PTE Listening: Highlight Incorrect Words

PTE Tips for Highlight Incorrect Words

One of the easiest question types in PTE Listening is to Highlight Incorrect Words.

This task requires candidates to pick the wrong words from the given transcript. They will come across a transcript on their screen and they need to listen to its corresponding audio simultaneously.

The transcript has some errors, where some words in the transcript are going to be different from the words in the spoken text. While reading and listening, the task here is to look for these words and highlight the same by tapping on them.

The audio starts playing automatically. You can listen to the audio recording just once. There will be two or three questions in this listening task.

Key Points to Remember While Doing This Task

As long as you could follow along with the recording and continue reading the text, your chances to get the question right become quite high. As this is one of the easiest question kinds in PTE listening, follow the suggestions for maximizing your score.

Read the transcription quickly before listening

Before the spoken text starts, you can skim the given transcription. In 10 seconds, it would not be possible for you to read word-for-word. Focus on the keywords that tell you something about the main topic, such as nouns, adjectives, and verbs. So, decide on what the general topic is about. This helps you to pick out words that don’t fit that area while listening and recording.

Follow the transcription using the cursor while listening

In this task, you need to choose the wrong words while the recording is going on. Do not make any notes when you listen. Move the mouse cursor along with the display as the words are spoken. Now, tap on words that sound different from the words mentioned on the screen.

After a brief countdown, the audio will begin playing. Once it ends, you can finalize your answer and submit the response. Please keep in mind that there is an overall timer in the listening section. There is no time restriction on the basis of questions. Thus, you have to come with up your own time management strategy.

Keep moving

The first goal needs to be to follow the spoken text. If you could not understand a word or suddenly discover that the audio has moved further while you are still checking out the previous word, quickly jump to where the recording is. In case, you lag behind, you will miss out on everything. In this way, you are going to lose marks.

Click just once

While following the text, you need to scan for incorrect words. Once you have spotted such a word, choose it by tapping the left tab on the mouse. After selecting the word, it will get highlighted in yellow.

Do not click randomly

If you do not know the correct answer, do not click on any word. Look for some relevance as the Highlight Incorrect Words task has negative marking. So, it is better to go on a random tapping spree.

Do not make notes

You should not waste your time making notes in this listening task. So, skip note-taking and just focus on listening to the audio recording. It is the only thing that you can do to locate different words in the transcript than the spoken text.

Keep on practicing

Reading when you listen is kind of different than just listening or just reading. Many people overlook this point. Candidates should ensure that they practice reading when they listen at the same time. Practicing is the only way to excel in this task because there is nothing much to do here.