Avoid these in your exam

PTE Academic — Common Mistakes by Task

The same handful of mistakes drag down most PTE scores. Pick any of the 22 tasks, read the fix-it bullets, then take a 5-question quiz to lock in what you learned.

Speaking · Task 01 · RA

Read Aloud

You see a short text, get 30–40 seconds to prepare, then read it into the microphone. Two mistakes wreck most scores: flat delivery and panic around unfamiliar words.

Common mistake

Flat intonation, no sentence stress, no linking

Problem

Reading word-by-word with no rise/fall, no stressed key words and no linking. The examiner hears a robot, not a speaker, and the meaning gets lost.

The fix

Use rising/falling intonation to signal questions, contrasts and finished thoughts; stress the content words (nouns, verbs, adjectives); link words inside an idea so 'cloud of gas' sounds like 'cloud-of-gas'.

Rise for incomplete ideas, fall to close a thought
Punch the content words — nouns, verbs, adjectives
Join words within a phrase; don't pause between every word

Common mistake

Exaggerating or hesitating on unfamiliar words

Problem

The reader stalls and over-pronounces hard words like 'innovations' or 'reinterpreted'. Hesitation breaks rhythm and drags the whole sentence down.

The fix

Skim first, spot hard words, guess the pronunciation — and stay confident. A natural near-correct guess scores higher than a careful, broken attempt.

Use prep time to scan for tough words
Make a best guess and commit — don't over-stress it
Keep the same speed; sound natural, not perfect

Check yourself — 5 questions

0/5

1
Which is the BEST advice for Read Aloud delivery?
2
Linking words together (e.g. 'cloud of gas' → 'cloud-of-gas') helps the listener follow your ideas.
3
If you don't know how to say a word, you should slow right down and sound it out letter by letter.
4
When should you decide how to pronounce difficult words?
5
Which sentence stress pattern is correct for Read Aloud?