Multiple-choice, choose multiple answers

 Multiple-choice, choose multiple answers

The PTE Reading "Multiple-choice, choose multiple answers" section can feel tricky due to its negative marking system. The key is to be strategic: prioritize certainty over risk and focus on clear textual evidence.

Here is a comprehensive guide covering the format, scoring, strategies, and practice samples to help you tackle this task effectively.

Overview of the Task

This task is part of the PTE Reading section, which lasts for a total of 29–30 minutes and contains about 13-18 questions across five different question types.

Here are the specifics for the "Multiple-choice, choose multiple answers" question:

Feature	Details
Number of Questions	Typically 1-2 per test.
Task Format	A passage (up to 300 words) is followed by a question and a list of answer options. You must select all correct options.
Scoring	Partial Credit (Negative Marking). You get +1 point for a correct answer and -1 point for a wrong answer. The minimum score for a question is 0. This means guessing can significantly hurt your score.
Skills Assessed	Reading comprehension, identifying the main idea, understanding specific details, and making inferences.

Key Strategies for Success

Read the Question First

Before you even start reading the passage, read the question carefully. This gives you a clear target and helps you know exactly what information to look for in the text.

Scan the Passage with Purpose

Once you know what the question is asking, scan the passage for relevant information. Don't get bogged down in details that aren't related to the question.

The "100% Certainty" Rule

This is the most crucial strategy. Due to negative marking, only select an answer if you can find explicit evidence in the text to prove it is 100% correct. If you are even slightly unsure, leave it unselected.

Spot the Wrong Answers

The incorrect options are often designed to trap you.

Keyword Trap: An option might use the same words as the text but change the meaning slightly.

Logical Guess Trap: An option might seem logical based on common knowledge, but it is not explicitly stated in the text.

Extreme Language Trap: Watch out for absolute words like "all," "every," "never," or "always." The correct answer is usually more balanced and uses qualifiers like "some," "may," or "often."

Manage Your Time

Allocate about 2 to 3 minutes for this task. Spending too long on one question will eat into the time you have for other questions in the reading section.

5 Practice Samples with Answers and Explanations

Here are five sample questions based on the official task format. Read the passage and the question, then try to select all the correct options before reading the answers and reasons.

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Sample 1

Read the text and answer the UI by selecting all the correct responses.

Exposure to high levels of noise can cause permanent hearing loss. Neither surgery nor a hearing aid can help correct this type of hearing loss. Short-term exposure to loud noise can also cause a temporary change in hearing (your ears may feel stuffed up) or a ringing in your ears (tinnitus). These short-term problems may go away within a few minutes or hours after leaving the noise. However, repeated exposures to loud noise can lead to permanent tinnitus and/or hearing loss. Loud noise can create physical and psychological stress, reduce productivity, interfere with communication and concentration, and contribute to workplace accidents and injuries by making it difficult to hear warning signals. The effects of noise-induced hearing loss can be profound, limiting your ability to hear high-frequency sounds, understand speech, and seriously impairing your ability to communicate.

Which of the following statements about health can be supported by the text?

A. Even after long exposure, the sound is unlikely to cause hearing loss.

B. The cochlea is responsible for the transfer of sound waves into nerve impulses.

C. Exposure to noise at work can harm workers' health.

D. Three small bones of the outer ear (malleus, incus, and stapes) are attached like a chain to the tympanic membrane and convert sound waves.

Answers & Explanations:

C is correct: The text states that loud noise "can create physical and psychological stress, reduce productivity, interfere with communication and concentration, and contribute to workplace accidents and injuries." This directly supports the idea that workplace noise can be harmful to health.

A is incorrect: This directly contradicts the text, which says that "exposure to high levels of noise can cause permanent hearing loss."

B is correct: The text mentions the cochlea or how sound waves are transferred.

D is incorrect: The text does not describe the anatomy of the ear in this way.

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Sample 2

Read the text and answer the question by selecting all the correct responses.

Children who skip school are increasingly on family holidays, government figures revealed today. A majority of children played truant this spring term compared with the spring term last year. Children missed 3m unauthorised days of school last term, compared with 3.7m days of school in the same period last year. But a core group of truants – 6% of the school population – who account for more than three-quarters of all those on unauthorised absence, are more likely to be on a family holiday than they were in the same period last year. Some 1.2% of all absence was for family holidays not authorised by their school last term, compared with 0.9% for the same term last year. More than 60% of all absences were for illness, the same figure as last year.

Which of the following statements about school absence can be supported by the text?

A. Most school absences are for family holidays.

B. The number of unauthorised absences has increased.

C. A small group of students accounts for most absences.

D. Most absences are for illness.

Answers & Explanations:

C is correct: The text mentions "a core group of truants – 6% of the school population – who account for more than three-quarters of all those on unauthorised absence."

D is correct: The text states, "More than 60% of all absences were for illness, the same figure as last year."

A is incorrect: The text states that family holidays make up only 1.2% of all absences.

B is incorrect: The text says that the number of unauthorised days has decreased from 3.7m to 3m.

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Sample 3

Read the text and answer the question by selecting all the correct responses.

Modern education attaches great importance to learning through doing. It is fully recognized that the knowledge gained through actually doing the task is more effective and lasting than that gained through mere reading. That is why all the modern methods of education give top priority to some hand-work round which they base the teaching of the curriculum. In modern education, the student is not merely a passive listener but is an active participant in the process of education. Now it is the student who is expected to be more active and up and doing and the teacher is merely a guide.

Which of the following statements are supported by information given in the text?

A. A basic craft is compulsory in the curriculum of modern education.

B. Knowledge gained through practical training is permanent.

C. It lays greater emphasis on activity-based training.

D. Here the teacher plays merely a supportive/facilitating role.

Answers & Explanations:

C is correct: The text states that "modern education attaches great importance to learning through doing" and gives "top priority to some hand-work."

D is correct: The text explicitly says that "the teacher is merely a guide" in this system.

A is incorrect: While the text mentions "hand-work," it does not specify that a "basic craft" is compulsory.

B is incorrect: The text says the knowledge is "effective and lasting," not explicitly "permanent."

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Sample 4

Read the text and answer the question by selecting all the correct responses.

Spirituality does not mean being religious. It means connecting oneself to his or her own self. The spiritual essence of a man is in giving and being generous. Spirituality means connecting oneself to the higher self and the higher self is connected with everyone's higher self. Therefore, people who follow spirituality and meditate are blessed with more clarity, peace, patience and eventually happiness and abundance. Learning about finance is similar to learning about spirituality. Working for your own good will never help you in your financial condition.

What is correct about spiritual education according to the paragraph?

A. Study of spirituality and study of finance is similar.

B. Spirituality is following a god.

C. Spirituality is nothing but connecting to one's higher self.

D. Great inventions did nothing for the human race.

Answers & Explanations:

A is correct: The text concludes with a clear comparison: "Learning about finance is similar to learning about spirituality."

C is correct: The text explicitly defines spirituality as "connecting oneself to the higher self."

B is incorrect: The text starts by stating, "Spirituality does not mean being religious."

D is incorrect: This contradicts the text, which mentions that great inventors like the Wright brothers "did something for the human race."

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Sample 5

Read the text and answer the question by selecting all the correct responses.

Icebergs are massive blocks of ice, irregular in shape; they float with only about 12 percent of their mass above the sea surface. They are formed by glaciers—large rivers of ice that begin inland in the snows of Greenland, Antarctica, and Alaska and move slowly toward the sea. The forward movement, the melting at the base of the glacier where it meets the ocean, and waves and tidal action cause blocks of ice to break off and float out to sea. Icebergs are ordinarily blue to white, although they sometimes appear dark or opaque because they carry gravel and bits of rock.

According to paragraph, what causes icebergs to sometimes appear dark or opaque?

A. A heavy cloud cover

B. The presence of bits of rock

C. The low angle of the Sun above the horizon

D. The presence of gravel

Answers & Explanations:

B is correct: The text states that icebergs "sometimes appear dark or opaque because they carry gravel and bits of rock."

D is correct: This is a more specific example of the same reason, as gravel is a type of rock.

A is incorrect: The text says they "may change color with changing light conditions and cloud cover," but this is a color change, not the dark or opaque appearance.

C is incorrect: The text says the low angle of the sun causes them to glow "pink or gold," not appear dark or opaque.