Anglia Preliminary Level Exam A1 CEFR
What does Preliminary test?
Preliminary is the first of the levels to divide the language tested into separate skills: reading (including use of English), writing, listening, and speaking. The A1 speaking exam is optional. It is also the first of the steps in the 10-step system to reach a Common European Framework of Reference level. It is an A1 level exam. This A1 level exam tests the following:
- an understanding of about 800 words (including the 400 from previous levels)
- an understanding and use of the past simple, regular and irregular verbs
- adjectives and modifiers, for descriptive and comparative purposes
- possession – expressions of ownership
- countable and uncountable things, quantifiers both positive and negative
- instructions and commands
What does the candidate have to do in the Preliminary exam?
- read short passages
- multiple choice questions
- fill in gaps
- answer questions
- write questions
- write sentences
- answer true/false questions
Performance Indicators
The candidate
- has a basic active vocabulary of about 800 words
- can communicate present and past events, actions in progress, completed actions and life experiences
- can use conjunctions to order events
- can communicate where things are and when things happen
- can express opposites, comparisons and ownership
- can ask questions, answer questions, and write full sentences
An alternative version is available for adults learning at this level. The exam consists of the same performance indicators, but has been adapted for use by more adult learners. The word list has been slightly revised. For practice material, please click here. (Link to Adult Learner Practice Material)
Grammar and Structures List
Grammar and Structures | What are they used for? | Some examples |
VERBS | ||
Past Simple including common irregular past forms as well as regular forms, interrogative and negative | Talking about past events | We watched a football match last night. He drove to the hotel. Did John drink the juice? I didn't speak to her. |
ADJECTIVES | ||
Basic adjectives | For descriptive purposes, including expressing opposites | The film was very funny. This is a wonderful story. |
Comparatives and superlatives (including better and best) | Talking about comparisons between people and things | My mother is older/more beautiful than my teacher. John isn't as tall as Jane. She is the tallest girl in the class. The book was better than the film. |
POSSESSIVES | ||
the possessive form | Expressing ownership | That bag is Jane's. |
mine, yours, his, hers, its, ours, theirs | Talking about ownership, who things belong to | My bike is newer than yours. That book is mine. |
QUANTIFIERS | ||
much - many - a lot - a lot of | Talking about amounts of things which can or cannot be counted | How much money have you got? I've got a lot of it! It rains a lot in England. How many brothers has she got? |
some - any | Talking about things which can or cannot be counted, in the positive and negative | There is some bread. There isn't any butter. |
PREPOSITIONS + ADVERBS | ||
by, with, next to, above, below, up, down, out, off, on, | Describing location and position | The children are standing next to the clock. They ran up the stairs. |
ago, never, for, before, after | Talking about when things happened | I went to Paris six years ago. He lived there for 10 years. |
Wordlist:
New words for this level are in bold
SET OF LEXICAL ITEMS | |
NOUNS | |
Clothes | dress, shirt, T-shirt, trousers, skirt, boots, socks, shoes, trainers, hat, watch, clothes, jeans, jacket, tie, coat, shorts, scarf, swimming costume, swimming shorts, glasses, suit, pyjamas, raincoat, jewellery, necklace, ring, bracelet, earrings |
Food, meals and drink | food, cake, ice cream, chocolate, pizza, egg, biscuits, hamburger, hot-dog, omelette, steak, fish, salad, breakfast, lunch, dinner, milk, juice, party, bread, tea, coffee, water, lemonade, chicken, sandwich, sugar, ketchup, chips, cheese, sweets, butter, crisps, cola, pancake, spaghetti, soup, popcorn, pasta, rice, also - a packet of, a can of, a bottle of |
Birds | bird, penguin, parrot, duck, hen, chicken, peacock, flamingo, owl, seagull |
Jobs | teacher, job, doctor, farmer, secretary, businessman/woman, policeman/woman, shop assistant, in the army, student, dentist, vet, fireman/fighter, postman, artist, nurse, professor, pilot, clown, (football) player, manager, waiter/waitress, chef, President, thief, zoo keeper, train/taxi driver, fisherman, actor |
School | pen, pencil, rubber, ruler, book, desk, computer, classroom, bag, blackboard, homework, work, test, exam, student, lesson, letters, words, sentence, question, answer, story, dictionary, subject, class, spelling, head teacher |
Transport | bus, bicycle, car, train, aeroplane, helicopter, boat, taxi, bike, motor bicycle, motorbike, tractor, lorry (Brit), truck (Amer), skateboard |
Animals | animal, cat, dog, monkey, lion, bear, elephant, crocodile, snake, tiger, zebra, rabbit, mouse, fox, frog, spider, hippo, giraffe, horse, sheep, cow, pet, kitten, puppy, donkey, camel, butterfly, fly, goat, pig, dinosaur |
Household | house, chair, table, window, door, television, bed, bath, clock, picture, vase, photo, radio, mat, floor, cupboard, video, mirror, sofa, armchair, shower, wardrobe, carpet, rug, dressing table, plant, shelf, washing machine, towel, chimney, roof, wall, floor, curtains, stairs, balcony, also - upstairs, downstairs (adj/adv) |
Kitchen | glass, plate, bowl, cup, knife, fork, spoon, saucepan, frying pan, mug, saucer, fridge, dish, cooker, oven, dish washer |
Vegetables | vegetable, potato, tomato, carrot, cabbage, onion, spinach, pea, bean |
Fruit | apple, banana, orange, lemon, pear, peach, cherry, strawberry, melon, pineapple, apricot, grape, coconut |
Fish | fish, dolphin, octopus, shark, whale, starfish, goldfish, jellyfish |
Garden | garden, flower, tree, grass, lawn, plant, rose, tulip, leaf, ground |
Days of the week | day, week, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, birthday, weekend |
Months of the year | month, year, January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December |
Sport | sport, football, tennis, ball, swimming, basketball, volleyball, baseball, fishing, football match, tennis racket, running, skiing, snow boarding, sailing, cricket, golf, (ice)hockey, (ice)skating, goal, team, competition, club, race |
Places | school, house, park, garden, home, shop, kitchen, bedroom, bathroom, living room, zoo, farm, supermarket, office, cinema, cafe, restaurant, car park, flat, swimming pool, town centre, beach, sea, mountains, town, city, village, fields, country (e.g. England etc.), countryside, theatre, hotel, station, circus, lake, river, sports centre, island, factory, campsite, hill, pizzeria, shopping centre, fair, airport, prison, castle, tent, jungle, library, market, playground, |
Musical Instruments | guitar, piano, drum, flute, violin, saxophone |
Toys | ball, kite, castle, soldiers, paint, paintbrush, puppet, drum, doll, teddy, robot, balloon, game, puzzle |
Weather | sun, rain, wind, snow, hot, cold, sunny, rainy, windy, snowy, fog, foggy, cloud, cloudy, hurricane, sky, rainbow, umbrella, storm |
Parts of the body | hair, eyes, mouth, nose, face, arms, legs, foot/feet, head, hands, finger, knee, toe, tooth/teeth, stomach, shoulder, beard, moustache, also - headache, stomach ache, earache, toothache |
Seasons | spring, summer, autumn, winter |
Directions | north, south, east, west, left, right |
Cardinal numbers | one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, eighteen, nineteen, twenty, twenty-one to sixty, sixty-one to one hundred |
Time expressions | four fifteen, [a] quarter past/to four, half past four, ten past four, four ten, ten to four, etc. morning, evening, today, night, day, yesterday, tomorrow, afternoon, tonight, last night, last week, next Monday etc |
Family members and people | mother, father, brother, sister, baby, girl, boy, man, woman, children, family, child, aunt, uncle, cousin, grandmother, grandfather, Mum, Dad, friend, husband, wife, sone, daughter, lady, neighbour, boss |
Shapes | shape, square, circle, triangle, rectangle |
Miscellaneous | film, newspaper, magazine, star, moon, thing, holiday, ticket, camera, fun, card/postcard/letter, swing, slide, box, adventure, snowman, fairy, sand, sandcastle, shell, pocket, purse, handbag, ghost, trip, present/gift, key, hobby, programme, accident, comic, invitation, decorations, tunnel, blanket, email, text, top, bottom |
Exclamations | Ow! Wow! |
ADJECTIVES | |
Size | tall, short, big, small, long, little, large, fat, thin, thick |
Feelings | happy, sad, favourite, best, angry, tired, sick/ill, bored, scared/frightened, excited, lonely, thirsty, hungry |
Colours | colour, black, blue, green, yellow, white, orange, red, grey, brown, pink, purple |
Age | old, young, new |
Other | clever, nice, good, friendly, exciting, interesting, great, wonderful, brilliant, terrible, funny, lucky, scary, warm, comfortable, kind, naughty, high, low, rich, poor, hard, soft, wet, dry, closed, open, late, early, fast, quick, slow, wrong,right, heavy, light, dark, dirty, clean, expensive, cheap, beautiful, ugly, |
Modifiers | very, really, quite |
VERBS | am/are/is, cook, draw, drink, eat, go, have, has, like, listen, play, read, sit, stand, watch, wear, write, buy, can, clean, do, drive, get up, have/has got, live, look, make, ride, run, sleep, start, swim, talk, tell, understand, walk, want, wash, work, write, answer, arrive, begin, blow, borrow, break, build, call, carry, catch, chase, choose, close, climb, come, cost, dance, deliver, draw, drink, drop, end, enjoy, escape, fall, fail, feel, find, finish, fly, frighten, give, hate, help, hide, hold, hurt, invite, jump, keep, kick, laugh, leave, lose, love, meet, move, open, paint, park, pass, pay, pick, practise, push, put, sail, scream, see, sell, send, share, shine, show, shout, sing, speak, spend, stay, steal, stop, sweep, take, teach, throw, travel, try, visit, wear, win, |
PREPOSITIONS | in, under, behind, on, near, in front of, at, with, to, above, below, up, down, out, off, |
ADVERBS | today, now, at the moment, never, always, sometimes, often, usually, every day, every week, together |
Preliminary Level Exam Past Papers (for students)
Link to A1 English test practice papers (exam papers, audio file and marking keys)
Link to Preliminary level A1 Speaking exam test
Preliminary Level Exam Past Papers (for teachers)
Link to past papers for teachers (exam papers, audio file and answer keys)