Listening
Follow common expressions in short, clear conversations, simple explanations and announcements.
Try this
Listen to a change of meeting plans and identify the new place and time.
CEFR A2 · Pre-intermediate
Handle familiar situations.
Exchange straightforward information, manage routine transactions and describe your background and immediate surroundings in simple language.
See A2 exam score mappings01 / What you can do
Your four skills at A2
Plain-English summaries of the official guidance. The “Try this” tasks are original practice ideas, not scored placement tests.
Reading
Find specific information in everyday texts such as invitations, notices, emails and simple instructions.
Try this
Compare two short accommodation adverts and choose one that meets a stated need.
Speaking
Exchange routine information and give a simple description. Brief social conversations are possible, though keeping them going may need support.
Try this
Arrange a weekend activity, ask about the price and describe what you did last weekend.
Writing
Write short notes, personal messages and simple emails with enough information for everyday purposes.
Try this
Write an invitation with the time and place, then reply to a friend's question.
Descriptor basis: Council of Europe and British Council A2. Speaking includes both conversation and presenting your own ideas.
02 / What to work on
Topics, grammar & control
Study suggestions, not an official CEFR syllabus.
Topics to practise
- Shopping, food, transport and accommodation
- Work routines, study and local services
- Past activities, personal experiences and simple plans
- Comparing places, people and everyday choices
How accurate should you be?
Some simple forms work reliably; recurring basic errors can remain while the message is understandable.
Grammar in use
Suggested practice drawn from British Council lesson groups; the split between levels is an editorial study sequence.
- Past simple and past continuous
I was cooking when you called.
- Comparative adjectives
This route is cheaper than the other one.
- Countable nouns and quantifiers
How much water do we need? We have a few bottles.
- Purpose and verb patterns
I went to the shop to buy a notebook. I enjoy reading.
03 / Planning your learning
How much study?
180–200 guided hours
Cambridge's approximate cumulative estimate from a complete beginner to A2. It includes lessons and supervised study; your pace can differ.
Use a conversation and a writing sample alongside listening and reading results to choose your next learning goal.
04 / Official exam alignments
What scores relate to A2?
These are provider mappings, not predicted results. An overall score can hide differences between skills. Check the test version and the receiving institution's requirements.
No separate A2 overall-band mapping
The official IELTS comparison chart does not assign a distinct overall band to A2.
2–2.5
For tests from 21 January 2026. ETS's comparison with 0–120 overall scores: 24–43.
30–42
Pearson's published CEFR band for PTE Academic. Use the guide for your specific PTE product.
- Listening
- 110+
- Reading
- 115+
- Speaking
- 90+
- Writing
- 70+
Section minimums, not total-score conversions. L/R: 5–495 each; S/W: 0–200 each.
10–55 (A1–A2 together)
The official guide groups A1 and A2 together; it does not give separate cutoffs.
Read each test's mapping independently. Sharing a CEFR label does not make two exam scores interchangeable.
05 / Read the original guidance
Primary sources
CEFR framework: Council of Europe. Learning guidance: British Council and Cambridge English. Score mappings: the organisations that own the tests.
- Council of Europe: CEFR Companion volume (2020)
- Council of Europe: self-assessment grid
- British Council: A2 level overview
- British Council: A1-A2 grammar lessons
- British Council: A2 listening
- British Council: A2 reading
- British Council: A2 writing
- Cambridge English: guided learning hours
- IELTS: official CEFR comparison and boundary guidance
- ETS: TOEFL iBT 2026 score scale and CEFR
- Pearson: PTE Academic scores and CEFR
- ETS: TOEIC section-by-section CEFR mapping (PDF)
- Duolingo: Scoring Guide for Teachers (2026), pp. 5–6
Checked 24 September 2026. These summaries and original practice examples are written for Sandy Isadora's learning guide. Consult the linked official descriptors and current score policies for formal assessment.