Goodbye Party for John: listening answers and explanations
Two teachers, Tony and Lisa, plan a farewell party for their colleague John, who is leaving on 24 December. They choose a venue, decide who to invite and when to send invitations, then sort out the collection for a present, what guests should bring and who will give the speech.
One ten-gap block, in order, split by two headings. Questions 1-4 cover the venue and invitations. After 'Now listen and answer questions 5 to 10', the talk turns to the present, then what guests should bring, and ends with the speech.
Answer key and self-check
Type what you wrote and hit mark. Hide the key first if you haven't done the part yet. Every question number jumps to its explanation.
Q
Your answer
Answer
Questions 1-10 · Note completion (NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER)
Note completion (NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER)
Questions 1-10
How to attack this block: A planning conversation full of suggestions that get turned down: a hotel, faculty heads, the 15th, a printer, more drinks, the director. The note records what they agree on, so wait for 'Fine', 'Yeah' or 'That should do it' before you write. Several lines list items and give you some of them, so tick off the printed ones.
Question 1
Answer: College Dining RoomStraight after they agree on the 22nd
Also accepted: the College Dining Room / dining room
Where will the party be held?
I think a hotel will probably work out rather expensive. And I've been looking at the college dining room. That seems pretty reasonable.
Question says → You hear
Venuethe college dining room
Why: A hotel is rejected as too expensive, and the college dining room is agreed. Three words: College Dining Room.
The trap: A hotel is said first. The 'In college? A hotel?' question offers both, but only the dining room is accepted.
Question 2
Answer: office staffWhen they list who mustn't be forgotten
Who should be invited after the director?
Well, obviously John and his wife. Right. And the director. The office staff.
Question says → You hear
Who to invite: ... Director; theAnd the director. The office staff
Why: The list goes John and his wife, the director, then the office staff. The note gives the first two, so this gap is office staff.
The trap: Faculty heads are suggested a moment later but turned down: 'Better draw the line.'
Question 3
Answer: studentsRight after the office staff
Which group should all be invited, besides all the teachers?
And all the teachers and all the students. Anyone else? Faculty heads? No.
Question says → You hear
all the teachers; all theall the teachers and all the students
Why: 'All the teachers' is printed and 'all the students' comes straight after. 'All the' is printed, so write students.
The trap: Faculty heads are the next suggestion, but they are rejected.
Question 4
Answer: 10th DecemberWhen one teacher offers to write the invitations
Also accepted: 10 December / December 10th / December 10 / 10th Dec
When should the invitations be sent?
What about the 15th of December? Well, there are exams on the 16th. Better avoid them. 10th? Yeah. That should do it.
Question says → You hear
Date for sending invitations10th? Yeah. That should do it
Why: The 15th is too close to exams, so they move it to the 10th. Write the month too: 10th December or 10 December.
The trap: The 15th and the 16th are both said before the answer. The 15th is the date rejected, the 16th is the exams.
Question 5
Answer: coffee breakAt the start of the present section
Also accepted: coffee breaks
When will they collect money for the present?
We usually go around with an envelope during coffee break, don't we? Yeah. Coffee break's always the best time.
Question says → You hear
Collect money during thego around with an envelope during coffee break
Why: 'During coffee break' matches the note word for word. Coffee break or coffee breaks.
The trap: 'An envelope' is how they collect, not when. The gap follows 'during', so it needs a time.
Question 6
Answer: 6When they ask whether to suggest an amount
Also accepted: six
How much should each person give?
We suggested $6 last time. Is that okay? Yeah. Plenty, I would have thought. Which should leave us with about $90.
Question says → You hear
Suggested amount per personWe suggested $6 last time
Why: They agree that $6 is plenty, so it's the suggested amount. The $ sign is printed, so write 6.
The trap: $90 is the total they expect to collect, not the amount per person.
Question 7
Answer: set of dictionariesAfter the CD players idea
Also accepted: dictionaries / a set of dictionaries / a good dictionary
Besides CD players and a coffee maker, what will they check prices for?
And also I thought maybe, you know, a set of dictionaries. I heard him say he needed a good one.
Question says → You hear
Check prices for: CD playersa set of dictionaries
Why: Dictionaries are the second idea, between the CD players and the coffee maker. Write set of dictionaries, or just dictionaries.
The trap: A computer printer comes up next, but it's rejected because they might buy the wrong type. Books are mentioned too, but only as something John loves.
Question 8
Answer: musicAfter the Social Fund and the snacks
Also accepted: tapes
Apart from snacks, what should guests bring?
Well, some music because there'll be a tape deck there in the room and we can have some dancing later on.
Question says → You hear
Ask guests to bring: snackssome music because there'll be a tape deck
Why: Snacks are printed. The next thing guests should bring is music, for the tape deck. Tapes is also accepted.
The trap: Drinks come up just before, but they won't ask guests for drinks: the Social Fund covers them.
Question 9
Answer: photosWhen they remember a good party from a couple of years ago
Also accepted: photographs
What else should guests bring for the games?
Wasn't it based on photos from the students and teachers? That's right. So we should ask the guests to bring photos.
Question says → You hear
Ask guests to bringask the guests to bring photos
Why: The games were based on photos, so guests should bring photos. Photographs is fine too.
The trap: 'Games' is the idea behind it, but guests don't bring games. They bring photos for the games.
Question 10
Answer: speechThe last point, 'who shall we ask to do the speech?'
What will the student representative prepare?
who shall we ask to do the speech? Don't you think it might be nice to have one of the students? Well, then the student leader?
Question says → You hear
Ask student representative to prepare awho shall we ask to do the speech
Why: The question is who will do the speech, and they choose the student leader. So the student representative prepares a speech.
The trap: The director is mentioned as the usual speaker, but they'd rather not have the director 'giving speeches again'.
Three present ideas follow CD players: dictionaries, a printer and a coffee maker. The printer is rejected ('I'd be really frightened about getting the wrong type'), and the coffee maker is printed, so the gap is a set of dictionaries.
Music is easy to miss because it's mixed in with the tape deck and dancing. Drinks are mentioned first, but they say they won't ask guests to bring drinks.
Words from this recording worth keeping
farewell(Introduction)
an event to say goodbye to someone who is leaving
venue(Venue)
the place where an event happens
reasonable(Venue)
not too expensive
draw the line(Who to invite)
set a limit on what you will include
handy(Present)
close by and easy to use
set amount(Paying for the party)
a fixed sum of money
cover the cost(Paying for the party)
pay for something completely
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The full Cambridge 4 Test 4 listening paper with the real audio: all four parts, played once, marked the moment you finish. Already done it? Take it again and listen for the traps this page showed you.
Cambridge IELTS 4, Test 4, Listening Part 1. The recording, transcript and questions belong to Cambridge University Press and are not reproduced here. We quote short extracts of the transcript only as evidence for our own commentary, and the answers are published for self-marking. Get the book for the full material, or sit the test on Langujet.
The rest of Cambridge 4 Test 4 Listening
Part 1 · Questions 1-10 · You're hereGoodbye Party for John
