IELTS Reading Tips: How to Improve IELTS General Reading Score

If you’re looking to improve your IELTS reading band score, then you’re certainly in the right place. We’re going to give you the best IELTS reading tips and tricks! Read on for a higher band score.

How to Improve Reading in IELTS

Check out the list of tips and tricks to improve your reading band score in IELTS. Continue reading to learn the details of each tip.

Reading Skills for IELTS

• Learn to skim
• Learn to scan
• Read quickly
• Skip words you don’t know
• Learn more vocabulary
• Identify keywords
• Pay attention to grammar
• Practice general reading skills
• Read the instructions carefully

IELTS General Reading Tips

Let’s get into the best IELTS reading tips to help you improve your IELTS general reading score.

Learn to Skim

Skimming and scanning (see below) are two important skills for the IELTS reading exam. Skimming is reading a passage quickly to get a general idea of what it’s about.

In the IELTS reading exam, you’ll have three passages to read. It’s recommended to take 2-3 minutes to skim each one before getting into the questions. Pay close attention to the headings and keywords (circle them) during this time.

IELTS Reading Tips: Learn to Scan

Scanning is a crucial skill to know for the IELTS reading exam. If there’s only one IELTS reading tip to know, it’s this one!

Scanning is the ability to quickly look through a reading passage to find one specific piece of information you need to answer a question.

Only two of the question types (matching headings and choosing a title) out of approximately 14 require a general understanding of the passage. All of the other ones require looking for a specific piece of information. That’s why this is by far the most important skill you can practice for IELTS reading.

Reading Quickly is Required

You will have to read three passages and answer 40 questions about them (total) in 60 minutes. That’s not a lot of time.However, iff you read slowly and/or every single word, you will not be able to complete the last passage.

Taking a couple of minutes to skim each passage is helpful to get an overview of what it’s about. But, you’ll also have to scan the passage quickly in order to find the answer to a specific question.

If you want to know how to improve your reading in IELTS, this is an important one!

This is similar to the writing portion, in which you’ll have to write very quickly. Learn more: IELTS writing tips. 

Knowing Every Word is Unnecessary

Many people learn English reading by trying to understand every single word. If they don’t know a word, they get out their dictionary and find out what it is. However, there will likely be many words on the IELTS reading exam that you don’t know. This is normal. Even native English speakers may come across words that they don’t know.

Don’t attempt to read every single word. This isn’t necessary. If you see a word that you don’t know, don’t worry about it. Just skip it. Reading quickly and finding specific bits of information is far more important than any other thing.

How to Improve Reading Score in IELTS: Learn More Vocabulary

One of the main reasons for not scoring well is because of a small vocabulary. Do practice IELTS reading exams and make notes of words that you don’t understand. Practice them until you become very familiar with them. If you do enough exams, you’ll start to notice some of the same words over and over again. Pay close attention to these ones.

Key Questions Words are Important

Look for the keywords in a question. For example, date, time, name, location, etc. The sooner you recognize these words, the sooner you can begin to scan to look for the answer.

Pay Attention to Grammar

Summary completion and sentence completion questions require that the sentence is grammatically correct when you put the answer in. Using your knowledge of grammar can help you to spot the right question. Do some practice exams, and you’ll get a better idea of what I mean here.

Most of the questions from students about why one answer is correct but the other one is wrong are related to this. This is an important IELTS reading tip for people who want a higher IELTS general reading score.

IELTS Reading Tips: Learn From Mistakes on Practice Exams

When you’re doing IELTS reading practice exams, pay close attention to the questions that you’re getting incorrect. They may be related to:

• Understanding the content (improve general reading skills and vocabulary)
• Misunderstanding the questions (focus on keywords in questions)
• Running out of time (work on reading more quickly/scanning for information)

Practice General Reading Skills

It can be tempting to focus solely on reading for the IELTS exam. However, this isn’t a great way to actually improve your reading skills.

Instead, consider extensive reading. Find something to read at a level slightly below where you’re at. It could be a magazine, newspaper, teen fiction, graded reader, etc. Choose something that you’re interested in.

I recommend reading for at least 30 minutes a day. Put away your dictionary and just read for fun. If you don’t know a word, make a guess at what is means based on the surrounding words and keep going. This is how you’ll improve your reading skills. In the end, you’ll score more highly on the reading portion of the IELTS.

Read the Instructions Carefully

Many points are lost on the listening and reading portions of the IELTS because candidates don’t pay attention to the instructions.

If you write a number as a word (twenty seven), it’s counted as 27 and is only 1 word. Twenty seven people is actually 1 word and 1 number.

If the answer requires two words, write “green blue,” not, “green and blue,” because this is actually 3 words.

You get the picture! Be sure to follow the instructions carefully in order to not lose any points.

Don’t Panic

Some of the questions are very difficult. They are meant to separate the people who will get the higher band scores of 7, 8, or 9. If you’re at a band 5 or 6, you likely won’t get these ones correct. Don’t worry about it! Focus on the ones that you do know.

More IELTS General Reading Tips

Improving your English reading skill is, of course, important. However, you are probably here to find more practical tips for IELTS general reading. If that sounds like you, check out these IELTS general reading tips.

Have Realistic Expectations

It’s very difficult to get above a band seven on any of the IELTS sections (speaking, IELTS listening, reading, writing) unless you are quite good at English. It doesn’t matter how many practice exams you do if your general English ability isn’t high.

Do IELTS Reading Practice Tests

Practice makes perfect, right? If you want to get a higher IELTS general reading score, you’ll have to do lots of practice exams. I recommend doing one a day for a month before your exam. That way, you’ll become very familiar and comfortable with them.

I recommend sticking with either general or academic practice exams for whichever kind of IELTS exam you’re doing. However, either version can help you to become more familiar with the format and kinds of questions as well as time management.

Doing practice exams is by far one of the best IELTS reading tips and tricks to know. Without doing practice tests, it’ll be difficult to improve your IELTS general reading score.

IELTS Reading Tips: Timed and Non-Timed Exams

When you’re starting out with practice exams, don’t set a time limit for yourself. Go at your own pace and get familiar with the types of reading passages and the kinds of questions.

Once you get familiar with this, give yourself a time limit of one hour, the same as the IELTS reading exam.

Read a Range of Materials

Get used to reading a variety of higher-level materials. For example, articles from BBC News, The Economist, and other similar things. If those are too high of a level for you, a good place to start is Breaking News English.

Although the IELTS reading exam is a specific kind of test with specific questions, improving your general reading skills will go a long way towards getting a higher IELTS general reading band score.

There is a Mix of Easy and Difficult Questions

Think about it this way. A band three and band nine people are doing the same reading test! That’s a huge gap, which is why there are easy, medium, and difficult questions.

The easiest questions are for the lower band levels, like 3 and 4. The medium questions are designed for band five and above. Finally, the most difficult questions are for people who will score band seven or higher.

If a question seems very easy, it’s not a trick. There are easier questions! Just give the correct but easy answer to it.

On the other hand, don’t waste too much time trying to figure out the most difficult questions. Those are for the people who will score a band 8 or 9 on the exam. Basically, accept that you won’t get all the answers correct and don’t stress about it.

IELTS Reading Tips: Base your Answers on the Text

If you’re an expert in biotechnology and an article for the IELTS exam is on that same topic, don’t use your knowledge of the subject to answer the question. Instead, read the text to find out what it says.

Transfer Answers Carefully

You will have to transfer your answers to an answer sheet. Do this carefully and leave enough time to do so. Rushing through this can lead to mistakes.

IELTS Reading Tips: Pay Attention to Spelling

A quick tip for the IELTS listening and reading sections is to pay careful attention to spelling. If you spell a word incorrectly, it will be marked wrong.

Make a Guess if you Don’t Know the Answer.

If you don’t know the answer to a question, make a guess. There’s no point in leaving blanks, as you might get lucky with an answer.

IELTS Reading Tips: Pay Attention to the Order

This isn’t a rule that is followed 100% of the time, but you can generally count on it. Usually, the answer to the first question can be found at the beginning of the passage and then the next question after that, and so on.

IELTS Reading Academic Tips

The IELTS reading tips are pretty much the same for academic and general training. You can use these tips and tricks for IELTS reading for whichever test type.

However, if you are preparing to take the IELTS Academic reading test, you must know the slight difference between academic and general. Because IELTS Academic reading test examines if the test taker has the skill to survive the study load and learning materials in a college or university in an English-speaking country, the topics are closely related to academic subjects. Also, there is an additional type of question in the IELTS Academic reading test: global multiple-choice.

Learn IELTS Vocabulary

If you want to improve your IELTS general reading score, you’ll have to learn more vocabulary. A fun, easy way to do this is with this book: IELTS Speaking Vocabulary Builder. You can easily pick it up on Amazon.

If you want to level up on IELTS, be sure to pick up this helpful book today:

More IELTS Tips

If you’re looking to improve your IELTS general reading score, have a look at some of our other resources:

• Speaking Tips for IELTS
• IDP vs. BC for the IELTS
• Speaking Part 1
• Speaking Part 2
• Speaking Part 3
• IELTS Speaking Evaluation

FAQ About IELTS Reading Tips

Here are the answers to some of the most asked questions about improving IELTS general reading score and IELTS reading tips.

How can I improve IELTS Reading?

There are many exercises you can do to develop skills that will help you improve your IELTS general reading score. The three most crucial skills are reading quickly, skimming, and scanning. You have to read 3 passages and answer 40 questions in 60 minutes. Even if you know all the answers, it is useless if you cannot finish it in time. Therefore, practice to improve the three core skills.

What is the fastest way to get answers in IELTS Reading?

If you want to finish answering 40 questions in time, you will need to read quickly. How do you read quickly? There are two crucial skills you have to practice, scanning and skimming. Scanning is the ability to quickly look through a reading passage to find one specific piece of information. On the other hand, skimming is to go through the passage and understand the general idea quickly. If you develop these two skills, you will be able to read quickly and answer quickly and get a high IELTS general reading score.

What are the tricks for IELTS Reading?

The best IELTS Reading trick is to find the keywords. You won’t be reading every passage thoroughly. That will not give you enough time to complete the exam. Instead, focus on the heading and keywords. If you find them, circle them. Also, be realistic and do not waste time on difficult questions that you have a low chance of answering well. If it seems too difficult, it isn’t a question for you. Instead, try to give the best answer to questions that you feel like you can do it.

How can I get 7 in IELTS Reading?

Getting a band seven or higher on IELTS Reading or any other sections is very challenging. However, it isn’t impossible, especially if you are already quite proficient. However, you want to make sure to have realistic expectations. Some of the skills you need in order to get a high IELTS general reading score aren’t easy to develop or improve in a short period of time. However, if you think you are ready to aim for a seven, practice improving core skills like skimming, scanning, reading quickly, and learning more vocabulary.

Is IELTS General reading easier than Academic reading?

There is only a slight difference in the test format between IELTS general training and academic reading. However, academic reading focuses on topics that are more closely related to academic subjects. On the other side, IELTS general reading focuses on general interest. Therefore, IELTS General reading is easier than academic reading.

IELTS General Reading Tips: Join the Conversation

Do you have any IELTS reading tips that you’d like to share with us? Leave a comment below and let us know. We’d love to hear your exam tips and tricks to get a higher IELTS general reading score.

Last update on 2022-10-15 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API