Pronunciation is part of the IELTS Speaking Test. The examiner who conducts your test will award you a score for Pronunciation as well as the other marking criteria. Together those scores are averaged to give you a final speaking band score.

This page explains about the marking of pronunciation and will help you understand what you can do to increase your score. You will also learn whether different accents are accepted in IELTS Speaking.

On this page, you will learn:

1. Is IELTS a British English Test?
2. Pronunciation Features & Marking
3. Pronunciation Band Scores
4. Accents in IELTS Speaking
5. Pronunciation Advice

1) Is IELTS a British English Language Test?

IELTS is owned by Cambridge English Language Assessment, the British Council and IDP. This means that two of the owners are British and one is Australian. But it is not a test of British English or of Australian English. It is an INTERNATIONAL ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEST = IELTS. This means that it tests international English, not just British or Australian English.

2) IELTS Speaking Pronunciation Marking Features

IELTS Speaking Marking Criteria: Pronunciation is one of four marking criteria for IELTS speaking:

• Fluency = 25%
• Vocabulary = 25%
• Grammar = 25%
• Pronunciation = 25%

Aspects of Pronunciation for Marking

There are a number of features of pronunciation that the speaking examiner will be assessing you on. Pronunciation features and how easy you are to understand are the two key aspects of IELTS Speaking Pronunciation. Below is a summary of some of the main features:

1. Individual sounds – similar sounds (p/b  m/n d/t)  consonant clusters (sht / cht etc), length of vowels (sheep/ship etc), schwa (the lazy vowel sound that is never stressed – example – there are two schwas in “dangerous), silent letters.
2. Strong and weak forms – example “and”  – this can be produced as “n” (fish and chips = fish “n” chips) or it can be pronounced at full length “and”. This depends on how and when you use this word.
3. Word Pronunciation
4. Word stress and syllables (sounds inside a word that carry the stress)
5. Sentence stress (this links to chunking)
6. Intonation (putting feeling and emphasis into your speaking which causes your tone to rise and fall)
7. Linking sounds and words
8. Chunking (putting parts of a sentence together into chunks to create stress and clarity within a sentence)
9. Contractions (it is = it’s / my name is = my name’s /  I did not = I didn’t / I have been = I’ve bin / I’m going to = I’m gonna / I want to = I wanna)

3) Pronunciation Band Scores

Below is a brief summarised description of the Pronunciation Band Scores for IELTS Speaking based on the descriptors published by IELTS.

• Band 5 = There are some miscommunications which might cause difficulty for the listener. The candidate attempts to control pronunciation features, but often does not succeed. The candidate may show some features of band 6.
• Band 6 = The candidate uses a range of pronunciation features but the control is not consistent throughout the test. There might be mispronunciation of words or sounds which reduces the clarity. However, the meaning of what is being said is generally clear throughout the test.
• Band 7 = shows all features of band 6 and only some of the positive features of band 8.
• Band 8 = uses a wide range of pronunciation features throughout most of the test. Is easy to understand and the mother tongue does not affect clarity.
• Band 9 = The candidate uses a full range of features with precision and subtlety. The candidate is effortless to understand.

Note: you can see in the band score descriptions above that using a range of features (linking sounds, contractions, intonation, word stress, chunking etc is key to a good score. Also how easy you are to understand is critical. 

To read the Official Speaking Band Score Descriptors click here: Official Speaking Descriptors 

4) Accents in IELTS Speaking

Does my accent need to be British English?

No, it doesn’t. IELTS is an international English test so you can have any accent you want. It does not need to be British. It is completely fine to have an American accent or Australian accent. Any accent is fine.

What if I have a mixed accent?

That is also fine. It is 100% normal for people these days to have a mixed accent. Even native speakers have mixed accents if they travel or have lived abroad. IELTS will accept a mixed accent for the speaking test. But you cannot mix your spelling for the writing test. See this page: Spelling in IELTS Writing

What about an accent from my own country?

It is normal for you to retain an accent from your own language. IELTS do not prohibit that or lower your band score for it. The question is “Does your accent cause difficulties for the listener? If your mother tongue accent is so heavy that your English pronunciation is difficult to understand, you will get a lower score. However, if your accent is very mild and English pronunciation is easy to understand, you can get a high band score. This means it depends on the effort that the listener has to make to understand you. The less effort is required to understand your pronunciation, the higher your score. However, always remember, you still need to demonstrate the features of pronunciation mentioned further up this page.

5) Pronunciation Advice

Pronunciation is something that takes time to change. This isn’t something you can fix with only a couple of weeks before your test. If you have time before your test, try listening to news channels, documentaries and soap operas. The English used in films can often be rushed or muffled by music so choose your films wisely.

You can only improve your pronunciation by practising to speak out loud. Get used to doing this on your own and record your speaking. Then listen back and check.

Online Dictionaries provide pronunciation of individual words with either UK or US accents. Use them to check your word pronunciation.

Free IELTS Speaking Lessons & Tips

To get free speaking lessons, topics, tips and model answers, click here: IELTS Speaking

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Below you will find the answers to the reading lesson about Carnivorous Plants which focused on matching paragraph information questions.

If you have not completed this lesson, please do so before you look at the answers. To complete the lesson, click here: Reading Practice Lesson.

Answers

1. D
   1. Question Statement: The plant preys on animals that live in water.
   2. Passage: “the waterwheel plant, is a fascinating rootless, carnivorous, aquatic plant. It generally feeds on small aquatic vertebrates,”.
2. C
   1. Question Statement: The plant is able to tell the difference between prey and inedible items.
   2. Passage: “The plant is so advanced that it can tell the difference between live stimulus and non-living stimulus.”
   3. Remember, this isn’t about only matching word for word. This is about matching meaning. This whole passage is about how plants trap their prey (food). This means that “non-living stimulus” refers to something inedible.
3. B
   1. Question Statement: Prey is known to die through submersion in liquid.
   2. Passage: “The trap contains fluid, produced by the plant, which is used to drown and digest the insects.”
4. A
   1. Question Statement: Prey is drawn to the plant by its appearance.
   2. Passage: “Insects are attracted by colour, smell and a nectar-like secretion”
5. D
   1. Question Statement: The plant is known for its speed in trapping prey.
   2. Passage: “The trap closes in only 10 milliseconds, making it one of the fastest examples of plant movement in the animal kingdom.”
6. A
   1. Question Statement: The soporific effect of the nectar can cause prey to tumble into the plant’s trap.
   2. Passage: Slippery footings, aided in at least one species, by a narcotic drug lacing the nectar, causes insects to fall inside where they die and are digested.
7. B
   1. Question Statement: The plant is capable of trapping creatures large than an average insect.
   2. Passage: “….some larger species, such as Nepenthes Rafflesiana and Nepenthes Rajah, have been documented to catch small mammals like rats.”

More Reading Practice Lessons

For tips and more reading lessons, click here: IELTS Reading Tips & Lessons

I hope you found this lesson useful.

All the best, Liz 🙂

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Below are the answers and explanation for the lesson about using the article “the” when referring to countries and nationalities.

If you have not completed the test already, please do so now. To complete the test, click here: Articles & Countries Grammar Test

Country Names and THE

Almost all country names do not require the article “the”. We refer to France, England, Britain, Vietnam, Canada, China, India – all without “the”.

However, there are exceptions. Countries that are made up of a group of states or islands use “the”, such as the Philippines and the US. Any country that uses the words “states” or “united” or “republic” also use “the”, for example the UK, the US, the Republic of China.

Please note, the word “Britain” is not a synonym for England. Britain means the UK. Britain refers to the group of countries that make up the UK: England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales. The word “Britain” actually means “Great Britain”.

Nationalities

We need to use the article “the” when referring to nationalities as a group of people: the British, the Americans, the Chinese, the Vietnamese, the English.

Do not confuse the rule of nationalities, above, with a different rule about using similar words as part of a noun phrase where it does not form the main noun. For example, the words “a British car” is a noun phrase and in that noun phrase the word “car” is the main noun, not the word “British”. So, the rule about using “the” with nationalities is only when referring to a group of people under the umbrella of their nationality – not when using the nationality as an adjective to another noun. One more example: “the hard-working British” is a noun phrase referring to the whole group of British people as a nationality and requires “the”. But we could say “a hard-working British man” – in this noun phrase, the word “man” is the main noun and can use any article depending on how the noun is used. To learn more about this, refer to two chapters in my Grammar E-book: the chapter on Articles and the chapter on Noun Phrases. Also note that when referring to “Americans”, it is possible to drop the article “Americans are friendly” and it is also possible to use “the” – “The Americans are friendly”.

I hope you found this useful. Rules about articles (a / an / the) can feel confusing. But you can learn them all simply and easily in my new Grammar E-book 🙂

Answers for the Grammar Test:

Number 3 “the America” is wrong. Number 4 “the Britain” is wrong. Number 8 “the England” is wrong.

Correct: the British, the UK, the English, the US, the Americans. Note it is also possible to say “Americans” without an article as noted on the page above.

Grammar E-book

My Grammar E-book is now available in my online store. There is a comprehensive chapter on Articles as well as over 200 pages of other grammar to push your English to a higher level. You will find content and details of the e-book given in my store. See below:

CLICK HERE: VISIT STORE

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Many people make mistakes using “the” when referring to countries. For example, we say “the Philippines” but we also say “France” without “the”. This can be confusing for many people. In IELTS Writing Task 1 Academic test it is common to have a chart that represented different countries. Use the correct articles (a,the, zero article) is essential.

Grammar Test: Using “the” for Countries

Below is a short test to see if you can use the defined article “the” correctly in relation to countries and nationalities.

Question: Which of the following are wrong?

1. the British
2. the UK
3. the America
4. the Britain
5. the English
6. the US
7. the Americans
8. the England

Answers

You can find the answers by clicking below:

CLICK HERE: ANSWERS TO THIS TEST

All the best,

Liz

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Dear Friends,

Below are some details of my new Grammar E-book.

Aims of the Grammar E-book:

1. English Language Development – to take your English to a higher level by learning complex grammar in easy steps.
   • This e-book covers complex sentences, sentence structures, noun clauses, noun phrases, articles, prepositions, word order, passive voice, tenses, conditionals, intensifiers – in total about 30 chapters to help you develop range and accuracy.
2. Writing Task 2 – tips and specific focus pages to help you increase your score through grammar. This includes tips about grammar band scores, paragraphing and even paraphrasing tips.

There are over 300 pages of grammar tips, lessons, explanations and illustrations of complex grammar which also include a Workbook of exercises. This e-book is a great way to improve your English grammar and push your level up by learning complex grammar features. 

Do you want to know what is in this e-book?

Click below for a preview of the chapters and some extra details:

• Click here: PREVIEW FOR GRAMMAR E-BOOK

Would you like to get this e-book?

• CLICK HERE: Visit IELTS Liz Store

Payment

My online store accepts all major cards from almost all countries around the world and paypal as well.

All the best, 

Liz

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Below you will find some predicted IELTS Speaking Part 3 questions for the topic of Health & Coronavirus. As you know, IELTS like to use current world issues for their topics and this will no doubt appear at some time in one form or another.

Questions will probably be phrased carefully to avoid you having to talk about deeply emotional or disturbing aspects of the virus. They will also avoid political questions.

IELTS Speaking Part 3: Health & Coronavirus

Predicted questions for this new topic. I do not usually predict topics or questions because I feel it is not required due to the large number of known recycled topics. However, I do think now is the time to predict this topic and help you prepare.

1. Do you think health is important? Why?
2. What types of activities do you think help people stay healthy?
3. What is the difference between physical health and mental health?
4. What difficulties did some people face with social distancing and lockdown at the time of the Coronavirus outbreak?
5. What did some people do to stay positive at that time?
6. What useful technology helped us combat the Coronavirus?
7. During the Coronavirus crisis, some people did courageous deeds. Can you give an example of one from your country?
8. What do you think could have been done better to deal with the Coronavirus outbreak?

Model Answers: Health & Coronavirus Topic

Below you will find a link to model answers with list of useful vocabulary and an audio to help you with word pronunciation.

CLICK HERE: MODEL ANSWERS

All the best

Liz

Useful Coronavirus Vocabulary

CLICK HERE: CORONAVIRUS VOCABULARY

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