Article

What 'the article' is: An article is a media text (topic 2.3): a piece written for a magazine, newspaper or website that informs and entertains a general reader.

Unlike a letter or an email, an article has no greeting and no sign-off — it does not write to one named person. Instead it opens with a catchy headline and a hook, develops its points, and ends with a rounded conclusion.

The words below are the vocabulary you need to recognise and build an article. Treat the list as a glossary: learn each term with its meaning, then reuse it in the reading and writing sections.

an article

a written piece for a magazine, newspaper or website that informs and entertains a general reader

a headline

the short, catchy title at the top of an article

a hook (opening line)

the first sentence that grabs the reader's attention — often a question or a surprising fact

a subheading

a small heading that breaks the article into sections

the body

the main part of the article, where the points are developed

a conclusion

the closing part that rounds off the topic

register

how formal or informal the language is, chosen to suit the reader

semi-formal (register)

informative but lively — the usual register of a magazine article for a general reader

the general reader / readership

the wide, unnamed audience an article is written for

to inform

to tell the reader facts about a topic

to engage the reader

to hold the reader's interest and keep them reading

a connector

a linking word that joins ideas (however, moreover, in short)

to round off (a topic)

to finish by neatly tying the topic together

Why this matters: Knowing the conventions of an article — headline, hook, body, conclusion, no sign-off — is exactly what earns Criterion C (Conceptual understanding) in Paper 1, and it helps you recognise an article in a Paper 2 reading text.

Spot an article by its shape: Examiners reward writing that matches the text type. An article is built from four parts — headline → hook → body → conclusion — and uses a semi-formal register: informative but lively, written for a general reader, never to one named person.

Register check: If your draft begins with a greeting or ends with a sign-off, it has slipped into a letter or email — fix it. An article speaks to everyone, so use "we", "many people" or "young people today", not "you, dear reader" by name.

Read like Paper 2: Here is a short magazine article — the kind of media text Paper 2 (Reading) gives you. Read it once for the general idea; don't worry about every word. Then we'll work through one exam question together.

Magazine article: Why teenagers are reading again

We are always told that young people only stare at screens. But few people know that, in many towns, the libraries are busier than ever. So what is going on?

The answer, surprisingly, is the very screens we worry about. On social media, thousands of readers post short videos about the books they love, and a single recommendation can turn an unknown title into a bestseller overnight. Teenagers who would never pick up a newspaper now swap stories online every day.

In short, reading is no longer seen as something boring and old-fashioned. For this generation, it has become a fun way to share what they think — and that can only be good news.

to stare at

to look at something fixedly for a long time

a bestseller

a book that sells in very large numbers

overnight

very suddenly, in a very short time

old-fashioned

no longer modern; from an earlier time

to swap

to exchange one thing for another

Reading technique: For an "according to the text" question, find the exact line that proves your answer — don't rely on memory or general knowledge.

The task: Your school magazine is running a feature on healthy habits. Write an article for the magazine about the benefits of playing team sport.

Use a semi-formal, lively register for a general reader — a headline and a hook, developed points, and a rounded conclusion. No greeting, no sign-off. Write 250–400 words.

Why it scores: This answer hits all three Paper 1 criteria — here's what earns each one:

How listening is tested: Paper 2 also tests listening: you hear short clips, each played twice, and you never see the words. Read the questions first, listen for the key idea, then answer.

Here we'll use a transcript so you can practise the technique on the page. The clip is a radio reporter introducing a magazine feature — read the questions, then find the answer in the speaker's words.

Transcript — a radio feature: Hello, and welcome to The Weekly. In today's magazine feature, our reporter Sara looks at why so many teenagers are reading again. Surprisingly, she says, the reason is social media: short book videos turn unknown titles into bestsellers almost overnight. The piece ends with a clear message — reading is no longer boring; for young people, it has become a fun way to share what they think.

Listening technique: Read the questions before the clip plays. Each question usually points to one short part of the recording — listen for the words around it, not the whole thing.