Looking at a world map today, it is easy to view the division of the continents as a permanent fixture of nature. However, the reading passage Continents Collide takes us back in time to witness an astonishing tectonic journey, where continents have constantly shifted, collided, and reshaped the Earth’s surface. Through the highs and lows of Alfred Wegener—a meteorologist who was shunned by the scientific community for proposing the theory of continental drift—the passage provides foundational knowledge on how tectonic plates operate, from deep-earth convection currents to the formation of majestic wonders like the Himalayas and the Pacific Ring of Fire.
For IELTS candidates, this is a high-quality reading passage focused on the topic of Geology. The text features a tightly knit argumentative structure and a diverse range of question types, including sentence completion, multiple choice, diagram completion, and table completion. We invite you to decode this passage with the ECE language center.
Reading Passage
Continents Collide
[Paragraph 1] The idea that the continents are moving was first proposed by a German meteorologist, Alfred Wegener, in a book published in 1915. He had gathered a great deal of careful and tantalising evidence, the most obvious being the simple observation that the great landmasses of the world seem to fit together, jigsaw-like, a striking example being the coastlines of either side of the Atlantic Ocean. Wegener was even able to theorise, correctly, that all the continents were once assembled into a supercontinent (now called Pangaea). Pangaea broke up into Laurasia (which became North America and Eurasia) and Gondwana (which became the remaining continents).
[Paragraph 2] Unfortunately, Wegener could propose no propulsive force for this movement, apart from the vague and erroneous suggestion that it might be centrifugal forces. He also severely overestimated the speed of this motion. These problems, and the fact that he was a meteorologist (rather than a geologist), meant that, upon publishing his ideas, the scientific community was resolutely and implacably hostile. It is an interesting example of that not uncommon instance in which a scientist who was fundamentally correct was denied any recognition in his lifetime. Semmelweis, who advocated the washing of hands before surgery as a way to reduce hospital fatalities, is another example. Wegener was to unexpectedly die on an expedition in Greenland, probably of a heart attack — in his death, as in his life, left out in the cold.
[Paragraph 3] The first hints of the existence of Gondwana came from the similarity of fossil plants and animals distributed in the same geological period over South America, Africa, Antarctica, India, and Australia. Similarly, the composition and nature of the rocks along relevant coastlines spoke the same story, yet to become scientifically credible, the theory needed evidence of a propulsive force to move such huge continents (in the same way that Semmelweis’s ideas needed the germ theory of disease). It was only in the 1960s, decades after Wegener’s death, that hard evidence for his theory began amassing to eventually become overwhelming.
[Paragraph 4] The theory is now called ‘plate tectonics’, since it was proven that the Earth’s surface is fractured into plates. These bump and grind as they steadily move at infinitesimally slow rates in given directions, driven by convection forces. These are formed by the vast circular rising of superheated rock from the planet’s molten interior. This material cools as it nears the surface, eventually sinking once again towards the centre. Add to this the rotation of the Earth itself, and there is a complicated and barely understood set of cyclic swirls of molten rock, producing drags and pulls on each tectonic plate, the sum of which results in a steady migration.
[Paragraph 5] Of course, this motion is slow, typically at the speed at which fingernails grow, and at its fastest, the rate at which hair does. But by being consistent and essentially unstoppable, the results can be spectacular, particularly when plates meet. Here, the release of heat, as well as the buckling and melting which results, gives rise to geological events such as earthquakes, and geological features such as mountains, volcanoes, and oceanic ridges and trenches. Plate boundaries see most of the world’s active volcanoes, with the Pacific Plate’s ‘Ring of Fire’ being a good example. Volcanism may sometimes occur in the middle of plates, but this has been theorised to be a result of ‘hotspots’: anomalously hot areas of interior rock which melt through the plate, forcing an escape to the surface.
[Paragraph 6] Plate boundaries come in three types. First, transform boundaries, where the plates grind past each other. It was once thought that the well-known Aegir Ridge was an example, until studies showed that it had never been active, whereas the periodic earthquakes along California’s San Andreas Fault show the very opposite case. The second type is Divergent boundaries, where the two plates slide apart from each other. Mid-oceanic ridges, such as in the Atlantic, and active rift zones, such as in East Africa, are examples. Finally, there are Convergent boundaries, where the two plates slide towards each other. This can form either a subduction zone (if one plate moves underneath the other) or a continental collision. Deep marine trenches are formed in the former case, and with the descending plate releasing its trapped water on being heated in the Earth’s interior, huge amounts of heat and pressure rise to the surface, causing mountains and volcanoes to form, such as in the Andes mountain range.
[Paragraph 7] The best example of a continental collision is the Indian plate, which is steadily and implacably migrating straight into central Asia. The Himalayas of Nepal and Northern India, the Karakoram Ranges of Northern Pakistan, and the highlands of Afghanistan, are all part of the complex fold system that resulted, producing some of the highest peaks in the world. There are also some deep valleys receiving the run-off melt-water from the far side of these mountains, creating some mighty rivers, such as the Indus, the Irrawaddy, and the Mekong. Interestingly, the Himalayas are still growing, meaning that the summit of Mount Everest is perhaps a couple of metres higher now than when people first stood there in 1953, presumably making it just that little bit harder to reach.
Questions
Questions 27 – 28
Complete the sentences.
Choose ONE WORD from the passage for each answer.
27. The combination of North America and Eurasia had the name _______________.
28. The combination of Laurasia and Gondwana had the name _______________.
Questions 29 – 32
Choose the correct letter, A, B, C, or D.
Write your answers in boxes 29-32 on your answer sheet.
29. Scientists disliked Wegener’s idea because he
A. was German.
B. made simple observations.
C. was a meteorologist.
D. made too many suggestions.
30. Both Wegener and Semmelweis
A. died prematurely.
B. lacked crucial evidence.
C. were never given recognition.
D. were German.
31. The motion of tectonic plates
A. is faster than hair growth.
B. does not change.
C. is well understood.
D. can start cyclic swirls.
32. Volcanoes are formed away from plate boundaries due to
A. buckling and melting.
B. oceanic effects.
C. geological events.
D. heated regions.
Questions 33 – 35
Complete the diagram below.
Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer.
33. _______________ (The fractured layer covering the Earth’s surface)
34. Material _______________ (Action that happens to the material as it nears the surface)
35. Earth’s _______________ (The phenomenon added to the convection process)
Questions 36 – 40
Complete the table below.
Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the passage for each answer.
| Types of Boundary | Related Example |
| Transform | 36. _______________ |
| Divergent (boundary) | 37. _______________ / East Africa Rift |
| Convergent I: 38. _______________ | Central Asia ranges [resulting in tall mountains, deep valleys, and several 40. _______________] |
| Convergent II: 39. _______________ | Andes Mountain |
Full Translation of the Reading Passage
The idea that the continents are moving was first proposed by a German meteorologist, Alfred Wegener, in a book published in 1915. He had gathered a great deal of careful and tantalising evidence, the most obvious being the simple observation that the great landmasses of the world seem to fit together like jigsaw pieces, a striking example being the coastlines on either side of the Atlantic Ocean. Wegener was even able to theorise, correctly, that all the continents were once assembled into a supercontinent (now called Pangaea). The supercontinent Pangaea later broke up into Laurasia (which became North America and Eurasia) and Gondwana (which became the remaining continents).
Unfortunately, Wegener could propose no propulsive force for this movement, apart from the vague and erroneous suggestion that it might be centrifugal forces. He also severely overestimated the speed of this motion. These problems, combined with the fact that he was a meteorologist (rather than a geologist), meant that the scientific community at the time was resolutely and implacably hostile as soon as he published his ideas. This is an interesting example of a not-uncommon case in which a scientist was fundamentally correct but denied any recognition during his lifetime. Semmelweis, who advocated washing hands before surgery as a way to reduce hospital mortality rates, is another example. Wegener later died unexpectedly on an expedition in Greenland, likely from a heart attack—in his death, as in his life, he was left alone in the cold.
The first clues about the existence of the Gondwana continent came from the similarity of plant and animal fossils distributed in the same geological period across South America, Africa, Antarctica, India, and Australia. Similarly, the composition and nature of the rocks along the relevant coastlines told the same story, yet to become scientifically credible, the theory needed evidence of a propulsive force to move such huge continents (much like how Semmelweis’s ideas needed the germ theory of disease to be proven). It was not until the 1960s, decades after Wegener’s death, that hard evidence for his theory began to accumulate and eventually became completely overwhelming.
This theory is now called “plate tectonics,” since it was proven that the Earth’s surface is fractured into large plates. These bump and grind as they steadily move at infinitesimally slow rates in given directions, driven by convection forces. These forces are formed by the vast circular rising of superheated rock from the planet’s molten core. This material cools as it nears the surface, then eventually sinks once again towards the center. Added to this is the rotation of the Earth itself, creating a set of complex and poorly understood cyclic swirls of molten rock, generating drag and pull on each tectonic plate, the sum of which results in a steady migration.
Of course, this movement is very slow, typically at the speed at which fingernails grow, and at its fastest, only at the speed at which hair grows. But thanks to its consistency and the fact that it is essentially unstoppable, the results can be spectacular, especially when tectonic plates meet. Here, the release of heat, as well as the resulting buckling and melting, gives rise to geological events such as earthquakes, and geological features such as mountains, volcanoes, and oceanic ridges and trenches. Plate boundaries are where most of the world’s active volcanoes are concentrated, with the “Ring of Fire” of the Pacific Plate being a prime example. Volcanic activity can sometimes occur in the middle of plates, but this has been theorized to be the result of “hotspots”: areas of anomalously hot interior rock that melt through the tectonic plate, forcing the material to escape to the surface.
Plate boundaries are divided into three types. The first is transform boundaries, where plates grind and slide past each other. It was once thought that the well-known Aegir Ridge was an example, until studies showed that it had never been active, whereas the periodic earthquakes along California’s San Andreas Fault show the exact opposite case. The second type is divergent boundaries, where two plates slide away from each other. Mid-oceanic ridges, such as in the Atlantic, and active rift zones, such as in East Africa, are prime examples. Finally, there are convergent boundaries, where two plates slide towards each other. This process can form either a subduction zone (if one plate moves underneath the other) or a continental collision. Deep oceanic trenches are formed in the former case, and as the descending plate releases trapped water due to being heated in the Earth’s interior, a huge amount of heat and pressure rises to the surface, causing mountains and volcanoes to form, such as in the Andes mountain range.
The clearest example of a continental collision is the Indian plate, which is steadily and implacably migrating straight into central Asia. The Himalayas of Nepal and Northern India, the Karakoram Range of Northern Pakistan, and the highlands of Afghanistan are all part of the resulting complex fold system, creating some of the highest peaks in the world. There were deep valleys that received meltwater from the other side of these mountains, creating some mighty rivers, such as the Indus, the Irrawaddy, and the Mekong. Interestingly, the Himalayas are still rising, meaning that the summit of Mount Everest is perhaps a few meters higher than when humans first stood there in 1953, which perhaps makes it a bit harder to conquer.
Summary of Key Academic Vocabulary
| Vocabulary / Phrase | Classification | Meaning in Context |
| Supercontinent | Noun | Supercontinent |
| Centrifugal forces | Noun phrase | Centrifugal forces |
| Implacably hostile | Adverb-adjective phrase | Hostile / Resolutely and unyieldingly opposed |
| Propulsive force | Noun phrase | Propulsive force / Driving force |
| Hard evidence | Noun phrase | Hard evidence / Concrete proof |
| Plate tectonics | Noun phrase | Plate tectonics |
| Convection forces | Noun phrase | Convection forces |
| Anomalously hot | Adverb-adjective phrase | Anomalously hot |
| Transform / Divergent / Convergent | Adjective | Transform (sliding) / Divergent (moving apart) / Convergent (moving together) |
| Subduction zone | Noun phrase | Subduction zone (one plate sliding under another) |
Suggested Answers for Continents Collide
Questions 27 – 28: Sentence Completion
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