Sourdough: Bread That Is Alive: Reading Answers & Explanations
IELTS Reading practice test · 14 questionsAcademicmedium
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About this passage
The passage opens: “Sourdough is the oldest form of leavened bread, and also, in a sense, the most alive. What raises it is not the packet of yeast a modern baker buys from a shop but a starter: a soft, living culture of flour and water in which wild yeasts and particular bacteria have made their home.”
- Passage length: about 782 words
- Questions: 14
- Question types: Summary Completion, Matching Information, Short Answer
“Sourdough: Bread That Is Alive” is an original IELTS-style practice passage written by IELTS-Bank. It is not taken from an official IELTS or Cambridge test, so these answers only apply to our version.
Answer key at a glance
Sourdough: Bread That Is Alive answers with explanations
Questions 1–6: Summary Completion
Complete the summary below.
Complete the summary using NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer. Sourdough bread is raised not by shop-bought yeast but by a (1) ______ , a living culture of wild yeasts and (2) ______ . The yeasts give off gas that makes the dough (3) ______ , while the bacteria produce acids that give the bread its (4) ______ taste and help it keep longer. For thousands of years all raised bread was made this way, until industrial baker's (5) ______ was isolated in the nineteenth century. Slow fermentation also breaks down some of the (6) ______ in the flour, which may make the bread easier to digest.
- 1
Sourdough bread is raised not by shop-bought yeast but by a ______ , a living culture of wild yeasts and ______ .(max 2 words)
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Answer: starter
Why: The answer "starter" is found in the first paragraph, where it explains that sourdough is raised by a "starter," a living culture of flour and water with wild yeasts and bacteria, instead of manufactured yeast.
Where to find it · Paragraph A “What raises it is not the packet of yeast a modern baker buys from a shop but a starter: a soft, living culture of flour and water in which wild yeasts and particular bacteria have made their home.”
- 2
Sourdough bread is raised not by shop-bought yeast but by a ______ , a living culture of wild yeasts and ______ .(max 2 words)
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Answer: bacteria (also accepted: lactobacilli / lactic acid bacteria)
Why: The answer "bacteria" comes from the second sentence of paragraph B, which explains that the starter is a partnership between wild yeasts and lactic acid bacteria.
Where to find it · Paragraph A “What raises it is not the packet of yeast a modern baker buys from a shop but a starter: a soft, living culture of flour and water in which wild yeasts and particular bacteria have made their home.”
- 3
The yeasts give off gas that makes the dough ______ , while the bacteria produce acids that give the bread its ______ taste and help it keep longer.(max 2 words)
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Answer: rise
Why: The answer comes from paragraph B, where it explains that the wild yeasts produce carbon dioxide, which inflates bubbles in the dough, causing it to rise.
Where to find it · Paragraph B “The wild yeasts feed on the sugars in the flour and give off carbon dioxide, the gas that inflates thousands of little bubbles and makes the dough rise.”
- 4
The yeasts give off gas that makes the dough ______ , while the bacteria produce acids that give the bread its ______ taste and help it keep longer.(max 2 words)
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Answer: sour
Why: The answer "sour" comes from the first paragraph, where it explains that the acids produced by the bacteria give sourdough its name due to the sour taste they impart to the bread.
Where to find it · Paragraph B “Alongside them live lactic acid bacteria, or lactobacilli, which produce the sour-tasting acids that flavour the bread and, by making the dough acidic, help to keep the finished loaf from going mouldy as quickly as ordinary bread does.”
- 5
For thousands of years all raised bread was made this way, until industrial baker's ______ was isolated in the nineteenth century.(max 2 words)
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Answer: yeast
Why: The answer "yeast" comes from the beginning of section B, where it explains that wild yeasts feed on the sugars in the flour and release carbon dioxide, which causes the dough to rise.
Where to find it · Paragraph B “The wild yeasts feed on the sugars in the flour and give off carbon dioxide, the gas that inflates thousands of little bubbles and makes the dough rise.”
- 6
Slow fermentation also breaks down some of the ______ in the flour, which may make the bread easier to digest.(max 2 words)
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Answer: gluten
Why: The answer "gluten" comes from the first sentence of section D, which explains that during fermentation, bacteria and yeasts break down components of the flour, including a portion of the gluten.
Where to find it · Paragraph D “During the long, slow fermentation, the bacteria and yeasts break down some of the components of the flour that can be hard to handle, including a portion of the gluten and a substance called phytic acid that hinders the body's absorption of minerals.”
Questions 7–11: Matching Information
The passage has five paragraphs, A-E. Which paragraph contains the following information? Write the correct letter, A-E.
- A. Paragraph A
- B. Paragraph B
- C. Paragraph C
- D. Paragraph D
- E. Paragraph E
- 7
a claim that sourdough may be easier to digest
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Answer: Paragraph D
Why: Paragraph D states that many people find sourdough easier to digest due to the breakdown of gluten and phytic acid by bacteria and yeasts during the long fermentation process.
Where to find it · Paragraph D “Partly for this reason, many people report finding sourdough easier to digest than quickly risen bread, and some studies suggest it may raise blood sugar more gently, though the research is still going on.”
- 8
a description of two kinds of microbe working together
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Answer: Paragraph B
Why: Paragraph B describes the collaboration between wild yeasts and lactic acid bacteria, highlighting how they coexist and contribute to the rising and flavoring of sourdough, thus illustrating two kinds of microbes working together.
Where to find it · Paragraph A “Making one from scratch requires nothing but flour, water and patience: left to stand and fed with fresh flour each day, a simple paste will, within a week or two, begin to bubble and turn sour of its own accord, as wild microbes drift in from the flour and the surrounding air and settle down to work.”
- 9
the point at which a faster-acting yeast became available
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Answer: Paragraph C
Why: Paragraph C mentions the nineteenth century as the time when scientists isolated and grew a single fast-acting species of baker's yeast, marking the availability of faster-acting yeast.
Where to find it · Paragraph C “This long reign ended only in the nineteenth century, when scientists learned to isolate and grow a single fast-acting species of baker's yeast.”
- 10
the idea that a starter can be kept alive for a very long time
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Answer: Paragraph E
Why: Paragraph E mentions that starters can be passed down through generations, indicating they can be kept alive for a very long time.
Where to find it · Paragraph E “Fed regularly with fresh flour and water, a starter can be kept alive indefinitely, and some bakeries treasure cultures that have been handed from baker to baker for decades, or even longer.”
- 11
a definition of what makes a bread sourdough
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Answer: Paragraph A
Why: Paragraph A defines sourdough as bread raised by a natural culture of wild yeasts and bacteria, rather than manufactured yeast, which gives it its characteristic sour taste.
Where to find it · Paragraph A “A bread is called sourdough precisely because it is raised by such a natural culture rather than by manufactured yeast.”
Questions 12–14: Short Answer
Answer the questions below using NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the passage for each answer.
Answer the questions below. Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.
- 12
In which ancient country is sourdough thought to have originated?(max 3 words)
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Answer: Egypt (also accepted: ancient Egypt)
Why: The answer is found in paragraph C, which states that the practice of making sourdough is ancient and is usually traced back to Egypt thousands of years ago.
Where to find it · Paragraph C “The practice is ancient, and is usually traced back to Egypt thousands of years ago.”
- 13
What gas do the yeasts produce that makes the dough rise?(max 3 words)
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Answer: carbon dioxide (also accepted: CO2)
Why: The answer comes from section B, which explains that wild yeasts consume sugars in the flour and release carbon dioxide, the gas responsible for inflating bubbles and causing the dough to rise.
Where to find it · Paragraph B “The wild yeasts feed on the sugars in the flour and give off carbon dioxide, the gas that inflates thousands of little bubbles and makes the dough rise.”
- 14
Besides gluten, what substance does slow fermentation break down?(max 3 words)
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Answer: phytic acid (also accepted: phytic)
Why: The answer is found in paragraph D, where it states that during slow fermentation, the bacteria and yeasts break down phytic acid, a substance that can hinder the body's absorption of minerals.
Where to find it · Paragraph D “During the long, slow fermentation, the bacteria and yeasts break down some of the components of the flour that can be hard to handle, including a portion of the gluten and a substance called phytic acid that hinders the body's absorption of minerals.”
Estimated band score for this test
Your raw score out of 14 scaled to the 40-question IELTS Reading (Academic) conversion table. This is the same estimate the practice page shows after you submit. A single passage is a small sample, so treat it as a guide.
| Correct answers | Estimated band |
|---|---|
| 14 / 14 | 9.0 |
| 13 / 14 | 8.5 |
| 12 / 14 | 7.5 |
| 11 / 14 | 7.0 |
| 10 / 14 | 6.5 |
| 8–9 / 14 | 6.0 |
| 7 / 14 | 5.5 |
| 6 / 14 | 5.0 |
| 5 / 14 | 4.5 |
| 4 / 14 | 4.0 |
| 3 / 14 | 3.5 |
| 2 / 14 | 3.0 |
| 1 / 14 | 2.0 |
| 0 / 14 | 0.0 |
Full-test score? Use the IELTS band calculator.
Tips for the question types in this test
Summary Completion
- Read the full summary first and identify which passage section it covers.
- Predict the grammar and meaning required in every blank.
Common trap: Choosing an option only because it repeats a passage word.
Full Summary Completion strategyMatching Information
- Read each statement and identify exactly what kind of information you are looking for — a reason, a result, an example, a definition, a contrast.
- Note that the statements do NOT follow paragraph order, so treat each one as an independent search.
Common trap: Assuming the questions run in order — they do not, which makes linear reading inefficient.
Full Matching Information strategyShort Answer
- Read the instructions and note the exact word limit; going over it means zero marks even if the meaning is right.
- Turn each question into a set of keywords and predict what kind of answer it needs (a person, a date, a place, a noun).
Common trap: Exceeding the word limit (writing four words when only three are allowed).
Full Short Answer strategyPractise “Sourdough: Bread That Is Alive” under exam conditions
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