How does vocabulary help in Reading Part 1?

Many questions hinge on the writer's tone or intention. Recognising the words below instantly tells you whether a message is a complaint, an apology, a request and so on.

Is Reading Part 1 vocabulary formal?

It ranges from formal to friendly depending on the letter. The entries below cover both registers you are likely to meet.

Reading Part 1: Reading Correspondence

Reading Part 1: Reading Correspondence is part of the Reading section of the CELPIP General test. You get 11 questions and 11 minutes. It is scored by the number of correct answers.

Questions: 11
Time: 11 minutes
Prompts here: 30 published

The three-move read

1
Read the whole message before the first gap
Who is writing to whom decides half the answers in this part, and you cannot know it from one sentence.
2
Match the fact first, then the word that fits the tone
Across our Part 1 items the tags run vocabulary 36, detail 33, inference 30, tone 21 — tone is nearly a quarter of what is tested.
3
Check each gap against the sentence, not the option list
Read your choice back into the sentence. If it needs a comma that is not there, it is the wrong one.

In Part 1 the tone is a fact too.

A word can be correct in meaning and wrong in register, and that still scores zero.

Recognise the everyday email and letter vocabulary that appears in CELPIP Reading Part 1 so you can answer correspondence questions quickly and accurately.

Part 1 tests your understanding of a short letter or email and a reply. Knowing common correspondence vocabulary and tone words helps you grasp the writer's purpose and feelings at a glance.

Reading · Part 1

A Complaint About Heating

One of 30 published prompts · free, no account

From: Daniel Reeves To: Greenview Property Management Subject: No heat in Unit 6B — third day Dear Greenview Team, I am writing to follow up on a problem I first reported by phone on Monday morning. The heating in my apartment, Unit 6B, stopped working over the weekend, and three days later it still has not been repaired. With overnight temperatures now dropping close to freezing, the apartment has become genuinely uncomfortable, especially for my eight-month-old daughter. When I called on Monday, I was told a technician would visit within forty-eight hours. No one came, and when I phoned again yesterday, the office had no record of my original call. I was asked to describe the whole problem over again. I would appreciate a firm appointment time, in writing, along with some assurance that this will not drag on any further. If a repair cannot be made quickly, I would like to know what temporary heating you can provide in the meantime. Sincerely, Daniel Reeves

Instructions

Read the email, then answer the questions.
For the reply, choose the best word for each blank from the drop-down options.

The reply to complete

Dear Mr. Reeves, Thank you for your message, and please accept our sincere apologies for the delay and the discomfort it has caused. We completely understand how ___7___ a cold apartment is with an infant in the home. After reviewing your file, we found that your original call was not ___8___ correctly, which is why no technician was dispatched. A qualified heating specialist has now been ___9___ for tomorrow, Thursday, between 9 a.m. and 11 a.m., and you will receive written confirmation by email today. Should the repair require parts we do not keep on hand, we will ___10___ a portable heater at no charge until the work is complete. We value you as a resident and are committed to ___11___ this matter promptly.

Questions & answer key11 questions

Reading is scored by the number of correct answers, so there is no rubric to satisfy — only the text in front of you. Every question below has its answer and an explanation of why the other options fail.

1Gap 7 in the reply
1. Aordinary
2. Bpleasant
3. Camusing
4. ✓distressing
Answer
D
A freezing apartment with an infant is upsetting, so a strongly negative adjective is needed. 'Pleasant' and 'amusing' have the wrong connotation.
2Gap 8 in the reply
1. ✓logged
2. Bpromoted
3. Cdelivered
4. Drewarded
Answer
A
The letter says the office 'had no record' of the call, so it was not 'logged' (recorded) correctly. The other verbs do not fit recording a call.
3Gap 9 in the reply
1. ✓scheduled
2. Bdemoted
3. Crefunded
4. Dcancelled
Answer
A
A specialist 'has now been scheduled for tomorrow.' 'Cancelled' contradicts the sentence, and 'refunded'/'demoted' do not apply to a person's visit.
4Gap 10 in the reply
1. Awithhold
2. ✓provide
3. Csell
4. Dremove
Answer
B
'At no charge' signals a goodwill gesture, so the company would 'provide' a heater. 'Sell' contradicts 'no charge'; 'withhold' and 'remove' make no sense.
5Gap 11 in the reply
1. Adelaying
2. ✓resolving
3. Cforgetting
4. Dignoring
Answer
B
'Committed to resolving this matter promptly' matches a reassuring, solution-focused close. The other verbs express the opposite of commitment.
6What is the main purpose of Daniel's email?
1. ATo demand that a portable heater be delivered immediately
2. BTo complain that a technician arrived later than promised
3. CTo report the broken heating for the first time
4. ✓To press for a firm written repair commitment after days without heat
Answer
D
He is writing 'to follow up on a problem I first reported by phone on Monday' and asks for 'a firm appointment time, in writing, along with some assurance that this will not drag on.' 'To report the broken heating for the first time' is contradicted by 'follow up' — the first report was Monday's phone call. 'To demand that a portable heater be delivered immediately' overstates a conditional fallback: he asks about temporary heating only 'If a repair cannot be made quickly.' 'To complain that a technician arrived later than promised' fails because 'No one came' at all — no technician ever arrived.
7How long ago did Daniel first report the heating problem?
1. ✓About three days ago
2. BSince that morning
3. CJust overnight
4. DAbout a week
Answer
A
He reported it 'by phone on Monday morning' and writes that 'three days later it still has not been repaired' — so the report was about three days ago.
8What happened when Daniel phoned the second time?
1. AHe was placed on a waiting list
2. BA technician was sent right away
3. ✓The office had no record of his first call
4. DHe was offered a refund
Answer
C
He writes that 'the office had no record of my original call' and he had to describe the problem again.
9Why does Daniel mention his eight-month-old daughter?
1. ✓To stress how serious the lack of heat is
2. BTo explain why he missed the technician
3. CTo request a larger apartment
4. DTo ask for a reduction in his rent
Answer
A
The baby is raised to show the cold is 'genuinely uncomfortable, especially' for an infant — it heightens the urgency, not a request for anything else.
10What two things does Daniel specifically ask for?
1. AA refund and a written apology
2. ✓A written appointment time and information about temporary heating
3. CA phone call and a rent discount
4. DA new apartment and financial compensation
Answer
B
He asks for 'a firm appointment time, in writing' and, if repair is slow, 'what temporary heating you can provide.'
11How would you best describe the tone of Daniel's email?
1. AUncertain and apologetic
2. BCasual and joking
3. ✓Firm but polite
4. DAngry and threatening
Answer
C
He states his complaint clearly and expects action, yet uses courteous language ('I would appreciate', 'Sincerely') — firm but polite.

Three mistakes that cost points heremost common first

1Choosing a word that means the right thing at the wrong level of formality.
2Answering a gap from the options alone without re-reading the sentence.
3Missing the relationship between writer and reader, which sets the register for every gap.

Now do it yourself and find out where you land

You can check right and wrong on this page. What a page cannot do is tell you which question types you keep losing, under real timing.

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Questions people ask

How does vocabulary help in Reading Part 1?: Many questions hinge on the writer's tone or intention. Recognising the words below instantly tells you whether a message is a complaint, an apology, a request and so on.
Is Reading Part 1 vocabulary formal?: It ranges from formal to friendly depending on the letter. The entries below cover both registers you are likely to meet.

The other 29 Correspondence prompts2 free

·Community Fitness Centre
·Missed University Final Examination
·Noise Complaint to a Landlord
·Dishwasher Installation Service
·Unauthorized Transaction Following a Phone Scam
·Refund Request for a Cancelled Tour
·Ongoing Noise Disturbances in an Apartment Building
·Weekend Construction Behind a Townhouse Complex
·Maplewood Spring Volunteer Day Invitation
·Office Relocation
·Requesting Time Off for a Family Wedding
·Certified Vehicle Warranty
·New Parking Arrangement
·Rent Increase Notice
·Winter Jacket Return
·Dental Appointment Charges
·Job Interview Follow-up
·A Complaint About a Faulty Dishwasherfree
·Parent-Teacher Meeting
·Inquiry About the Evening Conversational French Course
·Statutory Holiday Schedule
·Maintenance Request at Maple Grove Apartments
·Reading Part 1: A Double Charge on a Booking
·Rescheduling a Dental Cleaning
·Snow Blower Warranty Inquiry
·Membership Inquiry at Riverbend Community Pool
·Reading Part 1: A Report of a Lost Library Book
·Following Up After the Interview
·Joining the Riverbend Carpool

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