IELTS Reading Matching Features, How it Works, Sample Answers

IELTS Reading Matching Features: Matching features questions in the IELTS Reading section often confuse test takers. This type of question requires strong reading and scanning skills to match specific information with corresponding categories or names. In this guide, we will explain what IELTS Reading Test matching features are, provide a step-by-step approach, share a sample question with answers, and offer practical tips to improve your score.

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IELTS Reading Matching Features Overview

The IELTS Reading matching features question tests your ability to connect particular details, facts, or attributes from the passage to the correct options provided. You may need to match:

• People with their views or contributions

• Events with their descriptions

• Items with their characteristics

• Facts with their sources

This question format checks how well you can scan, identify key information, and understand the difference between similar points.

How Does It Work?

You’ll be given a list of features (A, B, C, etc.), often referring to names, groups, or objects. Then, you must choose which one is related to each question statement based on the information in the passage.

For example:

Choose the correct group, A–E, for each item. You may choose any group more than once.

Black powder
Rocket-propelled arrows for fighting
Rockets as war weapons
The rocket launcher

Also Read: 

• IELTS Reading Tips And Strategies

• IELTS Listening Tips

• IELTS Writing Tips

• IELTS Speaking Tips And Tricks

Sample IELTS Reading Matching Features Passage

Here's an excerpt from a sample IELTS Reading passage:

The invention of rockets is linked inextricably with the invention of 'black powder'. Most historians of technology credit the Chinese with its discovery. They base their belief on studies of Chinese writings or on the notebooks of early Europeans who settled in or made long visits to China to study its history and civilisation. It is probable that, sometime in the tenth century, black powder was first compounded from its basic ingredients of saltpetre, charcoal and sulphur. But this does not mean that it was immediately used to propel rockets. By the thirteenth century, powder-propelled fire arrows had become rather common. The Chinese relied on this type of technological development to produce incendiary projectiles of many sorts, explosive grenades and possibly cannons to repel their enemies. One such weapon was the 'basket of fire' or, as directly translated from Chinese, the 'arrows like flying leopards'. The 0.7 metre-long arrows, each with a long tube of gunpowder attached near the point of each arrow, could be fired from a long, octagonal-shaped basket at the same time and had a range of 400 paces. Another weapon was the 'arrow as a flying sabre', which could be fired from crossbows. The rocket, placed in a similar position to other rocket-propelled arrows, was designed to increase the range. A small iron weight was attached to the 1.5m bamboo shaft, just below the feathers, to increase the arrow's stability by moving the centre of gravity to a position below the rocket. At a similar time, the Arabs had developed the 'egg which moves and burns'. This 'egg' was apparently full of gunpowder and stabilised by a 1.5m tail. It was fired using two rockets attached to either side of this tail.It was not until the eighteenth century that Europe became seriously interested in the possibilities of using the rocket itself as a weapon of war and not just to propel other weapons. Prior to this, rockets were used only in pyrotechnic displays. The incentive for the more aggressive use of rockets came not from within the European continent but from far-away India, whose leaders had built up a corps of rocketeers and used rockets successfully against the British in the late eighteenth century. The Indian rockets used against the British were described by a British Captain serving in India as ‘an iron envelope about 200 millimetres long and 40 millimetres in diameter with sharp points at the top and a 3m-long bamboo guiding stick’. In the early nineteenth century the British began to experiment with incendiary barrage rockets. The British rocket differed from the Indian version in that it was completely encased in a stout, iron cylinder, terminating in a conical head, measuring one metre in diameter and having a stick almost five metres long and constructed in such a way that it could be firmly attached to the body of the rocket. The Americans developed a rocket, complete with its own launcher, to use against the Mexicans in the mid-nineteenth century. A long cylindrical tube was propped up by two sticks and fastened to the top of the launcher, thereby allowing the rockets to be inserted and lit from the other end. However, the results were sometimes not that impressive as the behaviour of the rockets in flight was less than predictable.

Sample IELTS Matching Features Question

Choose the correct group, A–E, for each item. You may use each option more than once.

Step-by-Step Guide to Answering Matching Features Questions

To answer matching features questions accurately in IELTS Reading, follow this process:

1. Skim the Passage

Start by reading the passage quickly. Focus on:

• Paragraph headings

• First and last sentences

• Repeated names or technical terms

This helps you locate general information fast.

2. Understand the Feature List

Before reading in detail, look at the list of features or categories (e.g., names of people, inventions, countries). Underline key terms or attributes.

3. Scan for Keywords and Synonyms

Look for keywords in the passage that match or are synonymous with the ones in the questions. Use skimming to find the paragraph, then scanning to pinpoint the exact sentence.

For example:

• “Black powder” = “gunpowder”

• “Rockets as war weapons” = “used in war,” “against the British”

4. Check Context Carefully

Just spotting a keyword isn’t enough. Always confirm the match by reading the full sentence. Context will ensure you don’t make incorrect assumptions.

5. Watch Out for Similar Features

Some features may sound alike but refer to different people or groups. Double-check subtle differences between choices.

IELTS Reading Matching Features Practice Tips

Improving your ability to solve matching features questions requires practice and awareness. Use these tips while preparing:

• Highlight names and keywords while reading

• Create a table while practicing to organise matches

• Practice scanning for synonyms, not just exact words

• Avoid overthinking—sometimes the simplest match is correct

• Don’t get distracted by background details

IELTS Matching Features: Example Practice Exercise

Here is a sample matching features question from the topic of rockets:

Choose the correct group, A–E, for each item. You may use each option more than once.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Many candidates lose marks by making the following mistakes:

• Choosing an option based on one word without checking full meaning.

• Misreading similar names or features (e.g., rockets used in war vs rockets used in displays).

• Skipping the passage and guessing from general knowledge.

• Not recognising paraphrased sentences in the passage.

Mastering IELTS Reading matching features questions takes practice, focus, and attention to detail. By learning how to scan effectively, identify paraphrases, and understand context, you can accurately match items to the correct features and boost your score.

Guidance to PW