A2 Key (KET) Listening – Practice Test 1 — Explanation

Welcome to this free Cambridge A2 Key (KET) Listening practice test. It follows the real exam format exactly — the same five parts, the same question types and the same number of questions — so you know exactly what to expect on exam day. Play the audio for each part, answer the questions, and check your answers instantly with a short explanation.

The A2 Key Listening test lasts about 30 minutes and is worth 25% of your total mark. In the real exam, you hear every recording twice, so don't worry if you miss something the first time.

What is the A2 Key (KET) Listening exam?

A2 Key is Cambridge English's basic-level exam. The Listening paper shows that you can understand simple spoken English about everyday topics: times, prices, plans, directions and short conversations. There are five parts and 25 questions in total.

The five parts, one by one

• Part 1 (Questions 1–5) — Listen to five short conversations. For each one, answer a question by choosing A, B or C. This part tests times, prices, places and other simple facts.
• Part 2 (Questions 6–10) — Listen to one person speaking (for example, a tour guide) and complete a set of notes. Write one word or a number in each gap.
• Part 3 (Questions 11–15) — Listen to one longer conversation between two people and answer five multiple-choice questions (A, B or C).
• Part 4 (Questions 16–20) — Listen to five short, separate recordings. For each one, answer a question by choosing A, B or C.
• Part 5 (Questions 21–25) — Listen to one recording and match five people to the correct option from a list (A–H).

How to get a good score

• Read the questions before you listen. You get time to do this in the real exam — use it to guess what you will hear.
• Listen for key words such as numbers, days, times and places.
• Be careful with "distractors". Speakers often mention a wrong answer first and then correct it ("It was at six, but now it's at seven"). Listen to the end.
• Use the second listening to check answers you weren't sure about.
• Never leave a blank. There is no penalty for a wrong answer, so always write something.

How to use this test: each exercise below has an audio player at the top. Press play, answer the questions, and then choose "View Result" to see your score and explanations. Ready? Start with Part 1.