-established characterisation as a genuine psychological resource rather than a merely passive, purposeless emotional experience with no real function. Nostalgia's specific content, researchers studying its typical themes have consistently found, also proves notably and reliably social in nature considerably more often than not: the overwhelming majority of nostalgic memories people spontaneously report and describe centre specifically on meaningful past relationships, close friendships, or particular significant shared experiences with other people, rather than on purely solitary personal achievements or the mere possession of material objects, a specific consistent finding that reinforces nostalgia's now well-documented core function as fundamentally a genuine psychological resource for reinforcing an individual's felt sense of social connectedness and belonging, rather than a simple exercise in wistful, unproductive personal reminiscence for its own sake.

Questions 28–30. Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.

28. How was nostalgia historically viewed by early physicians and psychologists, according to the passage?

29. When do people experience nostalgia more frequently, according to the passage?

30. Who was nostalgia originally observed and diagnosed in, according to the passage?

Questions 31–34. Do the following statements agree with the information given in the passage? Write TRUE if the statement agrees, FALSE if it contradicts, or NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this.

31. Nostalgia was first coined as a medical term by a Swiss physician in the seventeenth century.

32. Contemporary research suggests nostalgia is purely a problematic ailment requiring clinical treatment.

33. Nostalgic memories are typically centred on solitary personal achievements rather than relationships.

34. Nostalgic reflection can increase subjective feelings of social connectedness even when done alone.

Question 35. Complete the sentence below. Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the passage for each answer.

35. Nostalgic reflection has been shown to boost mood and strengthen a sense of personal meaning and __________.

Questions 36–38. Answer the question below. Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the passage.

36. Which psychologist's research has been particularly influential in reshaping the understanding of nostalgia?

37. What sense does nostalgia's typically social content reinforce, besides belonging?

38. What kind of resource does nostalgic reflection function as, according to researchers?

Questions 39–40. Do the following statements agree with the writer's claims? Write YES if the statement agrees with the writer's claims, NO if it contradicts, or NOT GIVEN if it is impossible to say what the writer thinks.

39. Induced nostalgic reflection has been found to reduce self-reported loneliness and increase optimism about the future.

40. The writer believes nostalgia is best understood as a purposeless emotional experience with no real function.

Speaking

Part 1: Introduction and interview

The examiner asks you questions about yourself and familiar topics (4–5 minutes).

Part 1 (Reading / Libraries) — the examiner asks about two familiar topics. Topic 1: Reading Q1. Do you enjoy reading in your free time? Q2. What was your favourite book when you were a child? Topic 2: Libraries Q3. Do you ever go to a library? Q4. Do you think libraries are still important today?
Recorded on your device only — play it back and compare with the model answer.
Show sample answer
Model answer: 1. Yes, very much. I usually read for half an hour before bed, mostly crime novels, because I like trying to guess who did it before the end. 2. I adored a story about a boy and his pet fox. My grandmother read it to me so many times that I could recite whole pages, and I still have the book on my shelf. 3. I do, about once a fortnight. The library near my office has a lovely quiet room upstairs where I can study or just read the papers on my lunch break. 4. Absolutely. They give everyone free access to information, and for people without a computer at home they're a lifeline. They're also a place for the community to meet.

Part 2: Individual long turn

You have one minute to prepare, then speak for one to two minutes.

Describe an animal that you find interesting. You should say: - what the animal is - where it is usually found - what it looks like and explain why you find it interesting. You are given a minute to get ready, then discuss it for one to two minutes.
Recorded on your device only — play it back and compare with the model answer.
Show sample answer
Model answer: I'd like to talk about octopuses, which I've found fascinating ever since watching a documentary about them a few years ago. They live in oceans all around the world, from shallow coral reefs to much deeper, colder water, and they can be surprisingly different in size, from tiny species you could fit in your palm to giant ones with arms several metres long. Physically they're quite strange looking, with a soft, boneless body, eight arms covered in suckers, and skin that can change colour and even texture almost instantly to match their surroundings. What I find most interesting is how intelligent they seem to be, despite being invertebrates. Researchers have recorded them solving puzzles, opening jars from the inside to escape, and even appearing to recognise individual human keepers at aquariums. They also have a surprisingly short lifespan, often only a year or two, which seems almost unfair given how clever they are. I think what draws me to them is that they feel genuinely alien compared to most animals we're familiar with, yet they clearly experience the world in a complex way. It makes me wonder how much more there still is to learn about intelligence outside the animal kingdom we usually think about.

Part 3: Two-way discussion

The examiner asks more abstract questions linked to the Part 2 topic.

Part 3 (weather and climate change) — the examiner asks four related questions. Q1. Have you noticed any changes in typical weather patterns in your country? Q2. How is climate change likely to affect ordinary people's daily lives? Q3. Do you think enough is being done globally to tackle climate change? Q4. How might individuals and governments respond differently to this issue in the future?
Recorded on your device only — play it back and compare with the model answer.
Show sample answer
Model answer: 1. Yes, summers seem noticeably hotter than when I was younger, and rainfall patterns feel less predictable, with heavier, more sudden storms rather than steady, gentler rain. 2. It could affect food prices, water availability, and even where people are able to comfortably live, as some regions become increasingly difficult to farm or inhabit due to extreme heat. 3. Honestly, I don't think so; progress is being made, but the scale of the problem still seems to move faster than most current international agreements and policies. 4. I expect stronger climate policies eventually forced by public pressure and visible consequences, alongside individuals gradually adjusting habits like transport and energy use, even if change remains slower than needed.

Writing Task 1

A photographer you hired for a special family event has failed to deliver the photos despite the agreed deadline having passed. Write a letter to the photographer. In your letter: remind them of the agreement, express your concern about the delay, and ask when you can expect to receive the photos. Write at least 150 words. You do NOT need to write your own address. Begin your letter 'Dear ...,'

Writing Task 2

Some people believe that social media platforms should be required to verify the age of their users, while others think this is not practical or necessary. Discuss both views and give your own opinion. Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience. Write at least 250 words.
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