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Choose the correct option (A/B/C/D) — single or multiple letters.
Read a section of the passage, then pick the option that best reflects what the writer says.
Although the kakapo is sometimes described as 'lazy' because of its slow movement and ground-dwelling habits, this characterisation reflects a misunderstanding. Energy conservation is in fact a sophisticated evolutionary strategy: in an environment where calories were historically scarce, slow metabolism allowed the species to survive on whatever it could forage without travelling far.
What does the writer suggest about the description 'lazy'?
Multiple Choice questions in Academic Reading present a stem followed by four options (A-D), and you must select the one that best reflects the passage. Questions follow the order of information in the passage, so use that to your advantage. First, read the stem and underline the keyword(s); ignore the options at this stage to avoid being primed by distractors. Locate the relevant section in the passage by scanning for paraphrased keywords (synonyms, not exact words).
Read that section closely, then formulate your own answer in your head before looking at the options. Now compare each option to the text. Eliminate options that are off-topic, partially true but missing a key qualifier, contradicted by the passage, or true in real life but not stated in the text. Distractors often include the right vocabulary in the wrong relationship (e.g., swapping cause and effect, or mixing up two researchers' views).
Pay attention to qualifiers: 'always', 'only', 'never', 'most' can make an option wrong even if the rest is right. Watch out for options that combine information from different paragraphs misleadingly. Aim for about 75-90 seconds per question, since each requires careful reading. If two options seem close, re-read the relevant sentence and pick the one that exactly mirrors the passage's claim, including its strength (a 'suggestion' is not a 'proof').
Never leave a blank; eliminate the weakest two options and guess between the rest. Transfer the letter (A, B, C, or D) carefully to the answer sheet, matching the case shown.
Each correct answer earns 1 mark, contributing to the 40-mark Academic Reading total. There is no partial credit, and incorrect answers are not penalised, so always guess. Answers are single letters, so spelling does not apply; ensure you write the letter clearly. On the official conversion, 30/40 is Band 7, 33/40 is Band 7.5, 35/40 is Band 8, 23/40 is Band 6, and 19/40 is approximately Band 5.5 in Academic Reading.
Tactical content is original synthesis based on these public IELTS prep resources.