TOPIK I is two papers — listening and reading — and between them they use about a dozen question shapes. The same shapes come back every single time.
That is the good news: a paper made of repeating shapes can be practised even without knowing which words will appear.
1 · The shapes, in the order they arrive
| Shape | Korean | What you do |
|---|---|---|
| Answer a yes-no question | 알맞은 대답을 고르십시오 | Hear a question, pick the natural answer |
| Continue the exchange | 이어질 말을 고르십시오 | Hear one line, pick the reply |
| Where is this? | 여기는 어디입니까 | Identify the place from two lines |
| What is it about? | 무엇에 대해 말하고 있습니까 | Identify the topic word |
| Match the content | 들은 내용과 같은 것 | Pick the statement that agrees |
| Shape | Korean | What you do |
|---|---|---|
| Topic of two sentences | 무엇에 대한 이야기입니까 | Name the subject: weather, family, price |
| Fill the blank | ( )에 들어갈 말을 고르십시오 | Particle, word or connector |
| Notice or table | 다음을 읽고 맞는 것을 고르십시오 | Find one fact in a poster |
| Put in order | 순서대로 맞게 나열한 것 | Order three or four sentences |
| Agrees with the text | 글의 내용과 같은 것 | Eliminate what the text does not say |
2 · The habit
Read the question first. Always. On a reading item the passage is two or three lines and the question tells you what to look for; reading the passage first means reading it twice.
On listening it matters even more, because the audio plays once. Use the seconds before it starts to read the four options.
3 · Try it now
The items at the end of this lesson are in exam shape. Read the question, then the options, then the passage — in that order — and notice how much less of the passage you actually need.
Exam words
What does 고르십시오 tell you to do?
In what order should you read a reading item?
Before the quiz
- I can name five listening shapes and five reading shapes.
- I read the question before the passage.
- I read the options before the audio starts.
- I know where the exam numbers live.