B1 Preliminary Reading: all five parts explained
B1 Preliminary5 topics200 questions
B1 Preliminary Reading moves from very short texts to longer ones and then narrows down to single words. The skills change as you go: the early parts reward reading the whole message, the later parts reward reading one line closely. These five lessons cover each part in the order you meet it.
What this paper asks of you
- Getting the main point of a short public text — a sign, a label, a note — rather than one word in it.
- Matching what a person needs against several descriptions, and rejecting a text because of one detail.
- Following a longer text closely enough to answer questions about opinion, attitude and reference.
- Seeing how sentences link, so a removed sentence can be put back in the right gap.
- Choosing between four words that all fit the meaning but not all fit the grammar or the collocation.
- Reading at two speeds: fast enough to cover five parts, slow enough to notice ‘except’ and ‘unless’.
- Recognising paraphrase, since the correct option almost never repeats the words of the text.
- Managing time across parts that look unequal but carry similar marks.
- Answering every question, because nothing is deducted for a wrong choice.
- Handling everyday topics — transport, study, hobbies, shopping, work — in unfamiliar wording.
Task types, one page each
- Signs and noticesB1 Preliminary (PET) Reading Part 1 practice: read signs, notices, labels and short messages, then choose what each one really tells the reader. 40 questions.40 questions
- Matching people to textsB1 Preliminary (PET) Reading Part 2 practice: match each person’s needs to the right description and learn to reject a text on one detail. 40 questions.40 questions
- Long text multiple choiceB1 Preliminary (PET) Reading Part 3 practice: answer multiple-choice questions on a longer text, including opinion, attitude and reference. 40 questions.40 questions
- Gapped textB1 Preliminary (PET) Reading Part 4 practice: put missing sentences back into a text using pronouns, linkers and time references. 40 questions.40 questions
- Multiple-choice clozeB1 Preliminary (PET) Reading Part 5 practice: choose between four words that fit the meaning but not the grammar, collocation or preposition. 40 questions.40 questions
Note
Pick Two Activity is an independent tool. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by Cambridge University Press & Assessment, the British Council, IDP, ETS, Duolingo or any other exam board. Exam names are trademarks of their owners and are used here only to describe the exam you are preparing for. Every question on this page is original practice written by us: we do not provide, copy or reproduce official exam papers.