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CELPIP Listening Part 5: Listening to a Discussion

CELPIP Listening Part 5 Practice Test: Workplace Dress Code Review

By Iris

A free Listening Part 5 practice test in the CELPIP format: 8 questions with the answer key. Play each recording once, as in the real test, answer, then check your answers at the bottom of the page. The transcript is under each recording.

Questions
8
Format
1 video, questions after it
Question style
Multiple choice, 4 options
Play like the real test
Each recording plays once, then each question with 30 seconds to answer (Parts 4–6: one timer for the part). No pausing to replay, like test day.

  1. What are Theadora, Aurelio, and Iolana deciding?

  2. What does Theadora initially favor here?

  3. Why does Aurelio resist Theadora's idea?

  4. What issue does Iolana emphasize most?

  5. What practical obstacle complicates the decision?

  6. What compromise do they finally accept?

  7. How does Theadora seem by the end?

  8. What is Theadora asked to prepare?

Transcript (read it after you answer)

woman1: Honestly, Aurelio, this dress code review feels overdue. Casual clothing would make summer afternoons actually bearable.

man1: Comfort matters, Theadora, but I'd argue formal dress quietly reinforces how seriously we take our work and our clients.

woman2: I'd actually suggest casual Fridays only, since blanket relaxation often slides into weekend wear within a month.

woman1: Iolana, that's a tidy compromise, although it still leaves four oppressive days a week of layered fabric in July.

woman2: Granted, summer is uncomfortable, yet seasonal exceptions strike me as a cleaner fix than permanent casual everything.

man1: It's the client perception piece that concerns me. We host external visitors twice weekly, and first impressions linger.

woman1: Clients increasingly arrive in jeans themselves, Aurelio. Matching a stiffer standard than the people we serve feels almost backward.

man1: There's something to that, although industries vary enormously. Our older clients absolutely notice the difference and judge accordingly.

woman2: Judgment is real, but the employees who wear formal clothing because they want to should be free to continue, regardless of policy.

man1: Fair, yet a relaxed code without minimum standards eventually produces ambiguity that nobody enjoys policing.

woman1: Ambiguity already exists, Aurelio. Half the team interprets business casual differently anyway.

woman2: Which is precisely why specific guidance matters more than the overall direction. "Casual" without examples means nothing.

man1: I could accept casual Fridays, provided we publish concrete examples and reinforce them visually with photos.

woman1: Casual Fridays alone won't satisfy me, although it's better than the current code, so I'll accept it temporarily.

woman2: Temporary acceptance can quietly become permanent, which is fine if everyone's productivity holds up over the next quarter.

man1: Fine, you have me convinced. Theadora, would you draft examples for the staff handbook before our policy meeting?

0 of 8 answered

This is Part 5 of CELPIP Listening Practice Test 37. Take all 6 parts (38 questions) for a score and an estimated CLB.

Answer key

Show all 8 answers
  1. What are Theadora, Aurelio, and Iolana deciding? A. Revising workplace dress policy
  2. What does Theadora initially favor here? A. Daily casualwear for summer comfort
  3. Why does Aurelio resist Theadora's idea? A. Formal dress signals serious work
  4. What issue does Iolana emphasize most? C. Concrete examples over broad guidance
  5. What practical obstacle complicates the decision? A. Policing vague casual-dress rules
  6. What compromise do they finally accept? B. Trial Fridays using handbook examples
  7. How does Theadora seem by the end? B. Reluctantly accepting Fridays as improvement
  8. What is Theadora asked to prepare? D. Illustrative cases for the policy guide

More Part 5 sample tests

All 46 Part 5 sample tests · Part 5 format, tips and FAQs · Full-length Listening practice tests · Free CELPIP practice test

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