IELTS Listening
Spelling, numbers and dates
Many Listening marks depend on writing names, numbers, dates and prices exactly. A misspelled answer is marked wrong, and so is a number written with the wrong digits.
Practise the alphabet aloud, especially the letters that sound alike (A, E and I; G and J), and listen carefully to teens and tens: fifteen and fifty differ mainly in the stress.
What the question looks like
short-answer questions. “Answer the questions below. Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.”
Try real-format questions
This question type is in our free practice test: Part 1 (“Weekend Bike Maintenance Course”), questions 7–10. Open the practice test →
How to answer
Spell Names Accurately
- Listen for a cue such as “Let me spell that” or “That’s…” before the letters.
- Write each letter in order as you hear it. Do not rely on how the name sounds.
- Listen carefully to similar-sounding letter names, and ask yourself whether you heard one letter or two.
- Check your spelling against the full sequence. Do not add letters that were not spoken.
Example: A caller spells a surname. Audio: “The surname is T, A, V, I, N.” Write: Tavin.
Record Phone Numbers
- Write each spoken digit in the order you hear it; do not add, remove or rearrange digits.
- “Double five” means two fives in a row. Write both digits.
- “Oh” can mean zero in a phone number. Keep a zero at the start.
- Listen for corrections. Use the final number, not a version the speaker replaces.
- Spaces can help group digits, but check that the full sequence is correct.
Example: Worked example: a caller gives a contact number. Heard: “The contact number is zero seven, double four, two nine, six.” Write: 0744296
Record Dates
- Write dates in a clear day–month–year format unless the task asks for another format.
- Change spoken ordinal numbers such as “twenty-third” to numerals, such as 23.
- Write the month as a word to avoid confusion between numeric date formats.
- Listen carefully to the day and year; similar-sounding numbers can change the date.
Example: Spoken date: “the fourteenth of November, twenty twenty-six”. Write: 14 November 2026.
Record Prices and Times
- Listen for the currency unit and the amount. “Twenty pounds fifteen” is not the same as “twenty pounds fifty”.
- Write prices clearly, including pounds and pence. Use a decimal point, such as £20.15.
- Listen for the whole time phrase. “Quarter past four” means 4:15; “quarter to four” means 3:45.
- Notice corrections and contrast words such as “not” and “actually”. Record the final time or price, not the first one.
Example: Listening note: a booking fee. You hear: “The booking fee is eighteen pounds forty.” Record: £18.40
Distinguish Teen and Tens
- Teen numbers such as thirteen and fifteen usually stress the final syllable; tens such as thirty and fifty usually stress the first.
- Listen for the longer, clearer “-teen” ending, but do not rely on vowel length alone.
- Check the number against the situation: a booking, price or capacity can help confirm what you heard.
- When two numbers are contrasted, identify which one answers the question; the other number may be a distractor.
Example: A spoken fee. Input: “The fee is fifteen pounds, not fifty.” The fee is £15. The stronger final syllable in “fifteen” helps distinguish it from “fifty”.
Practise
Short items from the ielts.coach lessons. Answer them, then check to see why each answer is right.
1How should the surname be written?
2Which spelling matches the surname?
3Type the surname.
4Which contact number did you hear?
5What is the corrected number?
6Type the phone number in digits.
7Which date should you write?
8When is the library tour?
Test hacks
Spelling counts, capitals don't
A misspelled answer is marked wrong. You can write answers in capital letters if that makes your spelling clearer.
Why it works: Easy marks are lost to spelling every day. Names are often spelled out letter by letter, so be ready.
Predict the gap before you hear it
In the seconds before each part, read the notes and decide what kind of word fits each gap: a number, a time, a name, a noun, an adjective.
Why it works: You'll know what to listen for, so the answer jumps out instead of slipping past.
Wait for the correction
Speakers often give one answer and then change it. Don't write the first thing you hear; keep listening until the sentence finishes.
Why it works: Self-corrections are a classic IELTS distractor.
Practise with feedback on every answer
ielts.coach builds daily lessons and practice around your interests and level, marks Writing and Speaking like an examiner in seconds, and plans your weeks to test day.