IELTS Reading True, False, Not Given: A Step-by-Step Method

For True/False/Not Given questions, decide whether the passage agrees with the statement (True), contradicts it (False), or says nothing about it (Not Given). The key is to use only the information in the text, never your own knowledge, and to check the exact words of the statement against the exact words of the passage.

Most mistakes come from confusing False with Not Given. (For another Reading question type, see our Matching Headings method.) If the passage says the opposite, it is False. If the passage simply does not give the information, it is Not Given. The method below helps you separate them reliably.

The three answers in one table

Answer	What it means	Ask yourself
True	The text says the same thing, possibly in other words	Can I point to the line that confirms it?
False	The text says the opposite or something that cannot also be true	Can I point to the line that contradicts it?
Not Given	The text does not say, or is not specific enough	Is something missing that I would have to guess?

Step 1: Underline the key parts of the statement

Look for names, numbers, comparisons ("more than"), quantifiers ("all", "most", "some") and verbs of certainty ("always", "may", "will"). Example statement:

"Most visitors to the museum come from overseas."

Key parts: "most" and "from overseas". Both must match.

Step 2: Find the location

True/False/Not Given statements follow the order of the passage. Find the part of the text where the topic is discussed, using names, numbers and synonyms. Do not read the whole passage again for each question; use the order to move forward.

Step 3: Read that section carefully

Read the sentence before and after your location too. The exact answer can depend on a small word such as "only", "not", "although" or "some".

Step 4: Compare meaning, not words

Passages paraphrase. "Declined sharply" can match "fell dramatically". Check each key part in your underlined statement and decide one of three outcomes: confirmed, contradicted, not mentioned.

Step 5: Apply the decision test

1. Is every part of the statement supported by the text? True.
2. Does any part clearly conflict with the text? False.
3. Is some part missing, so you would need to guess? Not Given.

Mini examples

Passage extract: "The library opened in 1998 and now holds around 40,000 books, most of them donated by local residents. Staff say that membership has risen every year since 2010."

• Statement: The library has more than 30,000 books. True. 40,000 is more than 30,000.
• Statement: Most of the books were bought by the library. False. The text says most were donated.
• Statement: The library charges an annual membership fee. Not Given. The text mentions membership but not any fee.
• Statement: Membership has fallen since 2010. False. It has risen.
• Statement: Local residents donated more books than visitors from other cities. Not Given. We are told residents donated most books, but no comparison with visitors is made.

The last example shows how tricky Not Given can be: it sounds logical, but the text never says it. If you need to add an assumption, choose Not Given.

Common traps

1. Using your own knowledge

You may know that something is true in real life. If the passage does not say it, the answer is Not Given. Always ask, "Where does the text say this?"

2. Ignoring small words

"Some", "all", "most", "never", "always" and "only" change the answer. Text: "Some students prefer evening classes." Statement: "All students prefer evening classes." That is False, not Not Given, because "all" contradicts "some".

3. Confusing False with Not Given

False needs a direct contradiction. Silence is Not Given. Text: "The company plans to open a new office." Statement: "The company will open a new office next year." The date is not given, so this is Not Given.

4. Matching words instead of meaning

If the statement repeats the same words as the passage, be extra careful. Examiners often reuse key words in a sentence that has a different meaning. Always check the relationship between those words.

5. Spending too long on one question

If you cannot decide in about a minute and a half, make your best guess, mark it, and move on. There is no penalty for wrong answers, so never leave a blank.

6. Opinion words and writer's view

Be careful when a statement uses verbs like "believe", "claim" or "suggest". The text may report what researchers think, not what is certainly true. In some tasks the true/false is about the writer's view (Yes/No/Not Given), where the same logic applies to the writer's opinion.

How to practise

1. Take a short passage and write your own three statements: one True, one False, one Not Given.
2. Do a timed set of 13 questions in about 20 minutes.
3. For each wrong answer, underline the sentence in the passage and say why you chose wrongly: assumption, small word, or paraphrase.
4. Note your error pattern. Many candidates always overuse False or overuse Not Given.

If you are planning how Reading fits into your overall result, our band score calculator shows what each raw score is roughly worth in a typical estimate. Official conversion can differ by test, so use it as a guide, and band scores explained shows how the skills combine.

Scorify also has Reading practice for question types like this one, so you can build the habit of finding evidence in the text.

Checklist

• Use only the passage, not what you know.
• Underline quantifiers, negatives and comparisons in the statement.
• True means confirmed, False means contradicted, Not Given means not stated.
• If you need to guess or assume, it is Not Given.
• Answers follow the order of the passage.