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IELTS Reading Practice Test 2 (Academic, free, with answer key)

Last updated September 16, 2026

Short answer: Reading Test 2 is a full IELTS Academic Reading test: three passages (renewable energy, water scarcity, memory), 40 questions in 60 minutes, and your raw score, estimated band on the Academic scale and per-passage breakdown the moment you submit. Free, no sign-up. Take the test first, then check the answer key below; reading it before the test makes the band meaningless.

Start Reading Test 2
3
Academic passages, each with its own page and full text
40
questions in 60 minutes, scored automatically and converted to an estimated band
0
sign-up, email or card to take the test and see your band

This page describes what is in Reading Test 2 and gives the answer key for its 40 questions. The test itself runs on the ParrotTalk Reading page: the button above opens it with Test 2 already selected. The three passages are Academic texts written for ParrotTalk, in the shape of the IELTS Academic Reading test, and each has its own page where you can read it in full before or after the test. This is not an official IELTS test.

What is in this test

PassageTitleQuestionsQuestion types
Passage 1 The Evolution of Renewable Energy 1 to 13 True/False/Not Given (Q1 to 7), Multiple choice (Q8 to 13)
Passage 2 Urbanisation and Water Scarcity 14 to 26 Sentence completion (Q14 to 20), Multiple choice (Q21 to 26)
Passage 3 The Science of Memory Consolidation 27 to 40 Sentence completion (Q27 to 33), Multiple choice (Q34 to 40)

Allow 60 minutes for the three passages, as in the exam, which leaves about 20 minutes per passage; there is no extra time to transfer answers. The timer starts only when you click Start, the passages are read on tabs, and your progress is saved in your browser, so a reload does not lose your answers. If you finish early, a review panel lets you check your answers until the clock runs out or you submit.

Answer key

Take the test first. The answer key is here so that you can check your work afterwards; if you read it before you start, the band you get at the end tells you nothing about your level.

The answers below are the ones accepted by the automatic scoring, one per question, with the paragraph of the passage that supports each answer. The questions themselves stay on the test page; each passage page lists the question groups without their wording.

Show the answers for Passage 1: The Evolution of Renewable Energy

Questions 1-7, True / False / Not Given

Do the following statements agree with the information given in the passage? Write TRUE, FALSE or NOT GIVEN.

  1. TRUE (Paragraph 1: 'fell by more than 89% between 2010 and 2020')
  2. NOT GIVEN (Not stated in the passage)
  3. TRUE (Paragraph 3: 'solar panels generate no electricity at night')
  4. FALSE (Paragraph 3: 'the same technology used in electric vehicles')
  5. NOT GIVEN (Not stated in the passage)
  6. TRUE (Paragraph 6: 'temperature rise to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels')
  7. NOT GIVEN (Not stated in the passage)

Questions 8-13, Multiple Choice

Choose the correct letter A, B, C or D.

  1. B, Intermittency of supply (Paragraph 3: 'primary challenges associated with renewable energy is its intermittency')
  2. C, Denmark (Paragraph 2: 'Countries such as Denmark, which generates more than 50%')
  3. C, It is dominated by lithium-ion technology (Paragraph 3: 'have emerged as the dominant form of grid-scale storage')
  4. B, The environmental impact of raw material extraction (Paragraph 5: 'Mining these materials can cause environmental damage')
  5. C, The composite blades present a growing disposal challenge (Paragraph 5: 'the fibreglass composite blades, presents a growing waste management challenge')
  6. B, It is essential despite its imperfections (Paragraph 6: 'while imperfect, is essential for limiting global temperature rise')
Show the answers for Passage 2: Urbanisation and Water Scarcity

Questions 14-20, Sentence Completion

Complete the sentences below. Use NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer.

  1. URBAN (Paragraph 1: 'population currently lives in urban areas')
  2. WITHDRAWALS (Paragraph 3: 'approximately 70% of all water withdrawals')
  3. IRRIGATED (Paragraph 3: 'the remaining land to be irrigated more intensively')
  4. AQUIFERS (Paragraph 4: 'some aquifers may take thousands of years to recover')
  5. HARVESTING (Paragraph 5: 'Rainwater harvesting systems collect and store precipitation')
  6. NEEDS (Paragraph 5: 'approximately 40% of the city-state's water needs')
  7. DESALINATION (Paragraph 6: 'Desalination, the process of removing salt from seawater')

Questions 21-26, Multiple Choice

Choose the correct letter A, B, C or D.

  1. C, 68% (Paragraph 1: 'projected to rise to 68% by 2050')
  2. B, A convergence of ageing infrastructure, population growth and climate change (Paragraph 2: 'ageing infrastructure, population growth, and the effects of climate change')
  3. C, Remaining farmland requires more intensive irrigation (Paragraph 3: 'requiring the remaining land to be irrigated more intensively')
  4. C, Some aquifers may take thousands of years to recover (Paragraph 4: 'some aquifers may take thousands of years to recover')
  5. D, It is energy-intensive and costly (Paragraph 6: 'it is energy-intensive and has historically been costly')
  6. B, A city that has implemented successful water recycling at scale (Paragraph 5: 'has developed a world-leading water recycling programme')
Show the answers for Passage 3: The Science of Memory Consolidation

Questions 27-33, Sentence Completion

Complete the sentences below. Use NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer.

  1. STABLE (Paragraph 2: 'temporary state into a stable, long-term memory')
  2. SYNAPTIC (Paragraph 2: 'temporary connections known as synaptic pathways')
  3. PROTEINS (Paragraph 2: 'the synthesis of new proteins within the neuron')
  4. DECLARATIVE (Paragraph 3: 'the initial formation of declarative memories')
  5. REACTIVATES (Paragraph 4: 'the hippocampus repeatedly reactivates recently formed memories')
  6. SLEEPING (Paragraph 5: 'learning shortly before sleeping produces markedly better long-term recall')
  7. RECONSOLIDATION (Paragraph 6: 'The phenomenon of reconsolidation, the discovery that memories')

Questions 34-40, Multiple Choice

Choose the correct letter A, B, C or D.

  1. B, To stabilise newly formed synaptic pathways (Paragraph 2: 'stabilised through a molecular process involving the synthesis')
  2. C, Distributed across the cortex (Paragraph 3: 'gradually transferred and distributed across the cortex')
  3. B, It allows the hippocampus to transfer memories to the cortex (Paragraph 4: 'transfers information to the cortex for long-term storage')
  4. C, The finding that sleeping after learning improves long-term retention (Paragraph 5: 'learning shortly before sleeping produces markedly better long-term recall')
  5. B, It becomes temporarily unstable (Paragraph 6: 'memories become temporarily fragile each time they are retrieved')
  6. B, Intervening during the reconsolidation window to weaken traumatic memories (Paragraph 6: 'weakened by intervening during the reconsolidation window')
  7. B, Memory is a dynamic process that continues to be modified over time (Paragraph 6: 'has transformed understanding of memory's dynamic nature')

Quick answers

Is this Reading test free?

Yes. Reading Test 2 is completely free, with no sign-up, no email and no card, and you can take it as many times as you like. The three passages, the 40 questions, the automatic scoring and the estimated band are all included.

Is this test Academic or General Training?

Academic. The passages are Academic Reading texts and the band uses the Academic conversion table; there is no General Training passage on ParrotTalk. The Reading page lets you tick General Training before you start, and then adds a note that on the real General Training scale the same raw score gives a band about one step lower. The General Training conversion table is on the band score calculator.

How is the Reading band calculated?

From your raw score out of 40, converted to a band with the official-style Academic table. The band and a per-passage breakdown appear the moment you submit, and each wrong answer shows where in the passage the answer was. The full conversion table, Academic and General Training, is on the band score calculator.

Is this an official IELTS test?

No. It is practice material in the format of the IELTS Academic Reading test, with passages written for ParrotTalk, and the band is an estimate to track your progress, not an official result. ParrotTalk is independent and not affiliated with IELTS, the British Council, IDP, or Cambridge English.

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ParrotTalk is free, with no sign-up. Bands are estimates, not official IELTS results. See the band score calculator for the full raw score to band tables, Academic and General Training, and read how to practise IELTS Reading for free for the mistakes that cost the most marks.