Short answer: In note, table and flow-chart completion you fill gaps in a summary of what you hear.
Before the recording starts, read the word limit, then use the layout to predict every gap: a table's column heading tells you the type of answer, and a flow-chart's arrows tell you the order of events. Write exactly the words you hear, within the limit and spelt correctly.
These three formats are one family. The task gives you a structured summary of part of the recording (notes with headings, a table, or a flow-chart of steps) with words missing, and you write the missing words. They can appear in any part of the test, and they are common in Part 4 lectures.
Step 1: read the word limit
Every completion task tells you the maximum length of each answer, for example ONE WORD ONLY, ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER, or NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS. An answer over the limit is marked wrong, even if it contains the right word.
A hyphenated word counts as one word, and a number written in digits counts as a number.
Step 2: let the structure predict the answer
| Format | What the layout tells you | How to use it |
|---|---|---|
| Notes | Headings group the information; bullet points often follow the speaker's order | Read the headings as a map of the talk, so you know when the speaker moves on |
| Table | Column headings name the type of answer (price, location, date) | Predict the answer type for every gap from its column and row |
| Flow-chart | Arrows show a sequence of stages or events | Expect sequencing language: first, next, after that, finally |
Then predict the grammar of each gap. After a you need a singular noun beginning with a consonant sound; after an, one beginning with a vowel sound; after several, a plural noun; after to, often a verb. After a pound or dollar sign, a number.
Prediction does not give you the answer, but it tells you which word in a long sentence to catch.
Step 3: follow the order, and know when it changes
Answers come in the order you hear them. In notes and flow-charts that is simply top to bottom.
In a table, check before the audio starts whether the gaps run across each row or down each column; the speaker usually works through one row at a time, but not always. If you miss a gap, move on at once.
The next answer is coming, and you can return in the checking time at the end.
The traps
- Self-correction. "The meeting is on Tuesday, sorry, Wednesday." The corrected version is the answer. Speakers do this deliberately in the recording.
- Paraphrase. The notes say "cost"; the speaker says "you'll pay". The words on the page are rarely the words you hear.
- Distractor numbers. A speaker may mention the old price and then the new one. Listen for which one the gap asks for.
- Plurals. If the speaker says "tickets", writing "ticket" is wrong.
Our guide to IELTS Listening distractors covers these patterns in depth, and spelling and numbers covers the details examiners mark.
On the computer-delivered test
IELTS is now computer-delivered, so you type answers into the gaps as you listen. There is no separate transfer time; at the end of the test you get two minutes to check your answers.
Use them to fix spelling and plurals, not to guess at gaps you missed completely. Typing makes spelling errors easier to spot, but only if you read what you typed.
A practice routine
- Before playing a recording, spend one minute predicting the type and grammar of every gap and writing your prediction in the margin.
- Play the recording once only, as in the test.
- Mark your answers, then play it again with the transcript and find the exact words the speaker used for each gap, including the paraphrase you missed.
You can practise on full papers in our IELTS Listening practice tests, each with an answer key that explains the trap behind every question.