CELPIP Reading

Overview

A personal message followed by questions, then a reply with gaps to fill. You need to understand the message to fill the reply correctly.

How to approach it

• •Read the whole first message before the questions — it usually explains a request and the reason for it.
• •For the gaps in the reply, read the full sentence and the sentence before it. The gap must fit both grammar and meaning.
• •The reply often refers back to details in the first message (names, dates, conditions). Check them.
• •Watch for words like “but”, “so” and “since”: they tell you what kind of idea fits the gap.

A diagram or table (prices, plans, a schedule) and an email that refers to it. You fill gaps in the email and answer questions using both.

How to approach it

• •Spend a minute understanding the diagram: what is being compared and what the numbers mean.
• •Many answers need a small calculation or a comparison — do it on paper, do not guess.
• •Read the writer’s situation carefully. The right option is the one that fits their needs, not the cheapest or the first.
• •Questions after the email may ask why the writer prefers one option — find the reason in the text.

A text in four paragraphs (A–D). For each statement, decide which paragraph contains that information — or E if none of them does.

How to approach it

• •Read the whole text once and give each paragraph a short label (problem, solution, cost, limits).
• •Statements say the same idea in different words. Match meaning, not single words.
• •Choose E only when no paragraph contains the idea — not when the idea is only partly there.
• •Check each answer against the exact sentence in the paragraph before you move on.

An article presenting different views on an issue, then a reader’s comment with gaps. Questions test the views and the writer’s attitude.

How to approach it

• •As you read, mark who holds each view: supporters, critics, experts, the writer.
• •Questions often ask what “supporters” or “critics” think — do not mix the two groups.
• •In the reader’s comment, decide first whether the reader agrees or disagrees with the article.
• •For the gaps, read to the end of the sentence; the words after the gap often decide the answer.

Worked example (our own item, Part 1 style)

Choose the best option for the gap.

1. A. plants
2. B. key✓ correct
3. C. water
4. D. message

Why

• •The message says the key is under the blue pot, so the reply must refer to the key.
• •“Plants” and “water” are in the message, but they are not under the pot.
• •Gap questions in the reply often depend on a detail in the first message.