PTE Reading Secrets: How to Solve Fill in the Blanks & Re-order Paragraphs in Under 2 Minutes

The Reading section is where most candidates lose precious points due to a single brutal factor: time management. You only have approximately 29 to 30 minutes to solve 13 to 18 challenging questions. If you get stuck reading every word of a passage, you will run out of time and leave the highest-value Fill in the Blanks empty. Here is how to read smart, apply grammar shortcuts, and solve questions in under 2 minutes.

1. The Grammar Elimination Matrix for Fill in the Blanks

Before reading the full context of a blank, examine the words immediately before and after it to determine the required part of speech:

• Rule 1 (Have / Has / Had + Blank): Almost always requires a Past Participle (V3 verb) or an adverb preceding a verb (e.g., "has significantly increased").
• Rule 2 (Preposition Clues): Notice common verb-preposition pairings: "depend on", "contribute to", "participate in", "refrain from". Identifying the preposition eliminates 3 out of 4 word options instantly!
• Rule 3 (Singular vs Plural Noun Concord): If the sentence says "A wide range of...", the blank must be a plural countable noun (e.g., "a wide range of factors").

2. Essential Collocation Pairs for 2026

Pearson tests academic collocations heavily. Memorizing these common pairs saves you minutes of thinking:

• "Play a pivotal role"
• "Draw a valid conclusion"
• "Undergo significant transformation"
• "Fulfill specific requirements"
• "Pose a serious threat"
• "Widespread acceptance"

3. Re-order Paragraphs: The 3-Step Sequencing Formula

Re-order Paragraphs can be solved quickly if you treat it as a logic puzzle rather than a reading comprehension test:

1. Step 1 - Locate the Independent Topic Sentence: Find the single sentence that can stand completely on its own without requiring previous context. It will NOT start with pronouns ("He", "They", "It") or linking words ("However", "Furthermore", "This").
2. Step 2 - Track the Noun-to-Pronoun Trail: If sentence A introduces "Dr. Alexander Fleming", sentence B will refer back to him as "He" or "The Scottish scientist". Sentence A must precede Sentence B.
3. Step 3 - Pairwise Scoring Strategy: Pearson awards marks for correct adjacent pairs (e.g., [A-B], [B-C]). Focus on locking down at least two definite pairs first.