Cambridge English: Preliminary, also known as Preliminary English Test (PET), is an intermediate level qualification. It shows you are able to use your English language skills for work, study and travel.
How to prepare
More information, resources and sample exams are to be found here.
Information in Spanish
PET Vocabulary List
How to prepare
More information, resources and sample exams are to be found here.
Information in Spanish
PET Vocabulary List
PET - exam format
More practice for PET
Your Cambridge exam is approaching. To get more practice, try the following links:
Test Preparation 1
Test Preparation 2
Test Preparation 3
Test Preparation 1
Test Preparation 2
Test Preparation 3
Three complete PET sample exams
Your Cambridge exam is approaching! To make the most of your time, here you can find three complete PET exams. Choose the skills you need to practice, or go through the whole exam. Good luck!
PET - Writing
PET Writing Part 1There are five questions to answer in Part 1 of the Writing paper. For each question, you have one sentence which is complete and a second sentence which has a missing word or words. You have to complete the second sentence with between one and three words so that it means the same as the first sentence. All five sentences share a common theme or topic.
PET Writing Part 2
For Part 2 you have to write a short, communicative message of between 35 and 45 words. The instructions in the question tell you who you are writing to and why you are writing. There are also three bullet points which tell you the content you must include in your answer. Remember to read the instructions carefully and plan your answer to cover everything.
PET Writing Part 3
In Part 3 you can choose to write either an informal letter or a story. You should write about 100 words.
PET Writing Part 2
For Part 2 you have to write a short, communicative message of between 35 and 45 words. The instructions in the question tell you who you are writing to and why you are writing. There are also three bullet points which tell you the content you must include in your answer. Remember to read the instructions carefully and plan your answer to cover everything.
PET Writing Part 3
In Part 3 you can choose to write either an informal letter or a story. You should write about 100 words.
PET - Listening
PET Listening Part 1
In this part of the test, there are seven short listening texts taken from daily life. These may be conversations at home or between friends, radio announcements, parts of talks, exchanges in shops, etc. For each text there is a question and three pictures. You have to listen to the recording and choose the picture which best answers the question.
PET Listening Part 2
In Part 2 you have to listen to a longer recording which may be either a monologue, or an interview with questions from a radio presenter. You hear the recording twice. There are then six multiple-choice questions with three possible answers for each one.
PET Listening Part 3
The recording for Part 3 is also a longer text. This may be a radio announcement or a recorded message which gives information about places and events. Sometimes it is a talk or a radio programme, in which people are talking about courses, trips or holiday activities. You will hear the recording twice. On the question paper you will find a page of notes summarising the content of the text. Six pieces of information are missing from the notes and you have to listen to the recording, find the correct information and write
it in the numbered gaps.
PET Listening Part 4
In Part 4 you will hear a recording of two people talking. It’s an informal conversation about everyday topics and the two people will talk about their opinions and agree or disagree on certain points. There are then six statements and you have to decide whether each statement is right or wrong.
In this part of the test, there are seven short listening texts taken from daily life. These may be conversations at home or between friends, radio announcements, parts of talks, exchanges in shops, etc. For each text there is a question and three pictures. You have to listen to the recording and choose the picture which best answers the question.
PET Listening Part 2
In Part 2 you have to listen to a longer recording which may be either a monologue, or an interview with questions from a radio presenter. You hear the recording twice. There are then six multiple-choice questions with three possible answers for each one.
PET Listening Part 3
The recording for Part 3 is also a longer text. This may be a radio announcement or a recorded message which gives information about places and events. Sometimes it is a talk or a radio programme, in which people are talking about courses, trips or holiday activities. You will hear the recording twice. On the question paper you will find a page of notes summarising the content of the text. Six pieces of information are missing from the notes and you have to listen to the recording, find the correct information and write
it in the numbered gaps.
PET Listening Part 4
In Part 4 you will hear a recording of two people talking. It’s an informal conversation about everyday topics and the two people will talk about their opinions and agree or disagree on certain points. There are then six statements and you have to decide whether each statement is right or wrong.
PET - Reading
PET Reading Part 1 - Three Option Multiple Choice
In the first part of the Reading paper you have to read and understand different kinds of short texts. These may be notices and signs, packaging information (for example instructions on a food package or a label on a medicine bottle) and communicative messages (notes, e-mails, cards and postcards).
PET Reading Part 2 - Matching
In Part 2 you will find five descriptions of people. There are then eight short texts on a particular topic. This may be goods and services of some kind (for example, purchasing books, visiting museums, staying in hotels or choosing holidays). You have to match each person to one of the texts.
PET Reading Part 3 - True False
In Part 3 you have to read a longer, factual text and look for precise information. The texts may be brochure extracts, advertisements in magazines and website information. Before you read the text, there are ten questions which are single-sentence statements about the text. You have to decide whether each statement is correct or not correct.
PET Reading Part 4 - Four Option Multiple Choice
In Part 4 the text you have to read expresses opinion or attitude. There are then five questions for you to answer. For each question we give you four possible answers (A, B, C or D) and you have to choose the right one.
PET Reading Part 5 - Multiple Choice Cloze
In this part of the Reading paper, you have a short text with ten numbered spaces. You have to find the missing word for each space. The spaces are designed to test mainly vocabulary but also a grammatical point such as pronouns, modal verbs, connectives and prepositions. After the text, we give you four possible answers for each numbered space and you have to choose the right one.
In the first part of the Reading paper you have to read and understand different kinds of short texts. These may be notices and signs, packaging information (for example instructions on a food package or a label on a medicine bottle) and communicative messages (notes, e-mails, cards and postcards).
PET Reading Part 2 - Matching
In Part 2 you will find five descriptions of people. There are then eight short texts on a particular topic. This may be goods and services of some kind (for example, purchasing books, visiting museums, staying in hotels or choosing holidays). You have to match each person to one of the texts.
PET Reading Part 3 - True False
In Part 3 you have to read a longer, factual text and look for precise information. The texts may be brochure extracts, advertisements in magazines and website information. Before you read the text, there are ten questions which are single-sentence statements about the text. You have to decide whether each statement is correct or not correct.
PET Reading Part 4 - Four Option Multiple Choice
In Part 4 the text you have to read expresses opinion or attitude. There are then five questions for you to answer. For each question we give you four possible answers (A, B, C or D) and you have to choose the right one.
PET Reading Part 5 - Multiple Choice Cloze
In this part of the Reading paper, you have a short text with ten numbered spaces. You have to find the missing word for each space. The spaces are designed to test mainly vocabulary but also a grammatical point such as pronouns, modal verbs, connectives and prepositions. After the text, we give you four possible answers for each numbered space and you have to choose the right one.
