IELTS Listening drill · Part 4 · Note completion

A lecture: the history of salt

Timeabout 15 minutesQuestions10, like a real Part 4

A short university lecture about salt. Listening Part 4 is one speaker giving a talk, with no break in the middle, and the notes usually say ONE WORD ONLY. Follow the speaker's signposts ("Moving on to…", "Now, trade"), and watch for distractors and words that don't fit the gap. You don't need a recording. Pick how you want to hear it below.

2Read the questions, then listen

In the real test you get time to read the questions first. Use it to guess what kind of answer each one needs.

HeadingsThe note headings follow the lecture's order. Listen for the signposts that start each one.

ONE WORD ONLYTwo words is always wrong here, even when both are correct.

GrammarCheck each gap: does it need a verb, a noun, a plural?

DistractorsThe speaker sometimes mentions a wrong idea before the right one.

Questions 31–40 · Complete the notes. Write one word only for each answer.

Salt: a short history

Early uses

31Salt was used to meat and fish

32There is little that Roman soldiers were paid in salt

Production

33Hot countries: sea water was left to in shallow pools

34Cold countries: the water was boiled by burning

Trade

35Salt was carried across the Sahara by

36In West Africa, salt was traded for

Politics

37Rulers often put a on salt

381930: Gandhi led a to the sea in India

Salt today

39Most salt is now used in

40On winter roads, it stops forming

4Now you speak Speaking Part 2 practice

A lecture is a long turn, just like Speaking Part 2. Use signposts in your own talk to organize it: "First…", "Moving on to…", "Finally…".

Describe an interesting fact you learned recently.

You should say:

what the fact is
where you learned it
who you told about it

and explain why you found it interesting.

Your notes (they stay on this device):

Record your answer and listen back. The recording stays on your device and isn't sent anywhere.

Let me start with…to begin your talk

Moving on to…to change to the next point

What surprised me most was…to give the key detail

So, to sum up…to finish