Some people are confident and relaxed with PTE Retell Lecture. In this blog, we’re going to look at their secrets and see how you can maximize your score in this task.
Firstly, you can break PTE retell lecture down into three parts; listening, note-taking and retelling. Evaluate your ability in each.

Listening
If you lack confidence or are weak at listening, you need to build your vocabulary and build your listening skills. Here’s how.
1. Use the collocation list on the E2language website. It’s in the reading section. This list will show you words that often go together. You just need to read across the lines to see the collocations. For example:
- abstract concept
- academic achievement
- in academic circles
You’re not going to remember by reading once. So read sections and re-read. Spend just three minutes two or three times a day.
2. The collocation list is based on the Academic Word List. You already know the first 3000 words of English. This list of 570 words is the next group you need to know. If you know the first 3000 and this group of 570, that’s enough language to help you manage 95% of most written and spoken texts in English.
You can work on the list here: The Academic Word List. Go through the list systematically looking at all the words you don’t know – click for the dictionary meaning. There are also games, practice activities and quizzes to help you.
3. Read English language newspapers and read Science Daily. Listen to news audio on BBC news.
4. When you are reading/listening, write down new words (and their meanings, collocations and other forms). Then spend a few minutes two or three times a day reviewing the lists. Cover the meanings – see if you can remember. Cover the words and then write them – can you spell them correctly?
5. Another thing you should do is listen to TED talks. There are thousands of talks on a range of topics. One of the great things about TED talks is the little button under the video labeled ‘Transcript.’ If you click this, you will be able to see the exact text, so if you missed a word or a phrase while you were listening, you can check it.
TIP
Find TED talks on unfamiliar topics so that you can learn new vocabulary. Listen to just the first 60 – 90 seconds and use them for PTE Retell Lecture. Listen, take notes and then retell (record yourself on your phone). Then you can go back and read the text to evaluate your note-taking. You can also listen to the speaker again and compare their pronunciation, stress, and intonation with yours.
Note-Taking
Note-taking involves writing keywords as you listen. A good way to think of it is in terms of nouns and the W words – who, why, when, where, what? There are no perfect words to write down. Write down keywords that will help you to remember and retell.
Here’s a useful trick – if you write numbers, also write a word to say what the number represents.
If you write this, you won’t remember. | This will help you to remember. |
92,000
470 2006 |
92,000 barrels of oil
470 billion $ 2006 new laws |
Many candidates are not sure how much detail they need. Clearly, you need the main idea, but according to Pearson, the task is testing your ability to repeat, inform and explain as well as your ability to support information with details and examples. So numbers and dates can also be relevant.

Retelling
Let’s start by thinking about the marking criteria. You can get up to 5-points each for pronunciation, fluency, and content.
CONTENT:
Cover key points, show relationships between things and include implications and conclusions. Include some details and examples.
PRONUNCIATION:
Vowel and consonant sounds need to be clear. Deletions need to be used appropriately (eg. ‘and’ often becomes ‘n’ – boys ‘n’ girls). Word and sentence stress should be correct.
FLUENCY:
Rhythm should be smooth and phrasing needs to be appropriate (eg. where you pause between groups of words). There should be no hesitations or repetitions.
For pronunciation and fluency help watch the E2language Core Skills Pronunciation videos.
One point to note is that your fluency drops as soon as you start making complex decisions, so you need to keep it simple. The E2language template helps you do exactly that.
Template:
The speaker was discussing TOPIC
First: He/She mentioned KEYWORD 1
Second: He/She described KEYWORD 2
Third: He/She talked about KEYWORD 3
Fourth: He/She discussed KEYWORD 4
Fifth: He/She suggested that KEYWORD 5
Turn it into a reading exercise. Match sentence one to your first note; sentence two to your second note and so on. That way you don’t need to make many decisions. After that, once you’ve learned the template, you can write down key letters for the verbs (see below) and put your notes next to those letters – then read.
Method:
- Write 6 or 7 short, simple notes.
- When retelling, don’t add anything to most notes. Put a full stop. Keep them short.
- Choose just two notes to add a bit.
This will be right for between 30 and 40 seconds.
In the sound file below you will see that the speaker has a lot of information and finishes just in time. Some information could have been dropped if there was danger of going over 40 seconds.
Retell Notes:

Sound Files:
Listen to the ORIGINAL LECTURE:
Listen to the RETELL LECTURE:
TIP
If there is a listening problem and you missed some of the talks, all you can do is focus on what you did understand. Maximize your marks for what you did catch. Sure you will lose marks for ‘content,’ but you can still get marks for pronunciation and fluency. However, keep talking generally on the topic – even if it isn’t perfect.
NOW YOU’RE THE EXPERT
Now you know all of the secrets of those candidates who are quite relaxed about the task. Therefore, they can relax because they know they have maximized their chances of doing well. You can do that too. Develop your vocabulary and listening skills. Practise note-taking. Do lots of specific practice for PTE Retell Lecture. Work on your PTE fluency.
There are two practice examples below and you’ll find thousands more at TED.com.
PRACTICE NOW
- Listen: If you don’t understand everything, just catch what you can.
- Take notes: nouns – W-words.
- Retell: Retell what you understood – using the template. Maximize your marks for fluency and pronunciation. Record yourself on your phone and evaluate your performance against the three criteria listed at the start of this blog.
Practice 1 – PTE Retell Lecture:
Practice 2 – PTE Retell Lecture:
Visit this article on 4 Mistakes Everyone Makes on PTE Speaking Tasks.
Check out this video on PTE Retell Lecture! For more videos, visit E2 PTE for Live Classes and Mini Mock Tests.
Do you have any PTE speaking tips you’d like to share with us? Let us know in the comments below.
rakib says:
so much helpful
Raksha says:
There should be transcripts of above Retell lecture practices.
abhi says:
Hello Raksha,
Thank you for the suggestion.
We will definitely forward this to the Content Management team and work on it 🙂
Best,
AC
syed says:
On this page their are some attached pages which are displaying nudity.
abhi says:
Hello Syed,
Apologies for that.
It looks like there was a bug and the issue has been resolved now. Thank you for bringing this to our notice.
Best,
AC
Akhil Sharma says:
I stuck a lot in between and especially after finishing the sentence or before starting the new sentence. Can you suggest me any technique to be more fluent?
olivia says:
How about this E2 video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TcQJ8mBeJ10&t=110s
GOOD LUCK,
The E2 Team
RISH says:
HELLO GUYS ,
I TRIED TWO TIMES PTE EXAM
1.READING 51 , LISTENING 44 , SPEAKING 63 , WRITING 46
2. READING 55 , LISTENING 51, SPEAKING 63, WRITING 50
HOW CAN I IMPROVE PLEASE HELP .
olivia says:
If you’d like advice on which package will suit you best you can message our Student Support Officers here: https://help.e2language.com/support/tickets/new
Sirisha says:
Can i use same structure for all three or four questions given in PTE. If i use does it effect my score.
olivia says:
As long as you apply the method correctly- you shouldn’t loose any marks! This method will help you keep your thoughts organized!
Seema Pradhan says:
lose*
Mandeep kaur says:
Sir some experts said that we retel lecture for only 20 seconds is sufficient is this right??
Nimitra says:
This is my fifth time sitting for PTE test . My recent results is L 84, R 84 ,W 90 and S 75. For the past four test that I have sat for ,my speaking has been stuck at 75 . HELP
Ahmad Ali says:
I am still struggling with this. I keep loosing my focus on the speech while writing down the notes.
Appreciate any advice and tips.
Thanks
olivia says:
Try practicing in loud crowded places like a cafe! You’ll learn to focus! Because, remember, the exam is stressful and distracting!
Mohamed Matheen says:
My listening is always 78. I got stuck with 78 marks in listening for last three times. How can i improve to get 90. Please help in listening.
Here is my Mark
L- 78
R- 85
W-90
S-89
olivia says:
Our expert Duty Tutors would be happy to help suggest you a package if you come to want professional help past what is provided on our YouTube and here on the blog! Just share your exam, previous scores, and let them know when/if you have your next exam planned! [https://help.e2language.com/support/tickets/new]
mili says:
i get trouble while making notes..
olivia says:
Ya! Note taking can be TRICKY :/ Sometimes it’s hard to know WHAT exactly to write down! That’s why we love all the STRATEGY and METHOD videos on the E2 PTE Academic YouTube Channel! Our video lessons there really help many students tackle specific question types & we don’t neglect outlining the NOTE-TAKING part either!
Check it out: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvSdD8_0DAKn-ThHWhAhoAg/videos
Olivia, & The E2 Team
Karthik says:
Hi
This weblink does not exists anymore, which was given for Academic Word list in the above article.
http://www.time4english.com/aamain/lounge/awl.asp
Can you help of the pre-downloaded content of the link or the article or word list?
Karthik
E2Language Team says:
Hi Karthik, you can find our Academic word list here: https://help.e2language.com/en/support/solutions/articles/28000014151-academic-word-list.