No audio test on this page. These are transcript-analysis and sound–spelling preparation exercises. They help you notice listening clues, but they do not test what you can understand by ear.
For actual listening practice, use your teacher’s recordings or your board’s official practice materials. A transcript is useful for checking a difficult phrase after listening; it should not replace listening to the recording first.
Before the recording: predict the useful words
Read the task, not just the topic heading. If it asks when, predict days, dates and time expressions. If it asks why, listen for a reason. Briefly list likely vocabulary without deciding the answer in advance.
Check how many details or choices are required.
Identify the answer language and any gaps that need a number or a noun.
Predict possible synonyms: a speaker may not repeat the question’s exact word.
Keep an open mind: familiar words can be distractors.
For travel, a pie and caminar may express similar ideas; caro and cuesta mucho can both signal cost.
Follow the meaning when it changes
Listen for negatives, contrasts and corrections. The first plan mentioned is not always the final plan. Track who says each opinion, and whether a sentence describes a routine, a completed event or a wish.
No / nunca / ya no: not / never / no longer.
Pero / sin embargo / al final: but / however / in the end.
Normalmente / ayer / mañana: usually / yesterday / tomorrow.
Y cuarto / y media / menos cuarto: quarter past / half past / quarter to.
On the first hearing, note the main meaning and make a provisional answer. Between hearings, identify the one uncertain detail. On the second hearing, check that detail and its surrounding words; do not abandon a supported answer just because another keyword appears.
This is a practice strategy, not permission to replay an exam recording yourself. Follow your board’s recorded pauses and examination instructions.
Transcript analysis: find the distractor
Original practice · not an exam paper
Plans after school
Read this as a transcript, not an audio listening test. Mark the original plan, any negative and the final outcome.
Normalmente salgo del colegio a las tres, pero ayer salí a las cuatro porque había una reunión del club de música. No toqué la guitarra; ayudé a preparar la sala. Mañana voy a practicar con mi amigo, que toca el piano.
When did the speaker leave yesterday, and why?
What did the speaker do at the meeting?
What is tomorrow’s plan, and which instrument does the friend play?
Reveal answers and explanations
At four, because there was a music-club meeting. Normalmente and ayer separate routine from yesterday.
Helped prepare the room, not played the guitar. No rejects the first activity.
Practise with a friend who plays the piano. The instrument belongs to the friend, not necessarily the speaker.
Connect sound and spelling
Spanish vowels are generally consistent, and written accents can distinguish verb forms: hablo (I speak) and habló (he/she spoke). The letter h is silent. Pronunciation of c and z varies across Spanish-speaking regions; do not treat one valid accent as an error.
Original practice · not an exam paper
A written sound–spelling check
Choose a form: Ayer mi hermana (hablo / habló) con la profesora. Which details tell you the person and time frame?
Reveal answers and explanations
Ayer mi hermana habló con la profesora. Ayer establishes the past; mi hermana is third-person singular. Habló needs an accent. Read it aloud with stress on the final syllable, but this page has no audio model.
Common traps: missing a negative, confusing similar numbers, selecting the first option mentioned, writing too much and leaving an answer blank because one word was unfamiliar. Use official recordings to practise numbers such as quince / cincuenta in context, not only in a list.
Check the assessment for your board
Confirm your board and tier with your teacher. These are original learning resources, not official papers or a grade prediction.
AQA
AQA listening combines comprehension with dictation. Comprehension questions are in English; dictation asks you to write the language you hear. Built-in repetitions and pauses are controlled by the recording, not by the candidate.
Pearson Edexcel GCSE listening has a comprehension section, with questions and responses in English, and a dictation section in the target language. Sound–spelling knowledge matters for dictation; it is not enough to recognise the meaning.
GCSE guidance uses the specifications first taught in September 2024, first examined in 2026. Older GCSE task formats are not interchangeable with these.
Carry the skill into your next answer
Move between understanding language and using it. Pick a related resource rather than starting another long checklist.
The website supports broad revision. The ScoreMySpeech app stays specialist: French and Spanish speaking practice with feedback, not full reading, listening or writing assessment.