How Write from Dictation works
You hear a sentence of 3 to 5 seconds, once, usually on an academic or campus topic. You then type the sentence into a box, exactly as spoken. It is the last task in the Listening part of PTE Academic, which means you meet it when your concentration is at its lowest, so practice under tired conditions is worthwhile.
What is scored, and why spelling matters
You earn a point for each correct word from the sentence that appears in your answer. A word only counts if it is spelled correctly, and spell check is off. That makes every misspelling a lost point.
Write from Dictation contributes to both your listening and your writing scores. Hearing the sentence is the listening part. Getting it onto the screen with the right spelling, word endings and grammar is the writing part. A candidate who hears every word but misspells two of them loses marks on both sides, so accuracy in the typing is worth as much attention as the listening.
How to answer
- Listen to the whole sentence before typing. It is short, and typing during the audio pulls your attention away from the end of it.
- Type the first draft at once. Short-term memory for exact wording fades fast. Get every word down roughly, even if you use a quick abbreviation you will fix later.
- Rebuild with grammar. If you remember the meaning but not every small word, use grammar to restore them. Subjects need verbs that agree, most singular nouns need an article, and a plural after many or several needs its final s.
- Proofread slowly. Check each word for spelling, then check endings: s, ed, ing and ly are the letters most often dropped.
Common mistakes
- Dropping small words like the, of, to and a. They each carry a point.
- Writing the meaning in your own words. Only the words actually spoken earn credit.
- Confusing sound-alike words such as their and there, affect and effect, or principal and principle.
- Leaving abbreviations in the final answer. Expand them before you move on.
- Skipping a sentence you only partly heard. Every correct word you type still scores.
The sentences on this page are recorded with natural voices in a mix of accents, close to what you hear in the test. Use them to drill spelling and memory, and combine them with Listening Fill in the Blanks, which trains the same spelling accuracy under time pressure.