PTE Grammar Practice: Tips, Tricks, And Rules to High Scores

The Reading PTE section will make you the most desperate if you don’t have a solid grammar foundation.

Therefore, building solid PTE grammar is a must to help you ace the PTE Reading with the best score.

In this post, PTE Magic will share helpful PTE grammar tips and tricks to answer Reading questions more seamlessly.

Why does grammar matter in PTE?

In the real world, you will have to communicate in English every day when studying and working in English-speaking countries. Therefore, you need to gain a solid vocabulary and use correct grammar.

Grammar is one of the most crucial six Enabling Skills in the PTE exam. Pearson PTE dedicates a section on the scorecard to assess your grammatical skill.

The PTE exam will assess your grammatical knowledge in the form of written discourse, oral fluency, pronunciation, and vocabulary.

In the PTE Reading section, grammar skills will help you grasp the content. You must comprehend the meaning of the tense system, and the proper usage of articles and pronouns.

You can get the grammar score from question types such as summarizing written text, spoken text, and essay writing. These question types have specific criteria for grammatical evaluation.

Some test takers score low in grammar, although they can achieve a high PTE score of more than 79 in each section.

Therefore, you should have strong PTE grammatical skills to improve your PTE score.

See more:

• How to prepare for PTE – A detailed guide

Important grammar rules for PTE reading

To get a high score in the PTE Reading section, you need to master the following 10 PTE grammar rules:

Rule 1:  Have/has/had + past participle tense (V3)

After have/has/had, choose the past participle of a verb with the form -ed or the third form.

Example:

You have been approved for admission.

He had repaired his old car.

I have baked some cookies.

Rule 2: Am/is/are/was/were + past participle tense (V3)

After am/is/are/was/were, choose the past participle of a verb with the form -ed or the third form.

Example:

She was chased by animals in the forest.

Your dog is obsessed with bigger dogs.

However, the verb is sometimes the first form after is/am/are/was/were.

Example:

Jack was cutting the grass when a snake appeared.

My parents are going to a lake nearby for fishing.

Rule 3: Be/being/been+ past participle tense (V3)

After be/been/being, choose the past participle of a verb with the form -ed or the third form.

Example:

This workshop has been held in the art gallery since last week.

Rule 4: Preposition ‘to’ + first form of the verb (V1)

After the preposition “to”, choose a verb in the present or first form of the verb.

Example:

I decided to go to New York to visit my sister.

Rule 5: Preposition with, of, for, about + verb-ing

After the prepositions ‘with’, ‘of’, ‘for’, and ‘about’ (except for ‘to’), use verbs ending in ‘-ing’.

Example:

Thanks for giving me a ride.

How about going to the zoo this weekend?

Rule 6: Articles a/an/the + noun

There are two types of articles:

• The definite article ‘The’
• The indefinite article ‘a’, ‘an’

‘A’ or ‘an’ usually comes before ‘the’ before the same noun in a paragraph.

Remember that nouns always come after articles. So, if the blank comes after a/an/the, you will quickly identify the noun from the filling options.

Here are the 3 Article Rules:

1. “An” comes before words that begin with a vowel sound—five vowels” a, e, i, o, u.

Example: an egg, an apricot, an elephant

1. “A” comes before words that begin with consonants.

Example: a student, a building, a tree

1. ‘The’ comes before the noun forms of a word to indicate that the noun’s identity is known to the reader.

Example: “I will read the book“. The speaker means a specific book.

Rule 7: Article a/an/the + adjective + noun

While rule 6 states that a/an/the goes with nouns, they may go with noun phrases (adjective + noun).

If there is a blank between an article and a noun, we will specify an adjective to fill in

Example: a tall building, a unique outfit

Rule 8: Modal verb + first form of the verb

can/ could/shall/should/may/might/will/ would/must/have to + first verb form

A modal verb (or modal auxiliary verb) expresses the certainty and uncertainty of action.

Example:

You must leave the danger zone.

I can complete the report within three hours.

He should see a dentist before his teeth get worse.

Rule 9: Many + Plural nouns

After ‘many’, look for a plural noun to fill in the blank. The plural form of a noun will always have “s or es”.

Example:

Many students are waiting for the school bell.

He can speak many languages

Rule 10: It/which/that + Plural form of the verb -s/-es

After it/ which/ that, you must fill in the blank with the plural form of the verb with -s or -es.

Example:

It takes a few months to finish the project.

He cooks a dish that has a distinctive French taste.

Rule 11: Conjunction rule

The verb form must be consistent before and after a conjunction

Example:

My family will go to Melbourne and settle there.

Tips and tricks for improving your PTE grammar skills

Grammar may be frustrating for many PTE candidates because of its complex rules.

However, using grammar correctly is a must in the PTE exam It can also assess your writing skills and effectiveness.

Let’s take a look at some PTE grammar practice tips listed below!

Learn to identify word types

After skimming over the paragraph, you can determine the word type to fill in the gap. It can be an adjective, noun, verb, adverb, or preposition.

Remember to read the words carefully before and after the blank. You may then assess the answer based on word tenses and collocation.

Read regularly

Make reading a regular habit. This will be very beneficial to your grammatical skills. Reading often provides you with various new words, new grammar rules, and their usage. This will be very beneficial to your grammatical skills.

Improve speed reading

Besides focused and active reading, take time to practice speed reading. Ensure that you can read fast without missing any words and grammar usage.

Watch English movies and TV shows

Watching English movies and TV shows can help you understand how people in other countries communicate in English.

Try watching without subtitles! Determine how they use dialect, vocabulary, and grammar. This will help you enhance your communication skills and boost your confidence.

Take it slowly first and you’ll get used to it!

Practice makes perfect

Students taking the PTE test must be highly proficient in English grammar. This cannot be achieved in a week or a month, but the persistent effort will provide positive outcomes.

You can do as many PTE practice tests as possible to familiarize yourself with grammar rules. Besides, communicate in English every day. 

Conclusion

Have you already got all the PTE grammar rules?

If yes, practice now! Contact us to get information about our latest PTE mock tests and training courses!

Last updated on 22/08/2023

Moni PTE Magic

My name is Moni, and I am a seasoned PTE teacher with over 6 years of experience. I have helped thousands of students overcome their struggles and achieve their desired scores. My passion for teaching and dedication to my student’s success drives me to continually improve my teaching methods and provide the best possible support. Join me on this journey toward PTE success!