Dictation Words for PTE: Your Ultimate Preparation Guide

Dictation words in English Tests such as PTE are those that appear commonly during the listening test. The section is usually 30–43 minutes long in which an audio or a video clip is played, during which the student is required to memorise the dictation happening in the audio/video and then write it down. The text is then compared with what has been dictated in the audio/video and based on the accuracy the student is scored. 

The test format also includes providing students with a set of dictated words that they are required to write. The core purpose of the test is to judge the English vocabulary and the listening abilities of the candidate. Also, the listening section of the PTE test helps evaluate the person’s ability to listen, process and note down the information quickly. Hence, based on such an overview, one can better understand that to score well in this section, a candidate needs to practice a lot. 

So, let’s move further to discuss the top 20 dictation words in English that are most commonly asked in the PTE exam.

The listening section of the PTE exam has multiple segments ranging from multiple-choice questions, fill-in-the-blanks, highlighting incorrect words, selecting missing words, summarising spoken text and writing from dictation. Hence, for all a common approach is to have a diverse vocabulary to be able to understand the dictation and write it down correctly. 

So let’s start with the 20 common words that you must know if you are appearing for the PTE exam. 

These are not all, but only a few of the entire list of vocabulary that the candidates should be aware of. 

Several other Dictation words in English exist that appear in the dictation in the PTE Exam and the candidate must know about them. These dictation words can be:  

The above section includes the common 20 Dictation Words in English along with several others that most commonly appear in the PTE exam. Relying on these dictation words can help a candidate prepare well for the PTE listening section and score the minimum grades required for admission. 

However, along with such, several challenges exist that a student must be aware of while preparing Dictation words for PTE Exam 2025.  

The listening section not only focuses on testing the listening skills, but it also stresses the student’s ability to memorise and write down the words/statements you heard accurately. Hence, there are several challenges that every candidate frequently faces while preparing or appearing for the PTE exam. These challenges are: 

A common issue that can be identified is the lack of a student's ability to memorise or recall the dictation words. A key challenge that emerges here is to keep the sentence in mind and write it down with the required accuracy. 

Another issue that students encounter is understanding the accents available in the listening section of the PTE exam. It has been noted that several diverse accents exist among which a student might face any of them during the PTE Exam 2025. Hence, the candidate needs to be prepared for a plethora of possible accents to eliminate such a risk. 

Simply being aware of the dictation words is not enough, but also along with such you must be aware of the spelling and the grammatical versions of the word. Such can help you ensure that you have placed the words properly and can transcribe the dictation accurately. 

Further, accurately processing the information is also a key challenge. The section is all about listening to the IVR or the machine voice and responding accordingly. Whether you need to simply transcribe the words or answer any question asked, the important fact is to memorise what you heard, process it and respond accordingly, all in real time. 

Having a strong vocabulary is also one of the challenges that candidates often face. Lacking vocabulary results in difficulty in understanding the audio or the accent. Hence, the candidate must practice more efficiently before appearing for the PTE Exam 2025. 

As a student, you need to work on improving your dictation skills to fulfil the PTE eligibility criteria and to achieve a set score in the PTE listening section. Also, you can go through the following tips to improve your dictation in PTE. 

• Work on your note-taking technique, which can include the focus on reading, understanding and writing each dictation word on your own. Such can help you know about the pronunciation, meaning as well as the spelling of the words. 

• Make sure whenever you are writing down the statement or phrases, you must cross-check your grammar and spelling. Such a habit of cross-checking every fact can help you to be prepared for the final PTE exam. 

• Go through the PTE exam sample papers or the available practice listening test sessions and accordingly prepare for the potential challenges. Such practice sessions can help you develop your reading, listening or any other skill set required to clear the PTE exam. 

• Further, you need to practise focus and try to be calm so that you can better understand the dictation words and write accurately. Such can help you avoid unnecessary mistakes responsible for your mark deduction. 

• Be clear of the grammar and other techniques. While preparing for the PTE dictation, along with remembering the correct sequence of the words in a sentence, you also must focus on its grammar. Such grammar can help you better recall what words could have been there. 

Apart from the above-mentioned tips regarding the dictation words, it is further important for you to prepare a checklist of your own. Such a checklist can help you ensure that you are making the right decision and can enhance your performance in the PTE exam 2025.

It can be concluded that to prepare well for the PTE exam you need to look for the right learning schedule or a plan. Such a plan should include better time management, focused learning, listening skills as well as a focus towards dictation words. If still confused, then the best approach can be to check out the available PTE exam sample papers, solve them and start highlighting your challenges. Based on this, you can prepare your study schedule for the PTE Exam 2025. 

You can further learn more about the PTE exam, eligibility criteria, preparation tips and more by connecting with the Study Abroad Consultants at Meridean Overseas. Our experts can help you with your study abroad goals, selecting the right college/university as well as preparing for the entrance or the eligibility tests. 

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