DET Fill in the Blanks, Read and Select, Read and Complete, and Listen and Type: How to Answer
How to answer Duolingo English Test Fill in the Blanks, Read and Select, Read and Complete, and Listen and Type: timing, scoring, official tips, and drills.
Why the Short Questions Matter More Than They Look
When people prepare for the Duolingo English Test (DET), they usually spend their time on the long tasks: the Writing Sample, Interactive Reading, or the photo questions. The short questions get ignored because each one takes only a few seconds or a minute.
That is a mistake. Four short question types, Read and Select, Fill in the Blanks, Read and Complete, and Listen and Type, appear many times in every test. Based on the official question counts, together they add up to between 30 and 42 separate questions, and all four are adaptive, which means the test makes them harder or easier depending on how you answer.
This guide explains exactly how each of the four works, based on Duolingo's official 2026 Question Guide and Scoring Guide for Teachers, and gives you practical drills you can start today.
The Four Question Types at a Glance
| Question type | Time | Questions per test | Subscore | Scoring |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Read and Select | 5 seconds per word | 15-18 | Reading | Right or wrong |
| Fill in the Blanks | 20 seconds per sentence | 6-9 | Reading | Right or wrong, spelling must be correct |
| Read and Complete | 3 minutes per paragraph | 3-6 | Reading | Each word scored on its own, spelling must be correct |
| Listen and Type | 1 minute per sentence | 6-9 | Listening | Partial credit, based on how close you are |
None of these questions has preparation time. The timer starts as soon as the question appears.
Two scoring facts from the official guides are worth knowing before you practice:
- Your score is not a simple count of correct answers. Duolingo explains that because many questions are adaptive, scores cannot be calculated simply by counting correct answers. It also does not publish a fixed percentage for how much each reading or listening question type contributes.
- Your overall score is the average of four subscores: Reading, Listening, Writing, and Speaking. Three of the four short tasks feed Reading, and Listen and Type feeds Listening.
1. Read and Select
How it works
You see a word on the screen, one at a time. You click Yes if it is a real English word and No if it is not. Then the next word appears.
- 5 seconds per word
- 15-18 words per test
- If you do not click within 5 seconds, the answer is marked wrong
- The official guide warns that the fake words look like real words
What the official guide recommends
Duolingo's tips are simple: click Yes if you know the word or think you have seen it before, click No if you have not, and say the word silently in your head to help you decide.
How to get better at it
Read and Select is a vocabulary recognition test. You cannot cram for it in a weekend, but you can make your recognition faster.
- Read real English every day. News articles, short stories, and textbook chapters expose you to the words the test is likely to show you. Recognition comes from repeated exposure, not word lists.
- Notice word families. If you know decide, you will recognize decision, decisive, and undecided. When you learn a new word, look at its other forms too.
- Never let the timer run out. A missed answer is always wrong. Make a decision, even if you are unsure.
- Do not overthink. If a word feels familiar after you say it silently, trust that feeling and move on.
2. Fill in the Blanks
How it works
You read one sentence with one unfinished word. You see the beginning of the word, and you type the missing ending.
- 20 seconds per sentence
- 6-9 sentences per test
- Right or wrong: the word must be spelled correctly to count
- The missing words can be adjectives, adverbs, nouns, or verbs
- Sentences come from stories, coursebooks, news, personal writing, or conversations
What the official guide recommends
Use the rest of the sentence to guess the missing word. Look for another word that has the same or the opposite meaning, or notice whether the missing word is part of a common phrase.
Worked examples (original practice sentences)
These are our own practice sentences in the same style, not real test questions.
| Sentence | Clue | Answer |
|---|---|---|
| The weather was cold, but the room inside was surprisingly wa___. | but signals a contrast with cold | warm |
| She was so tired that she fell asl___ on the bus. | fell ... is a common phrase | asleep |
| The new policy had a sign___ impact on small businesses. | An adjective before impact | significant |
| He spoke very qui___ so he would not wake the baby. | An adverb is needed after the verb spoke | quietly |
How to get better at it
- Check the word class first. Ask: does the sentence need a noun, verb, adjective, or adverb here? That alone removes many wrong options.
- Watch the grammar ending. Many mistakes are not vocabulary errors but form errors: quiet instead of quietly, decide instead of decided, child instead of children.
- Spell carefully. A correct idea with a spelling mistake is still marked wrong. Practice the words you often misspell, such as necessary, environment, beginning, and receive.
3. Read and Complete
How it works
Read and Complete is a longer version of Fill in the Blanks. You see a short paragraph with several unfinished words, and you type the missing endings.
- 3 minutes per paragraph
- 3-6 paragraphs per test
- Every word is scored on its own, so one mistake does not cost you the whole paragraph
- Spelling must be correct for each word to count
The official guides also describe how the paragraph is built:
- The title, first sentence, and last sentence have no unfinished words
- Unfinished words are never next to each other
- Proper nouns (such as London) and acronyms (such as UN) are never unfinished
- Paragraphs can be fiction, news, or textbook content
What the official guide recommends
Read the whole paragraph before typing, use meaning and grammar clues, and do the easiest words first, leaving the harder ones for last.
How to get better at it
- Use the complete sentences as context. The first and last sentences are always complete, so read them first. They often tell you the topic and the tense of the whole paragraph.
- Keep the tense consistent. If the paragraph is about something that happened last year, most verbs will be in the past tense.
- Save 20 seconds to check spelling. Because every word is scored separately, fixing one misspelled word at the end is a real gain.
- Practice with real paragraphs. Copy a short paragraph from a news site or textbook, delete the second half of every seventh word or so, wait a day, and then try to complete it.
4. Listen and Type
How it works
You hear one sentence and type exactly what you hear.
- 1 minute per sentence
- 6-9 sentences per test
- Each sentence is up to 20 words long
- You can play the recording up to three times
- The sentence can be a question, an opinion, a fact, or something else
- Partial credit: the closer your answer is to the original sentence, the higher your score. You need the right words, spelling, and punctuation
What the official guide recommends
First, type what you hear. Then play it again and check whether your answer is correct. Use any time left at the end to check spelling and punctuation.
A simple 3-play routine
| Play | What to do |
|---|---|
| 1st | Listen and type everything you catch, even if there are gaps |
| 2nd | Fill in the gaps, especially small words like a, the, to, of, and have |
| 3rd | Check word endings (-s, -ed, -ing), then fix capital letters and the final punctuation mark |
Common mistakes
| Mistake | Example | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Missing small words | I going to the library | Listen for linking sounds: I'm going |
| Wrong verb ending | She walk to school | Ask: is the subject he/she/it? Is it past tense? |
| Wrong punctuation | A question ending with a full stop | If the sentence is a question, end it with ? |
| Writing what makes sense, not what you heard | I would like to go when the audio said I'd love to go | Type the exact words, not a paraphrase |
How to get better at it
Dictation is the best training. Take a short audio clip with a transcript, such as a podcast or a news video with captions, play one sentence, type it, then compare your version with the transcript. Ten sentences a day, done consistently, is a manageable routine.
A 14-Day Practice Plan for the Four Short Tasks
| Days | Focus | Daily practice (about 20-30 minutes) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Learn the format | Read the official Question Guide and try Duolingo's free official practice |
| 2-4 | Fill in the Blanks | Write 10 sentences from an article with one word cut in half, then complete them the next day |
| 5-7 | Read and Complete | One news or textbook paragraph per day with every seventh word cut in half, 3-minute timer |
| 8-10 | Listen and Type | 10 dictation sentences per day, maximum 3 plays each |
| 11-12 | Read and Select | Read for 20 minutes and list 10 unfamiliar words with their other word forms |
| 13 | Mixed timed practice | All four task types under real time limits |
| 14 | Review | Reread your spelling mistakes and your missed words |
Test-day checklist
- Answer every Read and Select word before the 5-second timer ends
- In Fill in the Blanks, decide the word class before typing
- In Read and Complete, read the first and last sentences first, then do the easy words first
- In Listen and Type, use all three plays when the sentence is long
- Always check spelling and the final punctuation mark before clicking Continue
Where These Tasks Fit in Your Overall Score
These four question types build your Reading and Listening subscores. But your overall score is the average of all four subscores, so a weak Writing or Speaking score can pull everything down, even if your reading is strong.
If your productive skills are the problem, the photo tasks are a good place to start. Wono DET is an independent practice tool, not affiliated with Duolingo, for Write About the Photo and Speak About the Photo. After each timed answer, you get an estimated score, grammar corrections, and a stronger sample answer. New accounts get 5 free corrections.
Official Sources
- DET Question Guide (2026): what each question type looks like, timing, number of questions, scoring, and official tips
- DET Scoring Guide for Teachers (2026): scoring methods, adaptivity, and how subscores are calculated
- Official DET practice: free practice from Duolingo
Test formats can change, so check the official guides for the latest version before your test date.
Conclusion
The short DET questions reward speed, accuracy, and careful spelling:
- Read and Select: decide within 5 seconds and trust your recognition
- Fill in the Blanks: find the word class and the context clue
- Read and Complete: read the full sentences first and do the easy words first
- Listen and Type: use all three plays and check endings and punctuation
- Practice a little every day instead of cramming
Start with Duolingo's free official practice today, write down which of the four tasks felt hardest, and make that your focus for the next week.
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