ScoreFluentDiagram label completion shows a diagram with some labels missing. You fill them in using a description in the passage. A common habit is to read the passage first and the diagram second; this guide suggests the other way round. This guide covers what IELTS says about the task, a five-step method, how wrong labels are built, and three practice diagrams.
Official facts. “In this type of question, you have to complete the labels on a diagram.” “The diagram is based on a description given in the text.” A word limit applies and can change between tasks, and you lose the mark for going over it. “The answers may not come in the same order as in the text.” Academic and General Training Reading both list diagram label completion.
Sources: IELTS Academic Reading format and IELTS General Training Reading format. Checked 15 and 16 October 2026.
What is diagram label completion in IELTS Reading?
The diagram can show how something works or how a process runs, and the text describes it. You complete the labels from that description. IELTS tells you the word limit in each task, and it can change from task to task.
A note on our practice items: the diagrams in the ScoreFluent bank are list-choice items with no passage, so they train the first half of the skill, which is reading the diagram. The real task pairs the diagram with a text and has a word limit, so also practise it with IELTS's own sample test questions.
How do you answer diagram label questions?
- Study the diagram before you read. Find the direction of flow (follow the arrows), which boxes are already labelled, and what each blank sits between.
- Predict the type of word. In a process diagram a blank is usually a noun naming a stage or part.
- Find each blank separately. IELTS says the answers may not come in the same order as in the text, so do not work down the passage. Locate a labelled neighbour in the text first, then read the sentence before and after it.
- Copy and count. Use the words as the text has them, and stay within the word limit. Going over loses the mark.
- Check the sequence. Read the finished diagram from the first box to the last. If a stage appears out of order, one label is wrong.
What do wrong labels look like?
Each practice item below has six labels for five blanks, and the one left over belongs to a different process. The reasons are in the key: the water works has no use for a "Desalination Unit" because it takes its water from a river, a brewery makes beer so a "Distillation Column" is not in its route, and a "Cocoa Roaster" is not a stage in processing tea. So the useful question is not "does this word sound technical?" but "does the material in this diagram pass through this stage, and at this point?"
How are diagram label questions marked?
Each correct label is awarded 1 mark: IELTS says "The IELTS Reading test contains 40 questions. Each correct answer is awarded 1 mark." There is no partial credit for a label that is almost right. For raw-mark-to-band figures see the table on the True/False/Not Given guide and IELTS scoring. Source: IELTS scoring in detail, checked 15 and 16 October 2026.
Do the passages differ between IELTS Academic and General Training?
Diagram label completion is shared by both versions, but the passages differ. Academic Reading texts come from “books, journals, magazines, newspapers and online resources”, with 2150–2750 words in total. General Training has three sections of increasing difficulty: everyday texts such as notices, advertisements and timetables; work texts such as job descriptions, contracts and training materials; and one long general-interest text, with 2150–2375 words in total. Sources: the Academic and General Training Reading format pages, checked 15 and 16 October 2026. Not sure which version you need? Start at the IELTS hub.
Practice items from the ScoreFluent bank (not real exam questions)
These are ScoreFluent bank items written to the published format, not real IELTS questions. This page shows each diagram as a text version, because the image is served inside the app. The labels, options and reasons are the bank's own. Try each one before opening the key.
Practice item 1: a water treatment works
Text version of the diagram "Drinking Water Treatment Works". In the app this is an image. Read each row left to right; the end of one row feeds the start of the next.
| River Intake | (1) ........ | Coagulation Tank | (2) ........ |
| Sand Filters | (3) ........ | Clear Water Tank | (4) ........ |
| Water Tower | (5) ........ |
Label the diagram. Choose the correct label, A to F, for each numbered box.
- A. Chlorination
- B. Desalination Unit
- C. Screening
- D. Distribution Mains
- E. Pumping Station
- F. Sedimentation Basin
Show the key and why
- C. Screening. It comes straight after the river intake: bar screens remove branches and debris before any chemicals are added.
- F. Sedimentation Basin. It follows the coagulation tank, where small particles clump together into flocs that settle here before the water reaches the sand filters.
- A. Chlorination. It is the disinfection step after filtering, so that the water is safe before it is stored in the clear water tank.
- E. Pumping Station. It lifts the treated water from the storage tank up to the water tower.
- D. Distribution Mains. It is the pipe network that carries water from the water tower to homes and businesses.
Labels that are not used:
- B. Desalination Unit is not used. It removes salt from seawater, but this plant takes its water from a river and has no step that needs one.
Practice item 2: a brewery
Text version of the diagram "Brewery Process Route". In the app this is an image. Read each row left to right; the end of one row feeds the start of the next.
| Barley Silo | (1) ........ | Grain Mill | (2) ........ |
| Brew Kettle | (3) ........ | Bottling Line | (4) ........ |
| Warehouse | (5) ........ |
Label the diagram. Choose the correct label, A to F, for each numbered box.
- A. Dispatch Bay
- B. Malthouse
- C. Fermenting Tank
- D. Mash Tun
- E. Packing Hall
- F. Distillation Column
Show the key and why
- B. Malthouse. Barley is soaked, allowed to sprout and dried here to make malt, after storage in the silo and before the malt is ground.
- D. Mash Tun. The crushed malt is mixed with hot water here to release sugars, immediately after milling.
- C. Fermenting Tank. The cooled liquid is mixed with yeast here after boiling in the kettle, and the sugars turn to alcohol.
- E. Packing Hall. Filled bottles are put into crates here, after bottling and before storage.
- A. Dispatch Bay. It is the final stage where crates leave the warehouse for pubs and shops.
Labels that are not used:
- F. Distillation Column is not used. A column is used to make spirits, not beer, so no step in this brewing route needs one.
Practice item 3: a tea factory
Text version of the diagram "Tea Processing Factory". In the app this is an image. Read each row left to right; the end of one row feeds the start of the next.
| Leaf Reception | (1) ........ | Rolling Machine | (2) ........ |
| Firing Oven | (3) ........ | Tasting Room | (4) ........ |
| Tea Warehouse | (5) ........ |
Label the diagram. Choose the correct label, A to F, for each numbered box.
- A. Packing Hall
- B. Export Dock
- C. Withering Trough
- D. Sieving Machine
- E. Oxidation Room
- F. Cocoa Roaster
Show the key and why
- C. Withering Trough. Fresh leaves are laid out to lose moisture soon after arrival, before they are rolled.
- E. Oxidation Room. Rolled leaves are left to react with air here after rolling, which darkens them and changes their flavour.
- D. Sieving Machine. Dried tea is shaken through meshes after firing to separate it into different grades.
- A. Packing Hall. Graded tea that has been tasted is put into packets or chests.
- B. Export Dock. It is the last stage where packed tea is loaded for shipment.
Labels that are not used:
- F. Cocoa Roaster is not used. A roaster is used for cocoa beans, which is not a stage in the processing of tea leaves.
Which mistakes cost the most marks?
- Reading the whole passage before looking at the diagram. You read without a purpose and re-read later.
- Assuming text order. The first blank is not necessarily answered first in the text.
- Choosing a label that sounds right. A real part of a different process is still wrong.
- Ignoring the arrows. The direction of flow tells you what comes before and after each blank.
Reading practice on ScoreFluent is free with a daily limit (see pricing), and new accounts also get 40 free credits that never expire. Practise this task free → More Reading guides: sentence and summary completion, short-answer questions and matching headings. The Listening version of this skill is map and plan labelling. The section guide is IELTS Reading and the exam overview is the IELTS hub.
Sources
The official sources are linked above and were checked on 15 and 16 October 2026. ScoreFluent is an independent practice platform and is not affiliated with, endorsed by or connected to IELTS, IDP, the British Council or Cambridge University Press & Assessment. The practice items are ScoreFluent bank items, not real exam questions, and any score we show is a practice estimate, not an official result.
Questions students ask
What is diagram label completion in IELTS Reading?
It is a question type where you complete the labels on a diagram. IELTS says the diagram is based on a description given in the text.
Do diagram label answers follow the order of the text?
Not necessarily. IELTS says the answers may not come in the same order as in the text, so find each blank separately.
Is there a word limit in IELTS diagram label completion?
Yes. IELTS says the number of words or numbers you may use can change, so read the instruction. You lose the mark for going over the limit.
Is diagram label completion in IELTS General Training Reading?
Yes. IELTS lists 'Diagram label completion' among the eight question types on the General Training Reading format page, and among the eleven on the Academic page.
How many diagram label questions are there in IELTS Reading?
IELTS does not fix a number. The General Training format page lists the number of questions for each type as 'Variable'.
What should I do first in a diagram label question?
Study the diagram: find the arrows, the labelled boxes and what each blank sits between. Then predict the type of word before you search the passage.
How are diagram label questions marked?
Each correct label is awarded 1 mark. There is no partial credit for an almost-right label, and going over the word limit loses the mark.
Why are some labels in the ScoreFluent practice items never used?
They are distractors. In these items each unused label belongs to a different process, such as a desalination unit in a river-fed water works.
Why does this page show the diagrams as text?
The practice diagrams are images served inside the ScoreFluent app. This page shows the same boxes, arrows and numbered blanks as a text table, using the bank's own labels.
Do ScoreFluent diagram items have a passage?
No. The bank items on this page are list-choice items with no passage, so they train reading the diagram. The real IELTS task pairs a diagram with a text, so practise that with IELTS's official samples too.