IELTS Reading drill · Summary and sentence completion

Mangroves: forests between land and sea

Timeabout 15 minutesQuestions10, real-test style
Reading

In completion questions you copy words from the passage into gaps. Students often find the right place in the passage but still lose the mark: wrong word form, a spelling mistake, or too many words. This drill trains all three.

1Quick tip

  1. Read the words around the gap. Guess what kind of word it needs: a noun (a thing), an adjective (describing), an adverb (how), or a number.
  2. Find the place in the passage. The answers come in passage order, and the question uses different words from the passage.
  3. Copy the word exactly from the passage. Spelling counts, and so do plurals: "pencil" and "pencils" are different answers.
  4. Read the full sentence with your answer in it. Is the grammar right? Is it within the word limit?
ONE WORD ONLYExactly one word. Two words is wrong, even if they're both correct.
NO MORE THAN TWO WORDSOne or two words. "the wrong part" is three words, so it's wrong.
A number"4" or "four" are both fine. A number counts as one word.

2Read and answer

In the real test you have about 20 minutes for each passage and its 13 or 14 questions. This passage is shorter, with 10 questions. Use the clock if you want real-test pace.

Optional. The clock never stops you.

Questions 1–5 · Complete the summary. Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the passage for each answer.

How mangroves survive

Mangroves grow on coasts where rivers join the sea. Life there is hard, because the roots are regularly covered by salt water and the mud has very little 1. Some mangroves get rid of salt through their 2, and many have roots that look like 3, which let them take in air. Their young plants can 4 for months before they settle in 5 water.
↑ Back to the passage

Questions 6–10 · Complete the sentences. Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer.

  1. Mangrove roots protect villages by slowing down waves and preventing6.
  2. Young fish use the roots as a7before they move out to sea.
  3. Mangrove soil keeps carbon because dead leaves and roots break down very8.
  4. For each hectare, mangroves can store up to9as much carbon as rainforests.
  5. Young trees often die when they are planted in the10of the shore.
↑ Back to the passage

4Talk about it Speaking Part 3 practice

The passage gave you ideas and words. Use them! Give an opinion, a reason, an example and a final view. About 1 minute each.

  1. Why is it important to protect forests and other natural places?
  2. Who should pay to protect the environment: governments, companies or individuals?
  3. How can people who live near the coast prepare for storms and floods?
to protectto keep safe from harm
to destroyto damage completely
in the long runafter a long time
for one thingto give your first reason

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