DET · READING TASK GUIDE
Duolingo English Test: Interactive Reading
The longest reading task on the test, and the only one that reveals its passage to you in stages. Six questions, one text, one shared clock — and each question quietly teaches you something you need for the next.
The Facts
| Time | 7 or 8 minutes per passage |
| Preparation time | None |
| How many per test | 2-3 passages, 6 questions each |
| Subscore | Reading |
| Adaptive | Yes |
| Scored as | Right or wrong, except Highlight the Answer (0 to 1) |
The Six Steps, In Order
Every test has two Interactive Reading sets: one seven-minute and one eight-minute, one narrative text and one expository. The six questions always come in the same order.
| # | Question type | What you do | Scored as |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Complete the Sentences | You see the first half of the text with 3-10 words missing. Choose the right word for each blank from the options given. | Right or wrong, per blank |
| 2 | Complete the Passage | The first half is shown again, then the second half appears. One sentence is missing between them. Choose the sentence that bridges the two. | Right or wrong |
| 3-4 | Highlight the Answer | The full text is shown, with the missing sentence filled in. Two questions; click and drag to highlight the part of the text that answers each one. | 0 to 1 scale |
| 5 | Identify the Idea | Choose the main idea of the whole text from a short list. | Right or wrong |
| 6 | Title the Passage | Choose the best title for the text. | Right or wrong |
The sequence is deliberate. By step five you have read the text three times in three different ways, which is why Identify the Idea and Title the Passage are the two cheapest points in the set — if you still have clock left.
Managing One Clock Across Six Questions
The whole set shares a single timer. There is no per-question allowance, which means the only way to run out of time is to overspend early. A workable split for a seven-minute set:
| Step | Target | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Complete the Sentences | 2 minutes | Five to ten blanks. Do the obvious ones first and let them narrow the rest. |
| Complete the Passage | 1 minute | Read the sentence before and after the gap carefully; the right option connects them. |
| Highlight the Answer x2 | 2 minutes 30 seconds | The most time-consuming step, because you have to locate rather than choose. |
| Identify the Idea | 45 seconds | You already know the text by now. |
| Title the Passage | 45 seconds | Follows directly from the main idea you just chose. |
Check the timer before every long re-read. The clock does not warn you, and unanswered steps five and six are the most commonly lost points in the whole set.
Highlight the Answer in Detail
This is the only reading item with partial credit, and the only one where doing too much is penalised. Your highlight is compared with a correct span; the closer the match, the higher the score.
- The answer is always written in the text. You are locating, not inferring.
- You do not need to highlight a full sentence, and usually should not. Highlight the clause that answers the question.
- Highlighting a whole paragraph to be safe scores lower than a tight, slightly imperfect span.
- Look for the question’s keywords in the text, then read one sentence either side of them.
A worked highlight
- Question: According to the passage, why did governments become interested in night trains?
- Too much: the entire sentence beginning "Governments noticed something else…" plus the two sentences after it.
- Right: "A sleeper carries a passenger between two capitals for a small fraction of the emissions of the equivalent flight".
Common Mistakes
- Re-reading the passage from the top at every step. The text is the same one; what changes is how much of it you have seen.
- Choosing a title that matches one memorable detail instead of the whole text. This is the trap in step six, every time.
- Picking the main idea before reading all the options. Two options are usually both true; only one covers the whole passage.
- Spending three minutes on Complete the Sentences and arriving at the last two questions with forty seconds left.
How to Practise
- Always practise the whole six-question set under the real seven or eight minute clock. Practising a single step teaches you nothing about the part that actually fails.
- After each set, write down where the clock went. Most people are surprised.
- For Highlight the Answer, practise deciding where a span ends as well as where it begins.
- A full worked set with all six steps and answer keys is on the Reading samples page.
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