FCE Reading and Use of English Test 6: picnic maps, bench design and a mountain hostel
FCE Reading and Use of English Test 6 is a free B2 First practice paper: 52 questions in seven parts, timed at 75 minutes, with 2,215 words of text. You read about useful picnic maps, moving a writing task to another room, bench design, a mountain-hostel job, a school pond and slowing familiar activities.
- Free, no sign-up to start
- Layout modelled on the computer-based exam
- Estimated Cambridge English Scale score
What is in FCE Reading and Use of English Test 6
| Part | Task | Questions | What you read | Words |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Multiple-choice cloze | 1–8 | “A map for a better picnic” | 156 |
| 2 | Open cloze | 9–16 | “A change of scene” | 166 |
| 3 | Word formation | 17–24 | “A bench that works for people” | 158 |
| 4 | Key word transformations | 25–30 | Six sentences to rewrite, 2–5 words each | — |
| 5 | Multiple choice | 31–36 | “Looking beyond the view”: an article about someone considering a job at a remote mountain hostel. Niko describes a visit that helped him decide whether to accept an unusual job. | 622 |
| 6 | Gapped text | 37–42 | “Making room for a pond”: an article about a school nature club making a pond. | 541 |
| 7 | Multiple matching | 43–52 | “A little less hurry”: an article in which four people explain what they discovered by slowing down. Clara (answering messages), Yusuf (watching a tree), Elena (reading a novel), Mateo (choosing what to buy). | 572 |
| Total | Within Cambridge’s 2,200–2,500 words (questions not counted) | 2,215 | ||
How the long texts begin
- Part 5: The photograph in the job advertisement showed a wooden building above a wide green valley. I saved it on my phone and looked at it during my usual crowded journey to work.
- Part 6: The school nature club wanted a pond, but the first meeting produced more questions than answers. Some students imagined a large pool in the centre of the grounds; others pictured something small beside the vegetable beds.
Examples (0), shown answered in the test
Part 1
A local group has taken the (0) to map picnic places that are easy for a wide range of people to use.
- purpose
- initiative
- intention
- ambition
Answer: B, initiative
Part 2
A writer (0) had spent the morning struggling with a paragraph decided to work in another room.
Answer: who
Part 3
A team of (0) is developing a more comfortable public bench. DESIGN
Answer: designers
Part 4
The path was longer than we expected. SHORT
The path was not (0) we expected.
Answer: as short as (3 words)
How it is marked
FCE Reading and Use of English marking
Reading (Parts 1, 5–7) is out of 42 and Use of English (Parts 2–4) out of 28; Part 4 gives up to 2 marks per question and spelling must be correct. 24/42 Reading is about 160. Scores are estimates.
More FCE Reading and Use of English tests
FCE Reading and Use of English practice tests · FCE Mock Test 6 · Updated 15 November 2026
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