PTE Listening: Multiple Choice, Choose Single Answer
A short recording with one question and one correct option, and no negative marking. It is one of the quickest items in the test and should be treated that way.
Listen for position, not vocabulary
Most of these ask what the speaker thinks, what the recording is mainly about, or what is being proposed. Those are answered by the shape of the talk rather than by any single phrase — and an option repeating a phrase you heard is as likely to be the distractor as the answer.
- Read the options in the lead-in time if there is any.
- Listen for the turn — "however", "but in fact" — which usually carries the answer.
- Beware options built from words the speaker used while rejecting an idea.
Pace
- Answer immediately after the recording ends while it is fresh.
- Do not revisit. There is nothing new to learn after the audio stops.
- Never leave it blank — there is no penalty.
The time saved here funds the negatively marked items, where care genuinely pays.
Multiple Choice, Single Answer — FAQs
2 questions
No.
You can, but these recordings are short enough that listening properly usually beats writing.
More listening question types
Summarise Spoken Text
50–70 words, 10 minutes
Multiple Choice, Multiple Answers
Negative marking applies
Fill in the Blanks
Type the missing words as you listen
Highlight Correct Summary
Pick the paragraph that matches
Select Missing Word
Predict how the recording ends
Highlight Incorrect Words
Negative marking applies
Write from Dictation
The best-value item in the test
Sources
Written from the test board's own published material and checked on 1 October 2026.