The Lost City IELTS Reading Answers with Explanation

“The Lost City” is Passage 2 of Cambridge IELTS 12 Academic Reading Test 2. This page gives the answers for Questions 14–26 with a short explanation of why each answer is right, so you can check your work and learn from every mistake. The question types are: Matching Headings, True / False / Not Given, Sentence Completion.

Quick answers: Questions 14–26

Question	Answer
14	iv
15	vi
16	viii
17	v
18	i
19	vii
20	iii
21	TRUE
22	FALSE
23	FALSE
24	NOT GIVEN
25	rubber
26	farmer

Questions 14–20: Matching Headings

Q	Question	Answer	Why
14	Paragraph A	iv	Heading iv best sums up the main idea of this paragraph.
15	Paragraph B	vi	Heading vi best sums up the main idea of this paragraph.
16	Paragraph C	viii	Heading viii best sums up the main idea of this paragraph.
17	Paragraph D	v	Heading v best sums up the main idea of this paragraph.
18	Paragraph E	i	Heading i best sums up the main idea of this paragraph.
19	Paragraph F	vii	Heading vii best sums up the main idea of this paragraph.
20	Paragraph G	iii	Heading iii best sums up the main idea of this paragraph.

Questions 21–24: True / False / Not Given

Q	Question	Answer	Why
21	Bingham went to South America in search of an Inca city.	TRUE	The passage agrees with this statement.
22	Bingham chose a particular route down the Urubamba valley because it was the most common route used by travellers.	FALSE	The passage contradicts this statement.
23	Bingham understood the significance of Machu Picchu as soon as he saw it.	FALSE	The passage contradicts this statement.
24	Bingham returned to Machu Picchu in order to find evidence to support his theory.	NOT GIVEN	The passage gives no clear information to confirm or reject this statement.

Questions 25–26: Sentence Completion

Q	Question	Answer	Why
25	—	rubber	Use exactly this wording from the passage, within the word limit.
26	—	farmer	Use exactly this wording from the passage, within the word limit.

Tips for these question types

• Matching headings: read each paragraph for its main idea, not a single detail, and cross out headings once used.
• True / False / Not Given: TRUE means the passage says the same thing, FALSE means it says the opposite, and NOT GIVEN means it does not say. Never use your own knowledge.
• Completion tasks: check the word limit and the grammar of the gap before you write the answer exactly as it appears in the passage.
• Review every mistake. Find the exact sentence in the passage that proves the answer so you can spot the same trap next time.

FAQ

How many questions does this passage have? The Lost City covers Questions 14–26, which is 13 questions.

Where is this passage from? It is Reading Passage 2 in Cambridge IELTS 12, Academic Test 2.

How should I use these answers? Attempt the passage under timed conditions first, then check your answers here and read the reason for every mistake.

Cambridge IELTS 12 Reading Test 2: all passages
Part 1: The Risks Agriculture Faces in Developing Countries  |  Part 2: The Lost City (you are here)  |  Part 3: The Benefits of Being Bilingual

← Previous: Part 1Next: Part 3 answers →

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