IELTS Reading Summary Completion: Practice Questions, Strategy & Tips
Summary completion gives you a short summary of part of the text with some words missing. Notes, tables and flow charts work the same way. The hard part is not understanding the summary; it is finding exactly which part of the text it covers, and then the exact word that fits.
There are two versions: you either copy words from the text, or choose them from a box. This page explains both, shows the method that finds the right section quickly, then lets you type answers for 16 gaps and try an exam-style task with a word box.
Two versions of summary completion
| Version | What you do | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Words from the text | Copy words from the text into each gap, within the word limit. | The word limit and spelling, as in sentence completion. |
| Words from a box | Choose words from a list (A, B, C…) and write the letter. | The box words are often synonyms, not the words in the text. |
A method that finds the right part fast
The summary usually covers one part of the text, not all of it. Read the title and the first sentence of the summary, then find where that topic starts in the text. From there, the answers usually come in order. Before you search for each answer, decide what kind of word the gap needs: a noun, a number, an adjective.
The ice was stored in thick-walled ice houses packed with straw, where it could last until late summer.
“Thanks to the straw and thick walls, the ice did not melt until ___.” The gap follows until, so it needs a time: late summer.
Summary completion practice
Read the text, then type the missing words for the summary sentence and press Enter. Your answer is checked against the word limit and the accepted answers. Each round picks 8 of 16 gaps at random.
Now try a full exam-style task
In the test, a summary with a word box looks like the task below. Give yourself about 5 minutes, write the letters down, and then open How to answer to check them.
Questions 1–5
Read the text below and answer Questions 1–5.
Volunteering at the Riverside Food Bank
The Riverside Food Bank depends almost entirely on volunteers. Around 120 people give their time each month, sorting donated food, packing parcels and delivering them to families who cannot get to the centre.
New volunteers do not need any previous experience, but they must attend a two-hour introduction, where they learn about food safety and how to treat visitors with respect. Anyone who will drive the delivery van also needs a clean licence.
Most volunteers come for one shift a week, which lasts about three hours. The busiest time is Friday afternoon, when parcels are prepared for the weekend, so the centre is especially grateful for help then.
Volunteering can also be useful for people looking for work. The centre’s manager is happy to write a reference for anyone who has helped regularly for at least three months.
Questions 1–5
Complete the summary using the list of words, A–H, below.
Write the correct letter, A–H, in boxes 1–5 on your answer sheet.
How to answer: step by step
- F Do not need any previous experience: experience. Training (C) is what they must do, not what they need beforehand.
- C Must attend a two-hour introduction: a short training session. The box word is a synonym, not the word in the text.
- A A clean licence means one with no offences or penalties. Of the box words, only offences fits.
- G Friday afternoon, when parcels are prepared for the weekend: the end of the week.
- D Write a reference: a recommendation. Job (B) is tempting, but the manager offers a reference, not a job.
Did you notice? Every answer in the box was a synonym: introduction became training, reference became recommendation. In a box task, think about meaning first, and use grammar to check.
6 tips for summary completion
- 1
Find the section first
Use the summary title and first sentence to find where it starts in the text. That saves reading the whole text again.
- 2
Predict the word type
Before you search, decide whether the gap needs a noun, a verb, an adjective or a number.
- 3
Follow the order
Within the section, the answers normally appear in the same order as the gaps.
- 4
Check the word limit
For words from the text, the limit and spelling rules are the same as in sentence completion.
- 5
With a box, think synonyms
The box rarely uses the words of the text. Match the meaning, then check that the word fits the grammar.
- 6
Read the finished summary
Read it through with your answers in place. Every sentence should make sense and match the text.
Summary completion FAQ
Quick answers to the questions students ask most.
Are summary completion answers in order?
Usually yes, within the part of the text the summary covers. The summary itself may only cover one or two paragraphs.
Do I write the word or the letter in a box task?
When the words come from a box, write the letter (A, B, C…). When they come from the text, write the words.
Are notes, tables and flow charts the same as summaries?
Yes, they work in the same way: gaps in a short version of part of the text, filled with words from the text or from a box.
Can I change the form of a word?
Not when you copy from the text. Use the word exactly as it appears, within the word limit.
How many words are in the box?
There are always more words than gaps, often twice as many, and the extra words are chosen to look possible.
IELTS Reading question types
All 11 types in order. Pick one to practise next.
- 1True / False / Not GivenPractice →
- 2Yes / No / Not GivenPractice →
- 3Matching headingsPractice →
- 4Matching informationPractice →
- 5Matching featuresPractice →
- 6Matching sentence endingsPractice →
- 7Sentence completionPractice →
- 8Summary completionYou are here
- 9Diagram labelsPractice →
- 10Multiple choicePractice →
- 11Short answersPractice →