IELTS Reading Matching Headings: Practice Questions, Strategy & Tips
Matching headings is one of the IELTS Reading question types that take the most time. You get a list of headings and have to choose the best one for each paragraph, and there are always more headings than paragraphs, so some are left over to trick you.
The good news: it is a skill you can train. Below you will find a step-by-step strategy, the three traps that cost most marks, 24 practice paragraphs with explanations, and a full exam-style task, so you can see why each heading is right or wrong.
What matching headings asks you to do
Each paragraph of the text has a letter (A, B, C…) and you get a list of headings numbered with small Roman numerals (i, ii, iii…). Your job is to find the heading that sums up the main idea of each paragraph. Not a detail, not a word that appears in it: the whole paragraph.
Two things make it different from most other question types. The answers do not follow a simple order, and the questions usually come before the text, so it is often the first thing you see in a section.
A step-by-step strategy
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1
Read the headings first
Underline the key idea in each heading. Notice headings that are similar, because only one of them will fit.
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2
Read one paragraph at a time
Read the first two sentences and the last sentence carefully. The main idea is usually there; the middle gives examples and details.
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3
Sum it up in your own words
Before you look at the list, say in four or five words what the paragraph is about. Then find the heading that means the same.
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4
Do the easy paragraphs first
Skip a paragraph you are unsure about. Every heading you use removes an option, so the hard ones get easier at the end.
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5
Cross out used headings
Each heading is normally used only once. Crossing them out saves you reading the full list again and again.
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6
Check the whole paragraph
Before you write the answer, ask: does this heading cover the whole paragraph, or just one sentence of it?
The three traps that cost most marks
| Trap | What happens |
|---|---|
| Same word | A heading uses a word from the paragraph, so it looks right. The paragraph mentions it, but is not about it. |
| Only a detail | The heading matches one example or one sentence, not the main idea of the whole paragraph. |
| Too wide | The heading could describe the whole text, not just this paragraph. It is true, but not specific enough. |
When the town’s only cinema closed in 2015, local people missed more than films. It had been the place where teenagers met, couples went on first dates and families spent Sunday afternoons.
“Why the cinema closed” → wrong: the paragraph says it closed, but never why (same word trap).
“What the town lost” → right: the whole paragraph is about what the cinema meant to people.
Matching headings practice
Read the paragraph and choose the best heading. After each answer you will see the right one and why the others do not fit, while the next paragraph appears. Each round picks 10 of 24 paragraphs at random, so play a few rounds. Tip: press 1–4 on your keyboard.
Now try a full exam-style task
In the test you match headings to a whole text, with more headings than paragraphs. Give yourself about 6 minutes, write down your answers, and then open How to answer to check them step by step.
Questions 1–5
The text has five paragraphs, A–E. Choose the correct heading for each paragraph from the list of headings below. Write the correct number, i–viii, in boxes 1–5 on your answer sheet.
List of Headings
- iRules to keep numbers under control
- iiWhy towns can suit bees better than farms
- iiiThe disappearance of wild bees
- ivThe high price of city honey
- vMore than honey: the social value of hives
- viA success that could cause harm
- viiAn unexpected move from countryside to city
- viiiThe decline of beekeeping in rural areas
Read the text below.
Bees in the city
A For most of the twentieth century, keeping bees was seen as a hobby for people in the countryside. Over the past twenty years, however, hives have appeared on the roofs of offices, hotels and apartment blocks in cities from London to Tokyo. In Paris alone there are now thought to be more than a thousand, and city honey is sold in smart shops at high prices.
B Surprisingly, bees often do well in towns. Parks, gardens, balconies and roadside trees provide a wide variety of flowers from early spring to late autumn, while large farms may offer only one crop that flowers for a few weeks. Cities also tend to be slightly warmer, and gardens are usually sprayed with fewer pesticides than farmland.
C Yet the success of urban beekeeping may itself become a problem. In some parts of London there are now so many hives that there may not be enough flowers to feed all the bees. Researchers also worry that large numbers of honeybees compete for food with wild bees, many species of which are already in decline.
D As a result, some cities have started to limit the number of hives. Berlin, for example, asks new beekeepers to register their colonies, and several councils now advise people to plant flowers rather than keep bees if they want to help insects. Courses for beginners increasingly teach how to choose a suitable site, not just how to collect honey.
E For many beekeepers, though, the real value of a city hive is not the honey at all. Schools use them to teach children where food comes from, and office workers who look after rooftop hives say it gives them a reason to talk to colleagues they would otherwise never meet.
How to answer: step by step
- vii Paragraph A describes beekeeping moving from the countryside to cities. Heading iv is a trap: honey prices are mentioned in the last sentence, but only as a detail. Heading viii is also wrong: the text does not say rural beekeeping is declining.
- ii Every sentence explains why towns suit bees: more flowers for longer, warmer air, fewer pesticides. The comparison with farms is part of that idea.
- vi Yet the success… may itself become a problem: the first sentence gives the main idea, and the rest explains the harm (too few flowers, competition with wild bees). Heading iii is too narrow: wild bees are one example.
- i Limit the number of hives, register their colonies, advise people: the paragraph is about controlling numbers. Courses are mentioned, but as part of that control.
- v The real value of a city hive is not the honey at all: schools and office workers are examples of its social value. This paragraph shows why reading the first sentence closely pays off.
Did you notice? Three headings were not used, and each one is a typical trap: iv picks up a detail, iii is only part of a paragraph, and viii takes a word from the text (rural, countryside) but says something the text does not.
Matching headings FAQ
Quick answers to the questions students ask most.
Can I use the same heading twice?
Normally no. Each heading fits only one paragraph. If you think a heading fits two paragraphs, read both again: one of them has a more specific main idea.
Why are there more headings than paragraphs?
The extra headings are there to test whether you really understand the main idea. They are usually close to the text in some way, for example they repeat a word from it or describe only a detail.
Should I read the whole text first?
Not word for word. Read the list of headings, then read each paragraph quickly, paying most attention to its first sentences and its last sentence. That is usually enough to find the main idea.
Are matching headings answers in order?
The questions go through the paragraphs in order (A, B, C…), but the headings in the list are mixed up, so the answers do not follow the list.
How long should I spend on matching headings?
About a minute per paragraph. If one takes longer, skip it and come back at the end, when fewer headings are left.
Want to know the other question types too? See all 11 IELTS Reading question types with examples, or practise True False Not Given.
Ready for the whole test? Free IELTS General Reading practice test with answers