Unit 3: LISTENING SKILL

Exercise 1

In this unit, you will learn about Section 4 of the IELTS Listening test and practise the skills
you need to answer sentence completion questions.  

The exam task in this unit is about money. This is a common topic in IELTS, so it is a good
idea to think about some vocabulary you might hear.  

Match the words in the box with the definitions. 

Cash trade coin financial valuable exchange payment worth

1. to give something to someone and receive something else from that person:
__________
2. a small, round piece of metal that is used as money: _________
3. relating to money or how money is managed: ___________
4. having a particular value, especially in money: __________
5. an amount of money you give to someone, often for a product or service: __________
6. the activity of buying and selling products or services between people or countries:
____________
7. to be worth a lot of money: _____________
8. money in the form of notes and coins, rather than a credit card: _____________

Exercise 2

Complete the sentences. Use the words in the box.

Cash coin exchange financial payments trade valuable worth

1. Historians believe that the first ___________ was invented over 2,800 years ago and
was made of bronze.
2. The Mona Lisa painting is believed to be _______________ over $780 million.
3. Fewer people carry ________________ nowadays as more payments are being made
electronically.
4. Before money, many people used to ________________ food, like fruits and
vegetables, for tools. 
5. A lot of antiques, like paintings and furniture, are extremely ________________
nowadays. 
6. Many students receive ______________ support from their families while studying
at university.
7. The number of people making ________________ online is increasing every year.
8. In the past, as groups of people began to explore new areas, ________________

Exercise 3
In this example of an IELTS Listening sentence completion task, you will listen to two
students talking about the topic of finance in preparation for a lecture.  

Write one word to complete each sentence.

1. Greg and Penny agree to do some background reading on the history of

___________ .
2. Greg says that before money, _____________ was very common. 
3. Greg says that in the past, bronze was probably used to make ____________ .
4. The book Greg and Penny should read is called ‘The ____________ World’.

Exercise 4

Read the information. Then read the six extracts. Decide if each word in bold is an adjective,
a verb, or a noun. Highlight the adjectives in green, the verbs in yellow, and the nouns in
blue. 

1. So starting from prehistoric times and ancient cultures – all the way up to the 21st
century.
2. So we should start by looking at what people used before money was invented.
3. OK, so before money I think it was all about trade. So, like, in prehistoric times,
people probably exchanged all kinds of things – things that might have no value
today.
4. And I’m sure they gave each other useful things as well, you know, like tools.
5. But they were very valuable then, so people really wanted them.

Exercise 5

Read the information. Then match the words and phrases in the box with the correct
synonyms. 

began to use circle were made for mostly had the idea produce
very small images

Introduced ___________

Mainly ___________

Make ___________

Pictures ___________

Round ___________

Thought ___________
Tiny ___________

Were designed for ___________

Exercise 6

Read the sentences. Choose the correct synonym for the words and phrases in bold.

1. The UK introduced the two-pound coin in 1998.

o began to use
o created
o made

2. Before money, it was common for people to use food, such as rice, in exchange for
tools.

o Easy
o Difficult
o normal

3. The line graph shows the number of people who worked in finance in the years
between 1990 and 2015.

o Displays
o Explains
o includes

4. According to recent figures, the company was valued at £25 million in 2015.

o sold for
o offered
o worth

5. Many countries in Europe started to produce paper money in the 17th century.

o began to make
o changed to
o decided to use

6. The five-yen coin, used in Japan, is round with a very small hole in the middle.

o Square
o Tiny
o Very big

Exercise 7
Read the information. Then read the extracts from a lecture on the history of money and
choose the five phrases that signal the introduction of a new topic.

 Well, we’ll start by thinking about the situation in prehistoric times.

 It was in western Turkey, however, that the system of producing coins became more
organised.
 The only problem with these little tools is that they looked just like the real ones.
 Now, about 3,000 years ago, there was an interesting development, and this happened
in China.
 This is a metal which is quite easy to use and to make large tools from.
 It’s something that’s so easy to buy in the supermarket nowadays.
 But that wasn’t the only big development in China.
 What else was used instead of money in the distant past?

Exercise 8

Listen to a lecture on the history of money.

Put the signalling phrases for introducing new topics in the order you hear them.

But that wasn’t the only big development in China .

It was in western Turkey, however, that the system of producing coins became more
organised.

Now, about 3,000 years ago, there was an interesting development, and this happened in
China.

Well, we’ll start by thinking about the situation in prehistoric times.

What else was used instead of money in the distant past?

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.
Exercise 9

Complete the sentences. Write ONE WORD ONLY in each gap.

1. People often exchanged vegetables for ______________ in prehistoric times

2. In Ancient European cultures, tools that were used for ______________ were most
important.
3. Around 3,000 years ago, the Chinese began to make tiny _______________ of tools
from bronze.
4. China introduced coins that were round with a _______________ hole in the middle
2,800 years ago.
5. Coins were made mostly from ______________ in western Turkey.
6. King Alyattes had the idea of putting pictures of birds and _______________ on
coins.

Exercise 10

Think about what you’ve learnt from doing this unit.  

Listen to the advice and complete the sentences with one word or a number.

1. In Section _____________ of the IELTS Listening paper, you will

hear one speaker talking about an academic subject.
2. Read the sentence completion questions carefully to help you find
words and phrases that might be cues and paraphrases
____________ you listen.
3. Words and phrases that you read in the question and also hear in the
recording are _______________ .
4. These words and phrases are often for ________________ or for
times, dates and places.
5. Words and phrases that express the ________________ ideas with
different words are paraphrases.
6. When the recording begins, listen for signalling phrases to help you
understand when the speaker is starting to talk about a new
______________ in the lecture.