Does Reading Part 2 need any outside knowledge?

No. The answers come from the diagram and the text printed with it. If you cannot point to the line that supports a choice, treat it as wrong.

Where do people lose marks in Part 2?

Mostly on conditions: a price that applies only on certain days, a service that leaves out one group, a line under the table. Reading past one of those gives a choice that looks right and is not.

Reading Part 2: Reading to Apply a Diagram

Reading Part 2: Reading to Apply a Diagram belongs to the Reading component of CELPIP. The task gives you 8 questions and 9 minutes. Your result counts the questions you answer correctly.

Questions: 8
Time: 9 minutes
Prompts here: 28 published

Notes, grid, qualifiers

Our method for this task — study advice, not an official rule.

1
Start with the text around the diagram
Headings, footnotes and the note under the table say who a rule applies to and when. Read them before the rows.
2
Prove every answer from the diagram
Put your finger on the cell or line that supports your choice. If you cannot find one, knowledge of how such services usually work is filling the gap — and the question is only about this diagram.
3
Slow down on limiting words
Only, except, at least, from … onwards: a choice that ignores one of these can look right and still be wrong.

If the diagram doesn't say it, it isn't the answer.

This part tests reading the diagram in front of you, not what you know about the world.

In this part you get a diagram — a schedule, a price table, a plan of a building — and an unfinished message to complete from it. The answers come from the diagram and the notes printed with it, so read those notes first: conditions and exclusions usually sit there.

CELPIP · Reading

Second Branch Location

From a bank of 28 prompts · free to read, no account needed

Instructions

Read the following email.
Complete the email by selecting the best answer for each blank.

Second Branch — Shortlisted Sites

Four locations under review for the company's second branch

	Lease cost	Access	Space	Customers
Harbour Centre	$8,000 per month	Excellent public transit; limited customer parking	Large open floor plan; little room for future expansion	High foot traffic from nearby offices and shops
Northgate Business Park	$5,500 per month	Ample parking; limited direct transit service	Flexible layout with room to expand into an adjacent unit	Lower walk-in traffic; easy access for staff who drive
Midtown Exchange	$6,800 per month	Near two major transit lines; parking available but expensive	Medium-sized floor plan; expansion would require relocating	Strong weekday traffic from offices; quieter on weekends
Riverside District	$6,000 per month	Moderate transit service; convenient for cyclists and pedestrians	Smaller initial unit with an option to lease a nearby unit later	Growing residential area; current foot traffic is modest

Lease costs are monthly.

The reply to complete

Subject: Recommendation for the Second Branch Dear Senior Management Team, Following our review of potential sites for the company's second branch, I believe the decision should reflect our operating priorities rather than lease cost alone. If the branch must draw walk-in customers every day of the week, ___1___ is the strongest site. Midtown Exchange has comparable transit links, but its customer traffic drops off on weekends. If most of our staff will drive to work and we expect to need more room within a year or two, ___2___ makes the most sense, since it combines plenty of parking with space we could take over next door. For a branch serving office workers who arrive by transit during the week, ___3___ would suit us at a lower rent than the busiest site on the shortlist, provided we are willing to move again if we outgrow it. If we want staff to be able to cycle or walk to work and are prepared to wait while the surrounding neighbourhood fills in, ___4___ is worth serious consideration. Finally, if we need a large, open sales floor from the first day and can accept that we would have to relocate if the branch ever outgrew it, only ___5___ offers that space immediately. Before making a final decision, we should weigh the branch's immediate customer needs against its expected growth, transportation requirements, and ability to absorb ongoing costs. Sincerely, Business Development Manager

Questions & answer key8 questions

Your Reading result comes from how many questions you get right; there is no rubric, only the text. Each question below shows its answer with an explanation.

1Gap 1 in the reply
1. ANorthgate Business Park
2. BRiverside District
3. ✓Harbour Centre
4. DMidtown Exchange
Answer
C
Walk-in customers "every day of the week" calls for steady foot traffic. Harbour Centre has "High foot traffic from nearby offices and shops" and "Excellent public transit." The sentence itself rules out Midtown Exchange, which is "quieter on weekends"; Northgate Business Park has "Lower walk-in traffic" and Riverside District's foot traffic "is modest."
2Gap 2 in the reply
1. ✓Northgate Business Park
2. BHarbour Centre
3. CRiverside District
4. DMidtown Exchange
Answer
A
Two needs together: drivers and room to grow next door. Northgate Business Park offers "Ample parking" and "room to expand into an adjacent unit." Riverside District can also add space later, but it is a "nearby unit" rather than next door, and Riverside is built around cyclists and pedestrians, not parking. Harbour Centre has "limited customer parking" and Midtown Exchange's parking is "expensive," and neither can expand.
3Gap 3 in the reply
1. ARiverside District
2. BHarbour Centre
3. CNorthgate Business Park
4. ✓Midtown Exchange
Answer
D
Midtown Exchange is "Near two major transit lines" with "Strong weekday traffic from offices," and at $6,800 it costs less than Harbour Centre's $8,000. "Expansion would require relocating" matches "willing to move again." Harbour Centre also has office traffic but is the expensive site being compared against; Northgate Business Park has "limited direct transit service"; Riverside District serves a residential area.
4Gap 4 in the reply
1. AHarbour Centre
2. ✓Riverside District
3. CMidtown Exchange
4. DNorthgate Business Park
Answer
B
Riverside District is "convenient for cyclists and pedestrians" and sits in a "Growing residential area" — a neighbourhood that is still filling in. Northgate Business Park is aimed at "staff who drive." Harbour Centre and Midtown Exchange are busy transit-served sites where there would be no waiting for the area to develop.
5Gap 5 in the reply
1. AMidtown Exchange
2. BRiverside District
3. CNorthgate Business Park
4. ✓Harbour Centre
Answer
D
Only Harbour Centre has a "Large open floor plan," and its "little room for future expansion" explains the warning about relocating. Midtown Exchange also cannot expand but is only "Medium-sized." Riverside District starts with a "Smaller initial unit," and Northgate Business Park can grow next door, so it would not need to relocate.
6Which statement about parking is supported by the table?
1. ✓Midtown Exchange has parking, but using it is costly.
2. BHarbour Centre provides ample parking for customers.
3. CRiverside District has more parking than any other site.
4. DNorthgate Business Park charges staff for parking.
Answer
A
Midtown Exchange's access entry says "parking available but expensive." Harbour Centre has "limited customer parking," the reverse of ample. Riverside District's entry mentions cyclists and pedestrians but says nothing about parking. Northgate Business Park has "Ample parking," and no parking fee is listed.
7Why might Midtown Exchange be less suitable for a branch that expects many customers on weekends?
1. AIts transit lines run mainly on weekdays.
2. BIts floor plan is too small for weekend crowds.
3. ✓Its surrounding area is quieter on weekends.
4. DIts office building closes on weekends.
Answer
C
The customer entry says Midtown Exchange has "Strong weekday traffic from offices; quieter on weekends." Nothing limits its "two major transit lines" to weekdays. Its "Medium-sized floor plan" is a limit on growth, not on crowds. The table never says any building closes.
8What principle guides the manager's recommendations?
1. AThe cheapest site should be chosen unless its transit service is poor.
2. ✓Lease cost should be weighed against what the branch needs to do.
3. CA higher rent usually indicates a better location.
4. DLease cost matters little once customer traffic is known.
Answer
B
The manager opens by saying the decision should reflect "our operating priorities rather than lease cost alone" and closes by weighing customer needs, growth, transport and "ability to absorb ongoing costs." No rule favours the cheapest site. Higher rent is treated as a cost to be justified, not as a sign of quality. And cost is never dismissed — it stays on the final list.

Where answers slip

1Applying a price or a condition to a row the footnote excludes.
2Answering from experience of how such services usually work.
3Missing a limiting word and answering the general case.

Try one yourself, under the clock

This page shows the key. Practice under the timer shows which kinds of question you keep missing — and that is the part worth fixing.

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Common questions

Does Reading Part 2 need any outside knowledge?: No. The answers come from the diagram and the text printed with it. If you cannot point to the line that supports a choice, treat it as wrong.
Where do people lose marks in Part 2?: Mostly on conditions: a price that applies only on certain days, a service that leaves out one group, a line under the table. Reading past one of those gives a choice that looks right and is not.

27 more Apply a Diagram prompts in the bank0 free

·Office Furniture
·Employee Bonus Packages
·Conference Transportation
·Conference Catering
·Choosing a Summer Day Camp
·Choosing a Financial Advisor
·Selecting a Website Hosting Service
·Selecting a Mortgage Option
·Choosing a First-Aid Course
·Choosing a Video-Conferencing Platform
·Choosing a House-Cleaning Service
·Library Membership Plans
·Choosing an Accountant
·Choosing an Animal Clinic
·Annual Conference Catering
·Payment Systems
·Credit Card Options
·Buying a Business
·Summer Camp Comparison
·Security Camera Comparison
·Car Rental Comparison
·Weekend Hotel Packages
·Birthday Party Venues
·Portable Air Conditioner Comparison
·Credit Card Comparison
·Smartphone Buying Guide
·Online Electronics Purchase

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