IELTS Reading: Matching Sentence Endings
This task tests whether you can track an idea across a sentence and find the ending in the passage that completes it with the exact same meaning, not just similar words.
What this question looks like
You are given a list of sentence beginnings (usually 5 to 8), each based on information from the passage, and a separate list of possible endings (usually more endings than beginnings, to remove the chance of guessing by elimination). You must match each beginning to the ending that correctly completes it according to the text. Only one ending is correct for each beginning, and each ending can normally be used only once. The completed sentence must be grammatically correct and must accurately reflect what the passage says, not just contain matching keywords.
Step-by-step approach
- 1Read all the sentence beginnings first and underline the key noun or idea in each one, this tells you what to scan for in the passage.
- 2Read the endings list and notice their grammar: are they noun phrases, verb phrases, or clauses starting with 'because', 'if', 'when'? This narrows which beginnings they can logically attach to.
- 3Find the relevant part of the passage for each beginning using the key noun, then read that sentence carefully rather than jumping straight to an ending.
- 4Test each candidate ending by joining it to the beginning and checking two things: does it make correct grammar, and does it match the meaning of the passage exactly (not a distorted or partial version)?
- 5Eliminate endings as you use them and watch for 'distractor' endings that share vocabulary with the passage but reverse the logic, add an unsupported detail, or state the opposite fact.
- 6Leave any hard match until last and use the process of elimination, since the correct ending for the final beginning is whichever one remains unused.
Worked example
Passage extract: 'Urban beekeeping has grown rapidly in the last decade, largely because city councils have relaxed rules on rooftop hives. However, ecologists warn that without careful management, the sheer number of new hives in some areas may actually reduce food supplies for wild, native pollinators, since honeybees compete with them for the same flowers.' Sentence beginning: 'A high concentration of urban honeybee hives...' Endings to choose from: A. can encourage city councils to relax hive regulations further. B. may lower the amount of food available to wild pollinator species. C. has been reduced because of new council restrictions. D. is unrelated to the feeding habits of native pollinators.
B. may lower the amount of food available to wild pollinator species.
The beginning names the topic (a high concentration of hives). Scanning the passage shows the relevant sentence is the second one, about ecologists' warning. It says a large number of hives 'may actually reduce food supplies for wild, native pollinators' because of competition for flowers. Ending B restates this exactly: fewer hives is not mentioned, so C is wrong (it also contradicts 'grown rapidly'); A reverses cause and effect, since relaxed rules caused the growth in hives, not the other way round; D directly contradicts the passage, which says honeybees do compete with native pollinators for food. Only B matches both the grammar (a plural subject needs 'may lower', which fits) and the exact meaning of the text.
Try it yourself
Read the short passage, then choose the ending that correctly completes the sentence beginning according to the text.
Passage: 'Traditional paper maps are rarely printed by national mapping agencies for casual travellers today, since most people now rely on smartphone navigation apps. Nevertheless, mountain rescue teams still recommend that hikers carry a paper map and compass, because digital devices can lose signal or run out of battery in remote terrain, leaving walkers with no way to check their route.' Sentence beginning: 'Mountain rescue teams advise hikers to carry paper maps because...'
Common mistakes
- !Choosing an ending because it shares vocabulary with the passage, without checking that the completed sentence actually matches the meaning of the text.
- !Ignoring grammar, an ending that does not fit grammatically with the beginning (wrong tense, singular/plural mismatch) cannot be correct even if the topic seems related.
- !Ending list has more options than beginnings, so candidates try to use every ending and force a match instead of accepting that some endings are pure distractors.
- !Matching based on the first ending that seems plausible instead of reading the whole passage section, missing a distractor that reverses cause and effect or adds an unsupported extra detail.
- !Not re-checking earlier answers once an ending is used twice by mistake, since each ending should normally only be used once.
Quick quiz
1. Why does IELTS usually provide more sentence endings than beginnings in this task?
2. An ending shares several exact words with the passage but changes the relationship between two ideas (for example, swapping cause for effect). What should you do?
3. What is the most reliable first step when starting a matching sentence endings task?
4. A sentence beginning is left with only one unused ending remaining at the end of the task, but it does not seem to fit well. What should you do?
Practise this in a real IELTS test
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Take a free Reading testIELTS Reading: Matching Sentence Endings — FAQ
Can an ending be used more than once in matching sentence endings?
No, in the standard version of this task each ending is used only once, and there are always more endings provided than beginnings. This is different from some matching headings or matching information tasks, so always check the instructions for that specific set of questions.
Do the sentence beginnings and endings appear in the same order as the passage?
Not always. The beginnings usually follow the order of information in the passage, but this is not guaranteed, so it is safer to scan for the key idea in each beginning rather than assuming a strict sequence.
How is this different from Matching Information or Matching Features questions?
Matching sentence endings tests whether you can complete one continuous idea correctly, checking both grammar and precise meaning within a single sentence. Matching information asks you to find which paragraph contains a particular detail, and matching features asks you to link ideas to named people, places or categories, so the skills overlap but the exact task differs.