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Duolingo English Test interactive listening practice

B2Listening & Speaking40 questionsUpdated

The interactive tasks on the Duolingo English Test put you inside a short conversation: you listen, choose or produce a reply, and then summarise what was said. The extended speaking prompt works the same way — you get a topic, a short preparation window, and a recording that has to run to the end.

What this task tests

  • Listening for the speaker’s intention, not only for the words they used.
  • Choosing a reply that fits the situation and the level of formality.
  • Summarising in your own words rather than repeating what you heard.
  • Holding the thread of a conversation across several turns.
  • Speaking at length on a prompt with a short preparation window.
  • Organising a spoken answer so it has a beginning, a middle and an end.
  • Recognising functions: complaining, apologising, suggesting, refusing, agreeing.
  • Keeping going when you miss a detail rather than stopping to recover it.
  • Register: sounding polite without sounding rehearsed.

How to do it

  1. Step 1:

    Listen for the function first

    Before the words, catch what the speaker is doing: complaining, asking for a favour, refusing, suggesting. Identifying the function tells you what kind of reply is needed even if you missed half the detail.

  2. Step 2:

    Hold three facts, not the whole conversation

    Who, what they want, and what the problem is. Those three carry almost every summary. Trying to remember every sentence guarantees you lose all of them.

  3. Step 3:

    Reply to the last thing said

    A natural reply responds to the most recent turn, not to the topic in general. Answer the question actually asked, then add one sentence of your own.

  4. Step 4:

    Summarise in your own words

    Start with ‘She was explaining that…’ or ‘The main problem was…’. A summary that repeats the speaker’s exact sentences shows memory, not comprehension.

  5. Step 5:

    Open your extended answer with your position

    For a speaking prompt, say what you think in the first sentence, then give two reasons with an example each. That shape fills the time and keeps you from wandering.

  6. Step 6:

    Use your preparation time to choose two reasons

    Not a script — two reasons and one example each. Scripts fall apart when the timer starts; two reasons never do.

  7. Step 7:

    Keep your register consistent

    If the speaker is a colleague, be polite but not formal: ‘I’d be happy to help’ rather than ‘I should be most grateful’. Mismatched register is more noticeable than a small grammar error.

  8. Step 8:

    Finish the sentence you are in when the timer nears

    Do not start a new idea with five seconds left. A complete final sentence leaves a better impression than an ambitious one cut in half.

  9. Step 9:

    Practise by summarising podcasts aloud

    Listen to two minutes of anything, then speak a thirty-second summary from memory. It trains listening, memory and spoken organisation together, which is exactly what this task combines.

Mistakes that cost marks

  • Not thisRepeating the speaker’s sentences word for word as a summary.

    ThisReporting the gist in your own words.

    A summary is judged on comprehension. Repetition shows you heard the sounds, not that you understood the point.

  • Not thisShe said me that the meeting was cancelled.

    ThisShe told me that the meeting was cancelled.

    ‘Tell’ takes a person as object; ‘say’ does not. This pair appears in almost every spoken summary, so it is worth making automatic.

  • Not thisAnswering the topic instead of the question asked.

    ThisAnswering the last turn, then adding your own point.

    A reply that ignores the question sounds rehearsed and breaks the conversation, which is exactly what an interactive task is measuring.

  • Not thisHe suggested me to call the supplier.

    ThisHe suggested that I call the supplier, or He suggested calling the supplier.

    ‘Suggest’ is never followed by an object plus infinitive. It is one of the most persistent B2 errors in reported speech.

  • Not thisStopping to recover a detail you missed.

    ThisSummarising what you did catch, confidently.

    A confident partial summary scores; a silence while you search your memory does not.

  • Not thisSpeaking for fifteen seconds of a much longer window.

    ThisPlanning two reasons so you have material for the whole time.

    Extended speaking is where unused time costs most, because the task exists precisely to see whether you can keep going.

  • Not thisUsing very formal phrases with a friendly speaker.

    ThisMatching the register of the conversation.

    Over-formality sounds memorised. Natural politeness — ‘of course’, ‘I’d be glad to’ — fits almost every situation in these tasks.

Language this task keeps reusing

point out
to draw attention to a fact
turn down
to refuse an offer or invitation
put forward
to propose an idea for discussion
look into
to investigate something
get in touch with
to contact someone
agree on
to reach a shared decision about something
complain about
to say you are unhappy with something
apologise for
to say sorry for something
give someone a lift
to take someone somewhere by car
summary
a short account of the main points
paraphrase
to express the same meaning in different words
proposal
a suggestion put forward for consideration
tell versus say
tell takes a person as object; say does not
register
how formal or informal your language is

Practice: interactive listening & speaking

40 original questions. The first 10 are open to everyone. Answers are checked in your browser and never sent to us, so you can share this page with a class as it is.

1Complete the sentence with one word.

The speaker’s main was that the deadline should be moved.
A colleague says: ‘I’m really sorry, but I won’t be able to finish the report today.’ Which reply fits best?

3Complete the sentence with one word.

To sum , she suggested meeting an hour earlier.
Decide whether each statement about the interactive tasks is true.
  • A summary should be in your own words rather than the speaker’s.
  • A reply should respond to the most recent turn.
  • Stopping to recover a detail you missed is better than summarising what you caught.
3 to go

5Complete the sentence with one word.

She was complaining the noise from the building site.
Which sentence reports speech correctly?

7Complete the sentence with one word.

He agreed her suggestion and offered to help.

8You hear a neighbour explain that building work next door starts at six every morning and asks whether you have complained. Give a thirty-second spoken reply.

Which is the best opening for a summary of a conversation?

10Complete the sentence with one word.

She apologised arriving late to the meeting.

Keep going

30 more questions on this page

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Note

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Frequently asked questions

What if I miss part of the conversation?

Summarise what you did hear, confidently and in your own words. Naming the gap briefly — ‘I think the middle was about the depot’ — is far better than a silence or an invented detail.

How formal should I sound?

Match the speaker. Most of these conversations are everyday and semi-formal, so natural politeness works: ‘of course’, ‘I’d be glad to’, ‘would you mind if…’. Very formal phrases sound memorised.

Should I take notes while listening?

Check the current proctoring rules on the official site before relying on notes, and practise without them. Holding three facts in your head — who, what they want, what the problem is — is usually enough.

How do I fill a long speaking window?

Two reasons with one example each. That is roughly four sentences of real content, which fills the time without repetition, and an example is always easier to keep talking about than an abstract point.

Is it a problem if my answer is not interesting?

No. The task measures language, not originality. A clear, well-supported ordinary opinion scores better than an unusual one you cannot express under time pressure.