University of Cambridge
ESOL Examinations
©UCLES 2009Preliminary English Test (PET)
Preliminary English Test for Schools (PETfS)
The PET Vocabulary List gives teachers a guide to the vocabulary needed when preparing
students for the PET and PET for Schools examinations.
The PET Vocabulary List was originally developed by Cambridge ESOL in consultation
with external consultants to guide item writers who produce materials for the PET
examination. It includes vocabulary from the Council of Europe’s Threshold (1990)
specification and other vocabulary which corpus evidence shows is high-frequency.
The list covers vocabulary appropriate to this level of English and includes receptive
vocabulary (words that the candidate is expected to understand but which is not the focus
of a question) and productive vocabulary (words that the candidate needs to know to
answer a question).
The list does not provide an exhaustive list of all words which appear on the PET and PET
for Schools question papers and candidates should not confine their study of vocabulary to
the list alone.
