What do Plan / Map Labelling questions test?
This type tests comprehension of direction and position vocabulary: left and right, north and south, opposite, adjacent, beyond, alongside, in the corner, at the junction. It also tests whether you can keep your orientation as the description moves through the space, since "left" depends on the direction of travel.
How do you answer Plan / Map Labelling questions?
- 1Orient yourself on the plan before reading: find the entrance or starting point, any compass rose, and every location that is already labelled.
- 2Read the description and move through the space exactly as the text does, tracing the route on the plan with your finger or cursor.
- 3Anchor each answer to a fixed labelled feature ("opposite the library", "north of the car park") rather than judging positions by eye.
- 4Re-check perspective at every turn: after "turn right", the left side of the page may now be the speaker’s right.
- 5Confirm each label by reading one sentence past the answer — descriptions often add a second clue that verifies or corrects your placement.
What are the common traps to avoid?
- Losing orientation after a change of direction, so every subsequent left/right is reversed.
- Confusing similar prepositions: "beside", "beyond" and "behind" put a feature in three different places.
- Placing an answer at the first plausible spot instead of following the full description to its endpoint.
- Ignoring the compass when the description uses north/south rather than left/right.
How long should you spend on them?
Allow around a minute per label, slightly more for the first while you orient. The description normally covers the locations in a single continuous route, so once you are correctly oriented the later labels come faster — which makes early accuracy worth the extra seconds.