Weakness in electronics, auto and gas station sales dragged down…
Read the text aloud.
Weakness in electronics, auto and gas station sales dragged down overall retail sales last month, but excluding those three categories, retailers enjoyed healthy increase across the board, according to government figures released Wednesday. Moreover, December sales numbers were also revised higher.
Opens question #010131 in the RealPTE practice screen.
How to read it
Weakness in electronics, auto and gas station sales|dragged down overall retail sales last month,‖but excluding those three categories,|retailers enjoyed healthy increases across the board,‖according to government figures released Wednesday.‖Moreover,|December sales numbers were also revised higher.
| short pause ‖ breathe
Words to stress correctly
| electronics | e·lec·TRON·ics | /ɪlɛkˈtrɑnɪks/ |
| categories | CAT·e·go·ries | /ˈkætəɡɔriz/ |
| excluding | ex·CLUD·ing | /ɪksˈkludɪŋ/ |
| according | ac·CORD·ing | /əˈkɔrdɪŋ/ |
| moreover | more·O·ver | /mɔˈroʊvɚ/ |
41 words, aim for 16–19 seconds. The only number is already written out: three. Breathe after last month, after across the board and after Wednesday; Moreover opens the final sentence after a short pause.
Where marks are usually lost
electronics stresses the third syllable (e·lec·TRON·ics); categories the first; excluding, according, moreover the second. The passage is full of endings: keep -s on sales, retailers, figures, numbers and -ed on dragged, released, revised. Don't pause before Wednesday.
General tip: Wednesday has two syllables, /ˈwenzdeɪ/ — the first d is silent.
What it means: 中文 · हिन्दी · नेपाली · Tiếng Việt
中文: 电子产品、汽车和加油站销售疲软拖累了上月整体零售销售，但剔除这三个类别后，零售商在各个领域都实现了健康增长，这是周三公布的政府数据显示的。此外，12月的销售数据也被向上修正。
हिन्दी: इलेक्ट्रॉनिक्स, ऑटो और गैस स्टेशन की बिक्री में कमज़ोरी ने पिछले महीने की कुल खुदरा बिक्री को नीचे खींचा, लेकिन इन तीन श्रेणियों को छोड़ दें तो बुधवार को जारी सरकारी आँकड़ों के अनुसार खुदरा विक्रेताओं ने हर क्षेत्र में अच्छी बढ़त दर्ज की। इसके अलावा, दिसंबर की बिक्री के आँकड़े भी ऊपर की ओर संशोधित किए गए।
नेपाली: इलेक्ट्रोनिक्स, गाडी र पेट्रोल पम्पको बिक्रीमा आएको कमजोरीले गत महिनाको समग्र खुद्रा बिक्रीलाई तल तान्यो, तर ती तीन वर्ग हटाउँदा, बुधबार सार्वजनिक सरकारी तथ्याङ्कअनुसार खुद्रा व्यापारीहरूले सबै क्षेत्रमा राम्रो वृद्धि हासिल गरे। यसबाहेक, डिसेम्बरको बिक्रीको अङ्क पनि माथि संशोधन गरियो।
Tiếng Việt: Sự sụt giảm doanh số của đồ điện tử, xe hơi và trạm xăng đã kéo tổng doanh số bán lẻ tháng trước đi xuống, nhưng nếu loại trừ ba nhóm này, các nhà bán lẻ đạt mức tăng lành mạnh trên mọi mặt, theo số liệu chính phủ công bố hôm thứ Tư. Hơn nữa, số liệu doanh số tháng Mười Hai cũng được điều chỉnh tăng.
More Read Aloud questions
Read Aloud format (Pearson)
| Prompt | Text up to 60 words |
|---|---|
| Preparation | 30–40 seconds |
| Time to answer | Depends on the length of the text |
| Skills assessed | Speaking |
| Scored on | Content; Pronunciation; Oral fluency |
How it is scored
- Content is scored by counting the correct words in your response.
- If you stay silent for more than 3 seconds, the recording stops.
- You can record your response only once.
Source: Pearson, PTE Academic & UKVI test format, Part 1: Speaking & Writing, checked 9 October 2026.