Updated in June 2026

DELE A1 Reading Comprehension — The 4 Tasks Explained

The DELE A1 reading comprehension test lasts 45 minutes, has 4 tasks, and a total of 25 items. The texts you will find are very short and always related to everyday situations: signs, forms, brief notes, and simple announcements.

If you are starting from scratch with Spanish, this is probably the test where you can earn the most points with the least effort. You only need to recognize key words and understand the general idea of very simple texts.

Test Structure

Task 1: Signs and Signals

You will see signs like those you find on the street, in stores, or in public buildings. Your job is to match each sign with its correct meaning.

Examples of texts:

• "Hours: Monday to Friday, 9:00 to 14:00"
• "Closed for holidays"
• "No smoking allowed"
• "Free entry for children under 12 years old"

Strategy: Look for the key word in each sign. You do not need to understand all the words, just the main idea. If you see "closed," you know that something is not open. If you see "free," something does not cost money.

Task 2: Notes and Short Messages

Here you read brief messages like notes between friends, SMS, or very short emails. Each text has 2-3 sentences at most.

The type of content you will find:

• A note left by someone on the fridge
• A message to meet with a friend
• An email about a schedule or an address

Strategy: Read the question first and then look for the answer in the text. The questions are usually "What does María want?" or "What time is the appointment?". The answer is almost always directly in the text.

Task 3: Simple Informative Texts

A slightly longer (but still short) text about an everyday topic. It can be the description of a person, a place, or an activity. The vocabulary is basic: family, house, work, food.

Strategy: Read the entire text quickly once to understand what it is about. Then read each question and go back to the text to find the answer. In A1, the answers use almost the same words as the original text.

Task 4: Completing a Text

You are given a text with gaps and you must choose the correct word for each one. The options are usually articles (el/la/los/las), prepositions (en, de, a), or very basic present tense verbs.

Strategy: Read the complete sentence before choosing. Pay attention to the gender (masculine/feminine) of the word that comes after the gap. If it says "__ house", the answer is "la" because house is feminine.

Vocabulary You Should Know

The texts in the A1 reading test use vocabulary from these fields:

• Numbers and prices
• Days of the week and months
• Basic colors
• Family (mother, father, brother, son)
• Parts of the house (kitchen, bathroom, bedroom)
• Basic food (bread, water, fruit, meat)
• Classroom objects (book, pen, table)

Tips for the 45 Minutes

• Do not spend more than 10 minutes on each task. Save the last 5 minutes to review.
• If you do not understand a question, move on to the next one and come back later.
• Never leave an answer blank. If in doubt, choose the most logical option.
• Underline the key words in each question before looking for the answer.

How to Practice at Home

Start by reading real texts in Spanish that are very simple: restaurant menus, transport schedules, store signs. Try to understand only the main information without translating each word.

The official exam models from Instituto Cervantes are your best resource. They have exactly the same format as the real exam. Practice with a timer to get used to the 45-minute pace.