Listening and reading in the Polish B1 exam: tasks and strategy

Updated 3 November 2026

How are these two parts organised?

Both parts test understanding, not speaking or writing: you choose an option, mark TAK / NIE, insert a fragment or write in a short piece of information. The B1 pass mark is 50% in each part separately. Strong reading does not make up for weak listening, and you cannot retake a single part — only the whole exam.

Part	Time at B1	Pass mark
Rozumienie ze słuchu (listening)	25 min	50%
Rozumienie tekstów pisanych (reading)	45 min	50%

The number of tasks and questions in a part can vary between sessions, so focus on the task types rather than an exact count. You can see what real exam papers look like in the official Commission samples.

Listening: recordings and tasks

You will hear announcements, short messages, conversations and interviews — the Polish you hear at a station, in a shop, on the radio or between friends. The pace is natural, not slowed down for learners.

Multiple choice a / b / c — choose the correct statement or answer based on the recording.
True or false (TAK / NIE) — does the statement match what you heard?
Fill in a missing word or detail — a time, date, place, price or name.
Matching — which speaker said what, or which utterance fits which statement.

The listening rule: once and twice

The recording for the first task is played once; recordings for the other tasks are played twice. There is no second chance in the first task, so read the questions before the recording starts and answer as you listen.

Use every pause to read the questions of the next task and underline the key words: who, when, where, how much.
The first listening is for answering, the second for checking. If an answer is unclear the first time, mark the most likely option so you do not have to keep it in your head.
Do not try to understand every word: questions are usually about the main idea, the speaker’s intention or a specific detail.
Missed an answer? Move straight on to the next question, or you will miss that one too.

Reading: texts and tasks

The texts are announcements, letters, articles and extracts from prose. Task types:

Short texts with a / b / c — often with the stem „Z tego tekstu wynika, że…” (“It follows from this text that…”).
A long text with TAK / NIE statements.
Inserting removed fragments A–H — put cut-out sentences or parts of paragraphs back into the text.
Headings — match a heading to each section of the text.
Choosing the right word in brackets — which word fits the meaning and context.

Strategy for each task type

a / b / c: read the question and options first, then the text. Find the part of the text the question refers to and compare it with each option. The correct option usually says the same thing in other words rather than repeating the text verbatim.
TAK / NIE: check the whole statement. A single word — „zawsze”, „tylko”, „już”, „jeszcze nie”, „wszyscy” — can make it false. NIE means the text says something different, not simply that it does not mention it.
Fragments A–H: read the text before and after the gap. Clues are pronouns („on”, „ten”, „tam”), linking words („dlatego”, „jednak”, „poza tym”), and the tense and number of the verb. Start with the fragments you are sure of. If there are more fragments than gaps, the extra ones are traps.
Headings: a heading sums up the main idea of the whole section, not one detail. A single word shared by the heading and the text is often exactly the trap.
Word in brackets: read the whole sentence, not just the two words around the gap. Meaning, fixed collocations and the preposition after the word all matter.
Filling in information (listening): decide in advance what you need — a number, date, place or name. Write clearly and briefly, the way you heard it.

Traps: distractors and paraphrase

Wrong options (distractors) are written to look right. The three most common traps:

Same words, different meaning. The option contains a word from the text, but the statement contradicts it. A word-for-word match is a reason to check more carefully, not to tick it straight away.
Paraphrase. The correct answer uses synonyms: „nieczynny” — „zamknięty”, „odwołać” — „nie odbędzie się”, „przedłużyć” — „będzie ważny dłużej”. Learn words in pairs of synonyms and antonyms.
A change of plan in a conversation. A speaker says one thing, then changes their mind: „Spotkajmy się w piątek… Nie, jednak w sobotę”. What counts is how the conversation ends.

Example task with explanation

This is our own example in the short-text a / b / c format, not a Commission task.

Ogłoszenie. Od poniedziałku 14 kwietnia basen miejski będzie nieczynny z powodu remontu. W tym czasie zajęcia nauki pływania dla dzieci odbędą się na pływalni przy ulicy Leśnej. Karnety nie przepadną: termin ich ważności zostanie przedłużony o czas zamknięcia basenu.

Z tego tekstu wynika, że…

a) basen zostanie zamknięty na stałe.
b) zajęcia dla dzieci zostaną odwołane.
c) karnety będzie można wykorzystać później.

a) — wrong. The word „zamknięty” echoes the text, but „z powodu remontu” and „czas zamknięcia” point to a temporary closure, not „na stałe” (permanently).
b) — wrong. The classes are not cancelled but moved: „odbędą się na pływalni przy ulicy Leśnej”.
c) — correct. It paraphrases „termin ich ważności zostanie przedłużony”: if the validity is extended, the passes can be used later.

How should you manage your time?

Listening (25 min) runs at the pace of the recordings — you do not control the time. Your job is to read the questions during pauses and not get stuck on a missed answer.
Reading (45 min) is yours to divide. First spend a minute looking through all the tasks, then split the time roughly evenly and leave about 5 minutes for checking.
If a question takes more than two minutes, mark the likely option and come back to it at the end.
Do not leave answers blank: a blank answer is guaranteed zero points.

How to practise

Take the B1 listening test and the B1 reading test against the clock. The first test in each part is free, and after checking you will see an explanation of your mistakes.
Do the official Commission samples with the answer sheet: a timer and marking against the official key, just like the exam.
Listen to 10–15 minutes of Polish every day: Polskie Radio news and programmes, podcasts in Polish. Summarise the main point to yourself in one or two sentences.
Read short texts similar to exam ones: announcements, letters, news. Note down the synonym pairs that tripped you up.
Work on weak grammar in the exercises: in reading it helps with fragments and words in brackets.

Not sure of your level? Start with the free diagnostic test. Short on time? See the one-month B1 preparation plan.

B1 listening test B1 reading test Official samples

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