OET Listening Keywords & Synonyms | Hidden Words for Exam Success

🎧 OET Listening Part B Keywords & Synonyms (Hidden Words)

When preparing for OET Listening Part B, one of the most powerful strategies is learning to recognize keywords, synonyms, and hidden words. Examiners rarely repeat the audio word-for-word. Instead, they test your ability to identify the purpose, detail, opinion, function, or inference through paraphrasing.

This guide covers the most important OET keywords and synonyms with examples.

1. Main Purpose / Gist

Core words in audio → how examiners might disguise them:

• overall → in general, broadly, on the whole, as a rule
• main point → central idea, key issue, primary focus, core message
• essentially → fundamentally, basically, in essence, at heart
• the purpose → the aim, the goal, the intention, the objective
• reason → cause, rationale, explanation, justification

2. Detail / Fact

When the question wants a precise instruction or fact:

• exactly → precisely, accurately, correctly, with certainty
• specifically → particularly, in detail, explicitly, exactly
• required → necessary, essential, mandatory, compulsory
• according to → as per, under, in line with, consistent with
• must → have to, need to, should, obliged to

3. Attitude / Opinion

When the audio reflects feelings, preferences, or viewpoints:

• I believe → I think, in my view, I consider, I suppose
• it seems → it appears, it looks as if, apparently, evidently
• fortunately → luckily, thankfully, happily, by good chance
• unfortunately → regrettably, sadly, disappointingly, unluckily
• concerned → worried, uneasy, troubled, anxious

4. Function / Intention

When the speaker is doing something (advising, warning, reminding, etc.):

• make sure → ensure, confirm, double-check, guarantee
• remember to → don’t forget, keep in mind, recall, be aware
• clarify → explain, elaborate, expand, outline
• avoid → prevent, reduce risk, steer clear of, keep away
• you should → you ought to, it’s advisable, I suggest, I recommend

5. Inference / Next Step

When you need to read between the lines:

• therefore → so, hence, that’s why, consequently
• likely → probable, expected, anticipated, possible
• as a result → because of this, due to this, arising from this, the outcome
• the next step → the following stage, the subsequent action, what happens next, moving forward
• expected → predicted, scheduled, projected, supposed to

🚀 Final OET Listening Part B Tip

Always listen for the keyword in the audio, then look for its synonym in the answer options. This is the main way examiners check if you can follow paraphrased professional conversations.

By mastering these OET Listening Part B keywords and synonyms, you will increase both speed and accuracy in the exam.