Listening exam
Four parts, 40 questions, 30 minutes — and the audio plays once. No pause, no rewind, exactly like the real test.
These four papers are written by the assistantThe Official Guide gives you eight real Cambridge Listening papers — sit them at Sit a book paper, timed and marked against the published key. They have no recording, so read the script first or treat them as untimed; this page’s speech-synthesis papers are still the better choice when you want audio.
Read this before you start
You get 30 seconds to read the questions before each part, exactly as on the
day. Use it — write the expected shape of each answer next to the gap. Then the audio
runs straight through. If you miss one, let it go instantly and re-anchor on the next
question; one lost mark becomes four when you freeze.
About the audio
Checking your browser's speech voices…
Available now
original scripts and questions written for this site
Use the official audio too
Synthesised speech is good for drilling the mechanics — catching numbers, spellings and corrections under time pressure. It is not a substitute for real accents. Do these as well:
| Source | What you get |
|---|---|
| Official full Listening test | Real audio, real accents, in the actual exam interface |
| Cambridge sample papers | Four official Listening MP3s with transcripts and keys |
| BBC Learning English | Daily British-accent exposure — background listening while you commute |