IELTS Reading

Summary completion questions

A summary of one section of the passage has gaps. Sometimes you fill them with words from the passage (keeping to the word limit); sometimes you choose from a box of words, where there are more words than gaps.

First find which part of the passage the summary covers: it usually follows the passage order within that section. With a word box, the passage often uses a synonym of the right word.

What the question looks like

summary completion. “Complete the summary. Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the passage for each answer.”

summary completion (from a list). “Complete the summary using the list of words below. There are more words than gaps.”

Try real-format questions

This question type is in our free practice test: Passage 2 (“Rethinking the Hospital Night Shift”), questions 23–26; Passage 3 (“The Paradox of Choice”), questions 37–40. Open the practice test →

How to answer

Summary Completion Choices

Read the summary and locate the matching idea in the passage before choosing from the word bank.
Compare meaning, not just repeated words: the passage may express the same idea with different wording.
Check contrasts and cause-and-effect links; a familiar word can reverse or distort the passage’s meaning.
Test your choice against the whole sentence and the passage. Reject options that add unsupported information.

Example: Passage and summary with a word bank. Passage: In a library trial, signs placed near the entrance directed more visitors to the returns desk. Signs beside the shelves had little effect. Summary: Signs near the entrance led to a ___ in visitors reaching the returns desk. Word bank: increase / delay / decrease. Answer: increase. The passage says more visitors found the desk, so this option matches the meaning.

Filtering Completion Distractors

Identify the exact relation required by the gap: for example, a cause, result, amount, change or contrast.
Check each option against the whole sentence, not just a matching keyword.
Treat repeated passage wording as a clue to verify, not proof; check whether the passage affirms, denies or qualifies it.
Reject options that change the entity, measure, direction or time period, even when their wording overlaps.

Example: Worked completion: identifying what changed. Passage: A leaf coating reduced visible leaf damage during the trial. Insect numbers remained stable. Gap: The treatment reduced _____. Options: leaf damage / insect numbers. Answer: leaf damage. Although the passage mentions both, only leaf damage is described as reduced.

Practise

Short items from the ielts.coach lessons. Answer them, then check to see why each answer is right.

Researchers compared stream sections with and without tree cover. Water temperatures were lower in the shaded sections, while the open sections remained warmer.

1Choose the word that best completes the summary: Tree cover was associated with a ___ in stream temperature.

Records from a lake show that its water level rose sharply after heavy rain. The higher level lasted for several weeks, then returned to its earlier range.

2Choose the word that best completes the summary: The rise in the lake’s water level was ___ rather than lasting indefinitely.

A study tracked how often urban birds visited gardens with different plants. Gardens with a greater variety of flowering plants received visits from a wider range of bird species.

3Complete the summary using the best option: More varied flowering plants were linked to a ___ range of visiting bird species. Options: wider / narrower / unchanged.

During a six-week trial, researchers installed shallow green roofs on three office buildings. The roofs retained rainwater and reduced peak roof temperatures, but measurements at street level showed no detectable change. The authors attributed the thermal effect to the roof surface rather than the surrounding air.

4Complete the note: The roofs reduced ____.

Researchers recorded bird calls at dawn and midday in a woodland. The sensors detected more calls at dawn, although observations showed a similar number of individual birds at both times. The researchers concluded that vocal activity, rather than bird abundance, varied during the day.

5Complete the summary: The daily variation concerned ____.

A software patch was tested on older tablets. It shortened processing time by streamlining background tasks, while battery capacity remained unchanged. However, the patch increased battery consumption during video playback.

6Complete the note with 1–3 words: During video playback, the patch increased battery ____.

Test hacks

False vs Not Given

False means the passage says the opposite. Not Given means the passage doesn't say either way. Don't use your own knowledge.

Why it works: Confusing False and Not Given is an easy trap: choosing False when the passage simply says nothing about the point.

Answers usually follow passage order

For most question types (True/False/Not Given, gap-fill, multiple choice) the answers appear in the same order as the passage.

Why it works: Once you find answer 3, answer 4 is almost always after it. You'll search a much smaller area.

Hunt for synonyms, not the same words

Questions paraphrase the passage. Look for words with the same meaning, not identical words.

Why it works: Matching exact words often leads to the distractor; the real answer is usually paraphrased.

Practise with feedback on every answer

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