Many people are under the impression that the water which…
Read the text aloud.
Many people are under the impression that the water which comes out of a plant is clean. This is a common misconception: the function of a plant is to make the water cleaner, but it's not clean enough to drink. It could be used in irrigation. What a plant is trying to do is simply speed up a process that would naturally occur given more time. This means that a plant can create water that is safe to enter back into the water system as it's so heavily diluted. The river then continues the water purification, acting as a form of the fourth stage.
Opens question #010429 in the RealPTE practice screen.
How to read it
Many people are under the impression|that the water which comes out of a plant is clean.‖This is a common misconception:|the function of a plant is to make the water cleaner,‖but it's not clean enough to drink.|It could be used in irrigation.‖What a plant is trying to do|is simply speed up a process|that would naturally occur given more time.‖This means that a plant can create water|that is safe to enter back into the water system‖as it's so heavily diluted.|The river then continues the water purification,‖acting as a form of the fourth stage.
| short pause ‖ breathe
Aim for 40–47 seconds.
Words to stress correctly
| purification | pu·ri·fi·CA·tion | /pjʊrəfəˈkeɪʃən/ |
| misconception | mis·con·CEP·tion | /mɪskənˈsɛpʃən/ |
| irrigation | ir·ri·GA·tion | /ɪrəˈɡeɪʃən/ |
| impression | im·PRES·sion | /ɪmˈprɛʃən/ |
| naturally | NAT·u·ral·ly | /ˈnætʃɚəli/ |
| continues | con·TIN·ues | /kənˈtɪnjuz/ |
104 words, aim 40–47 seconds — long, so keep a steady pace. No digits; fourth is already a word. Breathe after clean, cleaner, irrigation, time, system, and purification.
Where marks are usually lost
im·PRES·sion and con·TIN·ues stress the second syllable; mis·con·CEP·tion and ir·ri·GA·tion the third; pu·ri·fi·CA·tion the fourth; NAT·u·ral·ly the first. Keep endings: comes, means, continues, used, diluted. Don't rush the contractions it's, it's so heavily.
General tip: after the colon, pause and read the function of a plant… as an explanation — slightly lower pitch, then rise again at but.
What it means: 中文 · हिन्दी · नेपाली · Tiếng Việt
中文: 许多人以为从处理厂出来的水是干净的。这是一个常见的误解:处理厂的功能是让水变得更干净,但还不够干净到可以饮用,可用于灌溉。处理厂要做的只是加快一个在足够时间下会自然发生的过程。这意味着处理厂可以产出因高度稀释而能安全回到水系统的水。然后河流继续进行水的净化,相当于第四个阶段。
हिन्दी: बहुत से लोग समझते हैं कि प्लांट से निकलने वाला पानी साफ़ होता है। यह एक आम ग़लतफ़हमी है: प्लांट का काम पानी को और साफ़ बनाना है, पर वह पीने लायक साफ़ नहीं होता। इसे सिंचाई में इस्तेमाल किया जा सकता है। प्लांट बस उस प्रक्रिया को तेज़ करता है जो ज़्यादा समय मिलने पर प्राकृतिक रूप से होती। इसका मतलब है कि प्लांट ऐसा पानी बना सकता है जो इतना पतला होने के कारण जल-प्रणाली में सुरक्षित रूप से वापस जा सकता है। फिर नदी पानी का शुद्धिकरण जारी रखती है, एक तरह के चौथे चरण के रूप में।
नेपाली: धेरै मानिसहरू प्लान्टबाट निस्कने पानी सफा हुन्छ भन्ने ठान्छन्। यो एउटा सामान्य गलत धारणा हो: प्लान्टको काम पानीलाई अझ सफा बनाउनु हो, तर त्यो पिउन मिल्ने गरी सफा हुँदैन। यसलाई सिँचाइमा प्रयोग गर्न सकिन्छ। प्लान्टले गर्न खोजेको भनेको बढी समय पाए प्राकृतिक रूपमा हुने प्रक्रियालाई छिटो बनाउनु मात्र हो। यसको अर्थ प्लान्टले यति धेरै पातलिएको हुनाले जल-प्रणालीमा सुरक्षित रूपमा फर्कन सक्ने पानी बनाउन सक्छ। त्यसपछि नदीले पानीको शुद्धीकरण जारी राख्छ, एक प्रकारको चौथो चरणका रूपमा।
Tiếng Việt: Nhiều người có ấn tượng rằng nước ra khỏi nhà máy xử lý là sạch. Đây là một quan niệm sai phổ biến: chức năng của nhà máy là làm nước sạch hơn, nhưng chưa đủ sạch để uống. Nước đó có thể dùng để tưới tiêu. Điều nhà máy cố làm chỉ là đẩy nhanh một quá trình vốn sẽ tự nhiên diễn ra nếu có thêm thời gian. Nghĩa là nhà máy có thể tạo ra nước đủ an toàn để quay lại hệ thống nước vì đã được pha loãng rất nhiều. Sau đó dòng sông tiếp tục việc lọc sạch nước, đóng vai trò như giai đoạn thứ tư.
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.