Listening for Detail Flashcards

You hear a receptionist say: "Your appointment was originally on the 14th at half past two, but Dr. Patel's had to move everything forward by a day, and she's now starting fifteen minutes later than usual." When is the new appointment?

Answer: The 13th at 2:45

'Moved forward by a day' means earlier, so the 14th becomes the 13th. 'Fifteen minutes later' moves half past two (2:30) to 2:45. The correct answer is the 13th at 2:45. Many listeners take 'forward' to mean later and choose the 15th.

A tour guide says: "The museum used to close at six, and most guidebooks still say so, but since the renovation it's been open until eight on weekdays. Weekends, though, are unchanged." What time does the museum close on a Saturday?

Answer: At six o'clock

The later 8:00 closing time applies only on weekdays. 'Weekends are unchanged' means the old 6:00 closing time still applies on Saturdays. The distractor 'eight' is the most recent number you hear, but it describes a different set of days.

In a phone message, a colleague says: "I've booked the room for twelve — sorry, I mean twenty — people, and I've asked catering for vegetarian options for about a quarter of them." Roughly how many vegetarian meals have been requested?

Answer: Five

The speaker corrects 'twelve' to 'twenty', so the group has twenty people. A quarter of twenty is five. 'Three' is a quarter of the wrong figure (twelve), and 'fifteen' is three-quarters of twenty.

A student says: "I wouldn't say the lecture was uninteresting exactly. It's just that I'd have got more from it if the slides hadn't been so packed." What is the student's main criticism?

Answer: The slides had too much information on them

'Wouldn't say it was uninteresting' rejects the idea that the topic was boring. The real complaint comes in the conditional clause: the slides were 'so packed', meaning they were overloaded with information. The other options are believable complaints about a lecture, but the student never makes them.

A radio announcer says: "Trains on the northern line will run every ten minutes instead of every twenty this weekend — except Sunday morning, when engineering work means there'll be no service at all before eleven." Which statement is correct?

Answer: On Sunday at 9 a.m., there are no trains

The exception says there is 'no service at all before eleven' on Sunday morning, so there are no trains at 9 a.m. On Saturday trains run more often (every ten minutes), not less. After 11 a.m. on Sunday the weekend timetable of every ten minutes applies, not every twenty.

A manager says in a meeting: "Sales in the south rose by nearly 8%, which sounds impressive until you remember the north grew by twice that — and the north started from a smaller base." What can you infer?

Answer: The north's percentage growth was about 16%

'Twice that' refers to the south's growth of nearly 8%, so the north grew by about 16%. Because the north 'started from a smaller base', you cannot conclude that its total sales are now higher or that both regions grew by the same absolute amount. The south's sales rose, so they did not fall.