Free IELTS Reading Practice Test 6 (Academic, with Answers)

Unofficial practice. We wrote these questions to match the official IELTS question types and timings. They are not real exam questions, and points shown are practice feedback, not a band score. For official sample tests, visit ielts.org.

Before you start

Do

Read the instructions for word limits, like "NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS".
Skim the passage first, then scan for answers.
Check spelling: a misspelled answer is marked wrong.
Leave no blanks. There's no penalty for wrong answers in IELTS.

Don't

Don't spend too long on one question. Move on and come back.
Don't write more words than the instructions allow.
Don't replay the audio. In the real test you hear it once.

How the buttons work

▶ Start test starts the clock (20 minutes) and shows one part at a time, as in the real test. In reading, the passage stays on screen next to the questions.
Move between parts with ◀ Back and Next ▶. As in the real test, you can go back and change answers until time runs out.
Listening: each recording plays once. Read the questions first, then press play and answer as you listen.
❚❚ Pause stops the clock if you're interrupted (the real test can't be paused). End test finishes early and shows your results.

How it's marked

Multiple-choice, fill-in and listening questions are marked instantly with the real test's rules. See exactly how we mark.
At the end you'll see a results report by task type, with what to practise next.

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How this practice is marked

One point per correct answer, with spelling checked, as in the real IELTS. There's no penalty for wrong answers. We show points rather than a band for single passages, because IELTS converts raw scores out of 40. For a band estimate, take a full reading test or a full listening test. See how our marking works.

Answers, explanations and transcripts

Finish the test first, then open each section to check your answers. Every answer has an explanation.

Reading passage

Passage text

Can a machine be creative?

Computer programs can now write poems, compose music and produce pictures in seconds. Some of this work is good enough to win competitions or sell at auction, and it has prompted a familiar question: can a machine be creative? The answer depends largely on what we mean by creativity, and I would argue that the debate has been confused by two very different definitions.

The first definition focuses on the product. If something is new, surprising and valuable, it is creative, regardless of how it was made. By this standard, there is little doubt that machines can produce creative work. A melody generated by software can be original and moving, and listeners who do not know its source often cannot tell it apart from music written by people.

The second definition focuses on the process. Creativity, on this view, requires intention: the creator must be trying to express or achieve something, and must be able to judge whether they have succeeded. Current systems do not appear to do this. They generate output by finding patterns in enormous collections of existing work, and they have no goals of their own. In my view, this is the more useful definition, because it explains why we value a child's first drawing more than a technically perfect copy.

Critics of machine creativity often claim that programs merely recombine what already exists. This argument is weaker than it seems. Human artists also learn by studying the work of others, and almost every new style grows out of earlier ones. The real difference lies not in the use of existing material but in the reasons for the choices that are made.

None of this means that the technology is unimportant to the arts. Many musicians and designers already use these programs to generate rough ideas, which they then select, reject and refine. Used in this way, the software resembles a new kind of instrument rather than a rival artist. Whether this will increase or reduce the number of people who can earn a living from creative work is, at present, impossible to say.

What does seem clear is that the arrival of such systems will force us to think more carefully about why we value art at all. If a painting moves us, should it matter who or what made it? I suspect that, for most people, it will continue to matter a great deal.

Answer key (15 answers)

#	Question	Answer	Why
1	Some work made by computer programs has sold at auction.	Yes	Paragraph 1: 'good enough to win competitions or sell at auction'.
2	The debate about machine creativity has been made unclear by the use of different definitions.	Yes	Paragraph 1: 'the debate has been confused by two very different definitions'.
3	The product-based definition of creativity is the more useful one.	No	The writer prefers the process definition: 'this is the more useful definition'.
4	Machine-generated music is usually less popular than music written by people.	Not Given	The writer says listeners often can't tell the difference, but says nothing about popularity.
5	The claim that programs only recombine existing work is a strong argument against machine creativity.	No	Paragraph 4: 'This argument is weaker than it seems'.
6	According to the second definition, creativity requires	B. intention and the ability to judge success	Paragraph 3: creativity requires intention and the ability to judge success.
7	Why does the writer mention a child's first drawing?	B. To support the process-based definition	It explains why the process definition is more useful.
8	According to the writer, how do human artists resemble computer programs?	C. They learn from existing work	Paragraph 4: human artists also learn by studying the work of others.
9	How do many musicians and designers use the software?	B. To produce rough ideas they then develop	Paragraph 5: they generate rough ideas, then select, reject and refine them.
10	What is the writer's view about jobs in the creative industries?	C. It is too early to know the effect	Paragraph 5: 'impossible to say' at present.
11	Under the product-based definition, machines	A. can clearly produce creative work	Paragraph 2: 'there is little doubt that machines can produce creative work'.
12	Current systems produce their output by	B. finding patterns in existing work	Paragraph 3: 'by finding patterns in enormous collections of existing work'.
13	The writer believes the real difference between people and programs lies in	C. the reasons behind their choices	Paragraph 4: 'the reasons for the choices that are made'.
14	Used to generate rough ideas, the software is compared to	B. a new kind of instrument	Paragraph 5: 'resembles a new kind of instrument rather than a rival artist'.
15	The writer expects that, for most people, who made a work of art will	C. continue to matter a great deal	Final paragraph: 'it will continue to matter a great deal'.