How to Ace the PTE Highlight Incorrect Words Task: Expert Tips & Proven Strategies

The PTE Listening module's "Highlight Incorrect Words" task is a critical component that requires keen listening skills to identify subtle discrepancies between spoken audio and a given transcript. To excel, you will need to master various English accents, understand phonemic nuances, and apply sharp time management strategies.

This comprehensive guide will not only detail the role of AlfaPTE in refining your skills for this challenging section but also provide expert tips to help you confidently ace the PTE Highlight Incorrect Words task and boost your overall PTE score in 2025.

📝 AlfaPTE's Role in Mastering PTE: Highlight Incorrect Words Task

AlfaPTE provides AI feedback software that enables you to receive comprehensive feedback on your PTE tests and effectively master various tasks in the PTE test. We familiarize you with a real PTE exam environment and give you real-time exposure to different types of tasks. The key advantage of AlfaPTE’s PTE study material and app is that it gives you real-time analysis. This invaluable feedback will help you to meticulously analyze your performance, adjust your strategies, and develop your skills to correct the incorrect words.

📘 Understanding the PTE Highlight Incorrect Words Task: What to Expect

The PTE Highlight Incorrect Words Task will evaluate your listening and reading skills. You will see an audio transcript displayed on your screen. As the audio plays, you will listen and highlight the words that differ from the transcript.

The test takers typically answer 2-3 questions in this task, and each audio lasts between 15-50 seconds. You get 2 seconds before the speaker starts speaking. Note that the audio recording will play automatically and only once. You need to note that negative marking applies to this task & hence, marking incorrect options will make you lose marks.

✨ 7 Tips to Score High in PTE: Highlight Incorrect Words Task

To obtain high scores in the PTE Highlight Incorrect Words Task, you should utilise the first few seconds before the audio starts by skimming the transcript. Ensure you adapt to the speaker's pace during listening, and don't make random guesses, because it lowers your score.

✅ Familiar with accents
The PTE Highlight Incorrect Words consists of various English accents, such as Australian, American, and English. Different accents can confuse and make it tough for you to differentiate between words in text and words spoken. If you struggle to understand the speaker’s accent, then you may miss the incorrect words, which lowers your score. Therefore, familiarize yourself with diverse accents while practicing.

✅ Stay cursor-ready
If you are an active listener, then it is easier for you to differentiate between two conversations and move to the next point. You can move to the next point. The PTE is a competitive test, so you must be certain about your points and keep your cursor ready.

Keep the cursor ready when audio plays and pinpoint words that do not match it. Once the audio ends, you can select words that were not mentioned or were used as synonyms rather than the exact words in the transcript.

✅ Understand word patterns and common errors
The difference between audio and text can be subtle, such as a singular word in audio when the plural form is written. The audio can be used in different verb tenses than text; not catching these differences can lead to missed marks, and failing to determine the tense differences can cost points.

Be wary of near-synonyms (words that are similar in meaning but different) and homophones (words that sound similar but have different meanings). Recognizing these words is important to prevent confusion. The incorrect words in the PTE test can follow certain patterns.

You should know the patterns to identify errors. For example,

     ✦ Tense changes: " walks" in the text, but the speaker says " walked."
     ✦ Singular Vs plural: “ students” or “ student”
     ✦ Near synonyms or synonyms: “joyful” or “ happy:
     ✦ Negations: “cannot” or “ can”
     ✦ Homophones: e.g., " Hole" or " whole."

✅ Focus on meaning
While solving the PTE Highlight Incorrect Words Task, minor differences may distract. Therefore, it is advisable to focus on the meaning of the complete sentence. The incorrect words can cause a shift in meaning and make it easier for you to determine.

✅ Use context clues
You should use context clues to identify what was correct and what was incorrect.

✅ Take mock tests regularly
You should practice regularly with mock tests to increase your score in the PTE Highlight Incorrect Words Task. AlfaPTE’s free PTE mock tests help you to familiarize yourself with real exam conditions and improve your reading and listening skills.

✅ Highlights and clicks immediately
Once you identify an incorrect word, you should tap on it immediately. Do not delay, as the audio will keep playing & it will cause you to miss the next incorrect word. Missing out on incorrect words occurs when students lose their focus and are unable to keep up with the speaker's pace.

It is crucial to be selective: only highlight words you are confident are incorrect. If you highlight a word that was, in fact, correct in the text, you will lose a point for every such incorrect selection, as there is negative marking for highlighting correct words.

✍️  Conclusion

Achieving a high score in the PTE Highlight Incorrect Words Task requires good listening skills and fast reactions. You can efficiently overcome the task challenges by practising regularly through mock tests and highlighting the incorrect words. This approach builds your strong vocabulary and grammar.

AlfaPTE provides you with mock tests to sharpen your skills and help you to master the incorrect word highlights task. Stay updated with our platform and study materials to enhance your performance.

💬 FAQs

1) How can I accurately highlight the incorrect words in the PTE task?

You should follow your proper active listening skills and be familiar with different English accents to accurately highlight the incorrect words in PTE.

2) How can I avoid negative marking in the PTE Highlight Incorrect Words Task?

To avoid negative marking in PTE Highlight Incorrect Word tasks, you should be selective and only highlight the word that you are certain does not match to audio. Random guessing can cause point deductions because of negative marking systems.

3) How can I determine the maximum number of incorrect words in PTE?

It is suggested to sharpen your focus on audio and reading skills simultaneously to identify the maximum incorrect words in this task. You should also improve your vocabulary and practice with several accents to catch the differences.

4) How can I improve dictation skills in the PTE Highlight Incorrect Words Task?

You should practice on mock tests and listen to English actively to improve your dictation skills. Begin with slower, clearer pieces, and move to faster and complex conversations to score higher in the PTE Highlight Incorrect Words task.

5) How can I quickly identify the incorrect words in a PTE task?

You must understand common phrases and have a strong vocabulary to quickly identify the incorrect words. This knowledge helps you to quickly identify incorrect words from context and complete this task.