Reading through 2027
Practise the 2025–2027 Italian 0535 Reading format, including matching and short written answers.
Exam scope and assessment notes
All Italian passages, prompts, model answers, listening scripts and tasks are original StudyForA material, not Cambridge assessment content. Cambridge's separate 2028 vocabulary spreadsheet is linked through its subject page but has not been reconciled word by word. Grammar groups need item-by-item specialist checking, and an Italian-language teacher should review the original Italian before publication is described as complete. Browser speech synthesis is not Cambridge audio and cannot guarantee a regional accent, natural pace or pronunciation. Speaking is rehearsal and self-review, not a centre assessment or examiner mark; writing answers are self-checked, not Cambridge-marked. No complete timed specimen or 130-hour course is included. Confirm your exam year, entry option and centre availability with Cambridge and your school. Use the 2025–2027 or 2028–2030 paper lesson that matches your exam year. Cambridge lists 7164 as available in a limited number of administrative zones; for June, the published notice names zone 3 and centres in Oman and UAE. Confirm the applicable series and entry with your centre.
Before you begin
Work on paper. Try each question before revealing help, and explain why your method works.
Quick readiness check
A notice says «Il negozio è chiuso il lunedì». What is supported?
What you will learn
- Find main ideas and specific details in familiar texts.
- Match people to descriptions using all stated requirements.
- Answer short-response questions in Italian with text evidence.
- Infer occasional unknown words without changing the passage's meaning.
Read according to the older task format
For exams in 2025–2027, Reading is one hour and 45 marks and includes multiple-choice, matching and short answers. Some longer-text questions require a response in Italian.
Scan for names, time, negation, contrast and place. For matching, list each person's need, then reject descriptions that fail one of the conditions.
Keep short answers grounded
Answer the question asked with the smallest complete Italian phrase. Copying a long sentence can introduce irrelevant or conflicting details.
Use nearby words and connectors to infer an unknown word. Distinguish what is stated from what you can reasonably infer.
Sources for this lesson
- Cambridge IGCSE (9–1) Italian 7164 subject page
- Cambridge IGCSE (9–1) Italian 7164 syllabus for exams in 2025–2027
- Cambridge IGCSE (9–1) Italian 7164 syllabus update for 2025–2027
- Cambridge IGCSE (9–1) Italian 7164 syllabus for exams in 2028–2030
- Cambridge IGCSE (9–1) Italian 7164 2028 vocabulary list
Pause and explain
A learner needs a morning group and one option starts at 10:00. What can you conclude?
Worked example
Read: «Il corso di fotografia si tiene il mercoledì. A Luca piacciono i ritratti, ma non può venire nel pomeriggio. Il gruppo di Sara comincia alle dieci.» Which group fits Luca's time restriction, and what remains unknown?
Show the worked solution
- Find Luca's preference and time restriction.
- Read the meeting time for Sara's group.
- Check whether the text states that group's activity.
Answer Sara's group meets at 10:00, which fits Luca's time restriction. The notice does not say whether it studies portraits, so his preference is not confirmed.
From guided practice to a new situation
Write your answer and reasoning first. Use a hint only if you are stuck. The model solution is for self-checking; your written work is not automatically marked.
Use the photography-club example to state Luca's restriction, the matching group's time and one unknown detail.
Give me a hint
Separate the need, the evidence and the missing information.
Compare my reasoning
- Underline Luca's time restriction.
- Find Sara's group's time.
- Check whether the passage gives its topic.
Luca cannot attend in the afternoon. Sara's group starts at 10:00. The passage does not say whether that group practises portraits.
Look for these in your work
- Identifies the restriction
- Uses the stated time
- Flags missing evidence
Read: «Si affitta una stanza vicino all'università. Ci sono una scrivania e il wifi, ma non sono ammessi animali. Il prezzo non comprende l'elettricità.» Give two benefits and two restrictions.
Give me a hint
Watch «ma» and «non comprende».
Compare my reasoning
- Find the location and included items.
- Find the rule about animals.
- Separate rent from electricity cost.
Benefits: it is near the university and includes a desk and wifi. Restrictions/costs: pets are not allowed and electricity is excluded. The total monthly cost is not stated.
Look for these in your work
- Finds two benefits
- Finds both restrictions
- Does not invent the total cost
A friend needs an outdoor activity, after 15:00, costing under €10. Compare two original notices and decide which, if any, fits.
Give me a hint
Check all three conditions for each option.
Compare my reasoning
- List the three requirements.
- Compare time, setting and price.
- Choose an option only if the evidence supports every condition.
A complete answer cites the suitable activity's time, outdoor location and price. If a notice omits one required detail, say that the fit cannot be confirmed.
Look for these in your work
- Checks every condition
- Cites the text
- Acknowledges missing information
Common mistakes
- Matching a repeated word instead of all requirements
- Answering in English when asked for Italian
- Adding a detail the text does not give
What can you explain now?
What should a short reading answer include?
Compare with the explanation
The smallest complete response supported by the text
It should answer the exact question without adding unsupported information.
After trying it yourself, choose your next review. This is your self-assessment.
Your review choice appears on Today. Sign in to sync it across devices.
Make it stick
Before leaving reading through 2027, explain one idea from memory, answer the checkpoint and name one point to practise again.
If you needed the solution, close it and solve the problem again from a blank page. A correct answer is stronger when you can explain the reason for each step.