Most people do not realize that some banks literally make…
Read the text aloud.
Most people do not realize that some banks literally make money by giving loans without having money on deposit. The system is called fractional reserve banking and is used in most economies. It sounds as though it is safe because it says that banks have to keep a fraction of their deposits with the Reserve Bank.
Opens question #010446 in the RealPTE practice screen.
How to read it
Most people do not realize|that some banks literally make money|by giving loans|without having money on deposit.‖The system is called fractional reserve banking|and is used in most economies.‖It sounds as though it is safe‖because it says|that banks have to keep a fraction of their deposits|with the Reserve Bank.
| short pause ‖ breathe
Aim for 22–25 seconds.
Words to stress correctly
| economies | e·CON·o·mies | /ɪˈkɑnəmiz/ |
| literally | LIT·er·al·ly | /ˈlɪtɚəli/ |
| deposits | de·POS·its | /dəˈpɑzɪts/ |
| deposit | de·POS·it | /dəˈpɑzɪt/ |
| fractional | FRAC·tion·al | /ˈfrækʃənəl/ |
| realize | RE·al·ize | /ˈriəlaɪz/ |
56 words in 22–25 seconds, no numbers. Breathe after deposit, after economies and after safe; everywhere else take only a short pause so the long final sentence keeps flowing.
Where marks are usually lost
Stress LIT·er·al·ly, RE·al·ize and FRAC·tion·al on the first syllable but de·POS·it, de·POS·its and e·CON·o·mies on the second. Don't swallow the -s in banks, loans, deposits, economies or the -ed in called and used. Avoid hesitating before fractional reserve banking.
General tip: the second and third sentences each have a clear subject–verb spine (The system is called… / It sounds…); keep the voice moving through them and fall only at the full stop.
What it means: 中文 · हिन्दी · नेपाली · Tiếng Việt
中文: 大多数人没有意识到，有些银行实际上是在没有存款的情况下通过发放贷款来“制造”货币。这种制度叫做部分准备金银行制度，在大多数经济体中都在使用。它听起来很安全，因为它规定银行必须把一部分存款存放在储备银行。
हिन्दी: अधिकतर लोग यह नहीं समझते कि कुछ बैंक सचमुच बिना जमा राशि रखे ऋण देकर पैसा बनाते हैं। इस व्यवस्था को आंशिक आरक्षित बैंकिंग कहा जाता है और यह अधिकतर अर्थव्यवस्थाओं में प्रयोग होती है। यह सुरक्षित लगती है क्योंकि इसमें कहा गया है कि बैंकों को अपनी जमा राशि का एक अंश रिज़र्व बैंक में रखना होता है।
नेपाली: धेरैजसो मानिसहरूलाई थाहा हुँदैन कि केही बैंकहरू निक्षेपमा पैसा नभएरै ऋण दिएर साँच्चै पैसा बनाउँछन्। यो प्रणालीलाई आंशिक सञ्चित बैंकिङ भनिन्छ र धेरैजसो अर्थतन्त्रहरूमा प्रयोग गरिन्छ। यो सुरक्षित जस्तो सुनिन्छ किनभने यसले बैंकहरूले आफ्नो निक्षेपको एक अंश रिजर्भ बैंकमा राख्नुपर्छ भन्छ।
Tiếng Việt: Hầu hết mọi người không nhận ra rằng một số ngân hàng thực sự tạo ra tiền bằng cách cho vay mà không cần có tiền gửi. Hệ thống này được gọi là ngân hàng dự trữ một phần và được dùng ở hầu hết các nền kinh tế. Nghe có vẻ an toàn vì nó quy định ngân hàng phải giữ một phần tiền gửi tại Ngân hàng Dự trữ.
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.