IELTS Speaking
Sometimes the IELTS speaking examiner will stop you in the middle of your answer. This is very common in part 1 and can sometimes happen in part 3.
Share your thoughts about this:
- Why do you think the examiner interrupts your answer?
- Do you think it affects your score?
Answers
The answers are available now. Click here: Answers: Learn why the examiner stops your answer
Dear liz,
I scored 7.5 in last speaking exam but have to reappear as I didn’t score 7 in writing. While repeating my ielts I was interviewed by same examiner as last time but this time she was exhausted and yawning and cutting off my answers I couldnot focus and build a strong communication with her she was nice and trying to put up a smile but seeing her yawning made me yawn too or I felt disoriented what shall I do now I feel bad for not performing as good as last time that was a month before. can I make a claim? if I score less than last time?
The speaking test is recorded which allows for remarking. However, when an examiner looks exhausted and yawns a lot (which I agree is very off-putting), it doesn’t show on the recording. This means that even if you complain about the examiner’s attitude or behaviour, it won’t change your score because only what is on the recording can change your score. I know it’s unfair but that’s the way it works. So, if you want to complain, maybe someone will talk to the examiner to prevent this happening again but it won’t affect your score. My advice to all candidates entering the test room is to prepare to be chatty, friendly and open regardless of how the examiner acts. Imagine someone else sitting in front of you. This is the same advice for anyone doing a job interview – don’t be put-off by the interviewers. And I am aware that it’s easier said than done, but the advice still holds.
yawning is a thing that can happen to anyone in taking speaking test because examiner has to do the same thing 22times a day ..and he/she needs to heard the same tailored answers scripted by coaching answers ..if a candidate is good giving anything extra besides tailored answers they get more indulge in you .N if you compalain action is being taken they got siezed from doing so certain period of time ..i am saying so because i worked with them
I had my speaking
part 1 was went very well
she was smiling and looking at me in a interested way
part 2 I somewhere stopped and examiner was like put her hand on head but afterll I spoke for 1.5 min
part 3 last 2 questions she said but my question is this
then again in the next question she repeated
I am so worried
Nothing you have mentioned is unusual. It sounds like a normal test. Good luck with your results!
hey liz! i just finish my speaking test and I’m a bit worried. during the 1st part, the interviewer asked me a question which I didn’t really know how to answer. so I blanked out and was silent for about 5 seconds before telling him i was not sure about the answer to the question he asked. is that something that might affect my marks?
That is an issue of fluency. Just because you aren’t sure of an answer, doesn’t mean your English language should disappear. You can still say “I’m not sure about that” or “Let me think.. well, I suppose that …”. Using fillers prevents your fluency from failing. However, your fluency is marked over your entire performance in all parts together. So, one slip won’t matter. Good luck with your results!
Hi Liz!
How are you? I just took my ielts today I know that I did my best on parts 1 and 2 but in part 3 I answered like
3 questions. But on the 4th question, I asked the interviewer to repeat because I cannot understand what she is asking.
She repeated the question twice but I was out of time when I’m about to answer. Does it affect my score? I’m so anxious. 🥺
It won’t affect your score at all. You aren’t marked on understanding the question so it’s 100% fine to ask the examiner to repeat the question or even explain it in part 3. As for completing the question that isn’t a requirement either. Nothing but the language you speak matters. Good luck with your results 🙂
Hi Liz, i have completed my speaking on last Wednesday.
In that part 1 and 2 i feel good, but in part 3 she asked me what are the routine activities u change? I replied her that I have three shifts that morning, afternoon and night shifts based on that my routine gets altered.
Then the examiner asked me to tell in general
Then I told about cooking in order to break the routine sometimes prefer to buy outside.
Then I told about sleeping pattern during rainy season prefers to sleep longer hours comparing to other season.
She asked again in general asking
Whether examiner satisfied with my answer or not am so worry about it
Whether it affects my score?
Part 3 is not about you. Part 3 is about the world in general and your answers should be about the world in general – other people. The examiner was trying to help you. If you failed to produce answers which show your capacity to speak in the third person plural (they), then it might not be so good for your score. No, there isn’t a fixed way of marking that. But you must remember that questions are designed to test specific language and all part 3 is a chance to show you can talk about broader world issues rather than only about your life or your family’s life.
I took my speaking test, by part 1 and part 3 were pretty good whereas in my part 2 I did speak but I stopped before the two minutes got over so the examiner indicated me to talk more . I did talk a little after that however she asked me a one question after that and before I completed the entire answer she jumped on the next part. I m really scared how it will affect my score. The entire speaking went in so much flow that I at times didn’t realise or took much pauses to think on my answers
All sounds fine to me. What are you worried about? There’s no rule that says you must speak for 2 mins,. Certainly it’s an aim, but not a requirement. If you speak for 1.5mins and it’s all fluent, it’ll be fine. Relax and wait for your results!! Good luck 🙂
Hello,I recently had my ielts exam,and I misunderstood 2 of questions that the examiner asked me,and instead of asking to repeat again,I answered I incorrectly. Will this considerably decrease my score?
There is no such thing as answering incorrectly. You are not marked on understanding. Your answers will only be marked on fluency, grammar, vocab and pronunciation. So, don’t worry. But I will say this is something you ought to know before entering the test room because lack of knowledge is not a good thing and can easily impact your confidence which in turn could impact your score.
i have question.
in part 3 i start answering questions while speaking 8-9 words she ask another question , and do not allow me to fully answer questions. it was like almost 7 questions, in end she said thank you. but she did not allow me to Speak full answers. she was in happy mood while asking questions. does it affect my band because i had not paused in any questions.
As explained on the page above, this is normal. There is no band score for Task Achievement so finishing an answer isn’t important for your marking which is why the examiner can interrupt. Some examiners interrupt more than others. It doesn’t impact your score. Read the page above again to learn why this happens.
In Ielts speaking the examiner just asked a simply question why? I couldn’t get it so i just said Pardon is that fine or rude
It’s normal for the examiner to ask “why” if they wish you to continue talking about what you’ve just said. It is a way to help you expand your answers and thus provide more English. It is also fine for you to ask “pardon” if you didn’t understand. None of these things affect your score.
Hi Liz
For my speaking test I had to speak about a rule I didn’t agree with and in a moment of panic I decided to speak about how the use of verbal and physical disciplining can be bad for the students. After exiting the exam I realised that it is not really a rule. Will this affect my score?
It is completely fine. It was a good choice of subject because there is so much to say about it. Punishment methods are closely linked to rules. It won’t negatively impact your score in any way at all. Good luck with your results 🙂
Hello Liz I had my speaking test today. I think i messed up in two questions. 1) she asked me to describe qualities required in business person (Part 3). I started talking about communication skills, so she corrects me and tells me to talk about quality. So after that I started speaking about calmness. 2) she asked me a question which is best out of two . I was comparing between them, then she repeated question and asked me which is best between two. And in part 1 I answer to her questions she made a face to me like what I was saying. During speaking test she was also continuously yawning. Can you tell me will this affect my score? If yes, till what extent it will affect.
Your score isn’t based on whether or not the examiner repeated the question or guided you. It is based on the language you produced – nothing more. For example, you said the examiner repeated the question about “which is best…”, this is because the examiner wanted to hear you produce a superlative. Many questions in the language test have a specific language function which means the question is testing a specific part of language. In this case, superlatives rather than comparatives. These questions simply guide you so that during the test you produce a good range of language which is necessary for a high score. Just because you don’t produce a superlative at that time, makes no difference if you then produce one at another time in the test. So, this is really about range and accuracy. Is it possible to predict your score – certainly if I could hear 100% of every word you produced in your test. Scores cannot be predicted just from a general overview. Nothing that happened in your test is a reason not to get a high score. As I explain on the page above, it is normal to be interrupted and guided by the examiner. Only your language ability will determine your score. I know this isn’t what you want to hear. You probably want to hear what kind of score you’ll get. This isn’t possible. So, all I can do is wish you lots of luck with your results!! However, if you don’t get precisely what you want and if you need to retake the test, please prepare more fully so that you can identify language function questions and so that you know exactly what does and doesn’t affect your score. Good luck!!
Hello Liz, in my speaking exam today. The examiner had an accent and I couldn’t differentiate between the words ‘curler’ and ‘colour’. I started talking about curler instead of colour. I paused and asked her again if she meant colour, meaning different shades and she said yes. I continued talking about colour from there. Does this affect my score? Please let me know I am worried. Thank you
It definitely won’t affect your score at all. In fact, you handled it very well and showed the examiner you were confident to deal with problems in English. Good luck with your results 🙂
Hi Liz , today was my speaking test .. and I did well in all parts but in part 3 I didn’t understand last question and then I asked her to repeat then she smiled and said ” sorry time is up” . Will it effect my overall score?
It won’t affect your score at all. The examiner should not really have asked the question so close to the end time of the test. Certainly, do not worry about it. It won’t impact your score at all.
Hi Liz, I did my speaking today.
I chose “Genocide” for part 2 and spoke about it untill the examiner stopped me.
After that I was ready to answer the follow up questions about that topic but he said “let’s not talk about these dark days” and changed the subject completely! Therefore, part 3 was a totally different subject than what I picked.
Is it okey for them to do that? I’m going crazy right now!
Try not to worry. It’s fine. It is not common but it does happen that the examiner changes the topic for part 3. It doesn’t reflect your score and it won’t affect your score. So, nothing to worry about. Good luck with your results 🙂
So i had my speaking today and it went all fine, however i felt i was really informal with the examiner and was talking to her like a friend. I did stop in part two thinking i had said enough but she told me to continue and after couple of seconds i started speaking again, although related to the topic but not in sequence. I am not sure how it went but in the end she did say it was a pleasure talking to you and also we talked like a proper conversation instead of an exam. Do you think it would have been fine? I tried to use some good words and properly as well
It sounds like your test went well so don’t worry. The speaking test is informal and you approached it in the right way. Also, the examiner sounds good as she made it feel more like a conversation which is how it should be (less formal and more chatty). Wishing you lots of luck with your results 🙂
Yesterday my speaking interview was conducted but in the end the examiner said to me…this is a end of your interview….Goodbye…. Is this a negative or positive sign..?
Plzzz reply…. 🙁
It is a normal thing to say at the end of an interview.
Hi, Liz
I have a question that I took my IELTS speaking exam yesterday very well till part 2 and in part 3 after 2 questions I didn’t understand the 3rd question. So I asked for repeating and again I could not understand I again asked for repeating and then I said I am a bit nervous sorry please repeat the question. Then She said this is the end of your speaking test. Thank you.
What will happen?
I am worried sick about this
Would She deduct my score because I asked for repeating TWICE
And told her that I am nervous .
Please reply Please I think you must have something in your experience to say
Thanks
That won’t affect your score at all. Your marks are not based on understanding questions. However, it is a shame that you did say “Could you explain what you mean?” – in part 3, you have this choice.
Heyy im little worried as it was all well till part 2 but in part 3 their were some question about which i didnt knw a thing but still spoke whatever came to my mind…so will it affect my scores….nd one more thing i was fluent and confident enough…but just in one question i took a pause for 2 sec bcz i was not getting the correct word to speak…so will it affect?
Your score is based on your overall performance in language. The test is marked as a whole, rather than each part. Also, ideas are not marked. Part 3 is a chance to showcase a much broader range of language so struggling with part 3 might affect your score in that way. But it will depend how well you did in the other parts and what language you used. About pauses, this affects your score for fluency but again the score is based on your overall performance. You’ll have to wait and see your results. Good luck!
Hi, I appeared for speaking test yesterday and I think I made a mistake in part 3. We were generally talking about art and culture and the last question was “Do you think people from one culture appreciate other cultures?”. For some reason, I understood that as “do artists appreciate other artists?”. I know, stupid me! Anyway, I think I answered well saying artists understand each other’s struggle, it takes a lot of work to come up with a piece of art etc. How would this impact my score? I feel confident about other questions.
No, it won’t impact your score at all. Your score will be decided based on your overall level of English and your understanding of questions is not marked. It was simple misunderstanding which was not based on language, but on concentration and nerves – the examiner will know this. Don’t worry about it and good luck with your results 🙂
Thank you.
last day I gave my speaking test and my examiner uttered my candidate number Wrong as I had little doubt about it so after coming back to home I cross checked and found that my examiner said the number incorrectly in the beginning of the test.My question is, does it have any impact on my speaking result?
It is something you should speak to your test centre about directly. Just make sure that the candidate number was recorded correctly on the assessment paper.
Hi ,
There was a question in part 3 speaking where examiner asked me to talk about negative impact of of people travelling from one place to other. I said that “i would argue that instead of negative, there are positive impacts of travelling” and i explained everything positive. Examiner asked the same question with some twist, and again i stick to my point that it has positive impact. Now after examination is over, i am thinking that I didn’t answered the actual question which was to explain negative impact, do you think it will affect my score?
It’s completely fine to do that. There is no such thing as Task Response or Task Achievement in IELTS Speaking. Your opinions are up to you and you can voice them as you wish. Sounds like you were confident and I hope that will result in a great score 🙂
Hi Liz! I took my speaking test today, the examiner was easy to understand but she has a mannerism that constantly titling her head whenever I give my response. It was alright in the beginning but when the task 2 starts I could not give any words because I felt disturbed and blank. During task 3 I decided to look at the windows instead, then my ideas and speaking have naturally came back.
I am very worried that my score has been affected because i was not able to give answer for task 2. It was only 2 sentences and i felt awkward that I asked her should i still continue? and she said yes. But nothing else come out to my mouth.
IT will affect your score if you couldn’t speak in part 2. However, it really depends how well you did in part 1 and part 3. If it is obvious that you drew a mental blank but your level of English is actually very strong, it will have a minimum impact on your score. So, you’ll have to wait and see what your results are. It is essential that you practice speaking out loud on your own before your test and to be prepared to continue speaking in the test regardless of the examiner’s behaviour or appearance. Sounds like you got things sorted in part 3. Fingers crossed for your results 🙂
Hello Liz,
I was doing well until a question asked in part three. She asked how technology induces us to enjoy nature and I answered about photography and channels that share pictures and talk about nature but then she asked what other technology can be used. I went blank and I tried thinking and finally answered that nothing is coming to my mind. Will this cost me? I really need a 7 band in speaking.
It won’t cost you at all. You had already answered the question very well. You are not marked on your ideas or your lack of ideas. The fact that you said “nothing is coming to mind” is actually high level English because it is idiomatic. So, you will be marked on those words and not on ideas. Sounds like it was all fine. Let me know your results 🙂
Hi Rohit here from this side I have given my IELTS speaking last weak one question is in my mind is that examiner ask me 1 question which is not understood to me I ask again that question but again I am not understood that question then examiner said to me let’s move to the cue card is their any band cutting from this because I am not understand that question
You are not marked on your understanding. You are only marked on the English language you say.
The examiners can repeat the same cue card again in forward exams in speaking part-2?
Yes. Topics can be repeated. But there are many topics that the examiner can choose from.
Hi Liz
I had my speaking test today the test went really well but there is one thing which I am a little worried about during part 2 I finished speaking approximately after 1.5 minutes. The examiner encouraged me to speak more and then I stated speaking again till the time she didn’t Stop me. Please could you let me know whether this would affect my score.
Your fluency score will be based on your overall performance in all parts, not in one part. You can still do well if you spoke for only 1.5 mins, but it is a missed opportunity to showcase language.
Hi Liz, I am suffering from dry cough from a week or so.. shall.i inform my examiner the same so that my cough does not affect my fluency!
The examiner will see very quickly that you have a cough. It will be taken into consideration. However, fluency is not only about pauses. It is also about your willingness to speak and your ability to speak at length – those aspects of fluency will not be affect by your cough and will be marked. So, take every opportunity to show willingness to speak – speak until the examiner interrupts you.
Hello Liz. I had my speaking test on monday. I think I did well at part 1 and 2, but part 3 had questions that I didn’t have information about. I got stuck and shocked. So I am sure I didn’t answer correct and I am really sad. What band will I achieve for not answering my questions in a correct way in part 3 and not fluently as I should?
Your speaking test is marked on the level of the English that you speak. It is not marked based on your understanding or on how many questions you answer. So, you will have to wait for your results to see how the examiner marks the level of your spoken English based on fluency, grammar, vocab and pronunciation.
Hi, Liz, Yesterday, I took my IELTS speaking test in Hongkong, and the examiner was a Hongkonger, during my speaking in Part2, I was given a topic to describe, but every time when I tried to answer the question, the examiner knocked the notes I was given and interrupted me many times, so I didn’t have a chance to speak during Part 2, she might try to prevent me to go off the topic, but is it normal or something unusual?
That is unacceptable. You do not have to use the prompts on the card if you don’t want to. The examiner can’t interrupt your talk while you are talking until 2 mins is up unless the examiner has a suspicion that you have memorised the talk. The problem is that the speaking test is only has an audio recording and no video recording. If something was said which shows that the examiner unfairly interrupted your talk, you can certainly complain – in fact you should complain so that the examiner’s behaviour can be reviewed. This is important for other candidates. Talk to your test centre about that now. However, I’m not sure how it will affect your marking or your score. Your score will still be based on the English you produced in the test. When it comes to your score, wait for your results to see how you did. You can always ask for a remark if you feel it is unfair marking based on the language you produced. Sorry to hear you had this experience.
Hello Liz. So in my speaking part 3 I was asked what activities can be done under the rain and I said going for a boat ride and was asked ‘going for a boat ride?’ And I replied yes. Now I am worried about that part of the test
The examiner was surprised at your answer. It is not common for people to choose to go on a boat ride in the rain. Most people stay inside and do indoor activities, not outdoor. However, you are not marked on your ideas so don’t worry about it. But it is a shame that you didn’t explain your answer more fully when the examiner showed surprise.
I think I actually did explain further by saying “some people like to play in the rain”
In that case, it’s completely fine. The examiner was just surprised – nothing more. It doesn’t affect your score. As long as you explained and supported your view. Even though opinions and ideas are not marked in IELTS speaking, coherence is marked as part of fluency – so it does need to make sense 🙂
Hello ma’am liz today I had speaking interview idp IELTS centre. In 1st part the interviewer repeated 2 questions same time as I said the answer and stopped like 2 sec and again answered. In part 2 I think I had completed some early as she asked twice the question and in part 3 in 2 questions I repeated the words due to nervousness. I am so confused now whether I would get at least 6.5 or not. I have used some of the vocabulary words like dilemma, exploration, as a matter of fact and mesmerizing . Please tell me
Your score will be based on fluency, grammar, vocab and pronunciation throughout the whole test. It would require hearing the whole test to have an understanding of how well you have done. You will have to wait for your score. Good luck!
Hi, I had an informal talk with the examiner before formally start my speaking test. Is the examiner consider the informal talk as well while giving the mark ?
Only the part of the test which is recorded will be assessed. Nothing else counts towards your marks.
My speaking lasted for only 10 minutes… why?? Em worried
The speaking test will last between 11 mins and 14 mins. That is the fixed length of time which cannot be altered. Unless you timed your test yourself, it is most likely that your test actually lasted 11 mins which is within the normal length of time allowed.
Hi Liz,
I had my speaking test today and in the 2 section my cue card asked me to explain about any one of my practical skill. But I misunderstood it and said about my communication skills saying that it is very useful in daily life. Will this effect my score?
It won’t affect your score at all. Being on topic, having relevant ideas and task achievement are not marked in IELTS speaking. Only the level of your English is assessed. IELTS writing is marked quite differently – don’t confuse the two.
Hi Liz,
Will the examiner rehear the speaking recording to mark the competency ? How does the IELTS speaking scoring happens?
Your score is decided when you leave the room. The recording is there for remarking purposes only. The examiner will not listen to it again to initially decide your score. The score is not based on each part individually, it is based on your overall performance and level of English.
Hi liz. You’re an amazing tutor and I prepare myself for IELTS by watch your video and websites..I appreciate the efforts you take for responding to the messages you received.
I want to ask you about IELTS speaking. i had my IELTS speaking on 4th feb 2020..I did well in part 1 and 3 but i did not utilised my whole time while speaking..i made sure to cover all 3 sub topics(films) and thn I stopped speaking. My examiner prompted me to talk more on the same but i went repeating my ideas.. would it affect my score? I need to score 7 .
You are marked on fluency, grammar, vocab and pron. Each part is not marked separately. The test is marked as a whole based on your overall performance. So, you will have to wait and see what your results will be based on your overall performance. You task in part 2 is not to cover all points (that is not marked in IELTS speaking). Ideas are also not marked in IELTS Speaking.
Hello help me today I gave my speaking module but if I judge my wrong cue card then how many band I got but task response is good and fluency is also good?
There are no marks for Task Response in IELTS speaking. Interpret the cue card as you wish – stick close to the main topic and expand in any direction logical direction you want. Only fluency, vocab, grammar and pron are marked.
Hello madam,
I have just completed my speaking test…I have done good with part 1 and part 3. But in the cue card I missed speaking about one of the prompt?will it have impact on the score?
There is no task completion or task response marking criterion for IELTS speaking. It doesn’t affect your score at all.
Hey liz i have done speaking but in part 1 i was asked a question which didn’t understand i asked her to repeat twice.she repeated twice but when i asked for 3 time she just said ok next question.will that deduce my marks
You are not marked on being able to understand questions. Only the language you produce is marked and how you are able to communicate very clearly in English at all times. If you sat in silence while you were trying to understand and thinking, that would affect your score for fluency, for example.
Thanks Liz you are the best one, today I took ielts and the second question part 2 I couldn’t understand. Examiner repeated two times but I cant catch his point and then he said ok next question.
Hello Liz, it was my IELTS academic LRW and Speaking exam today. I was following you on YouTube since one week and it actually helped me for my writing test today. I wrote 151 words for Task1 and 271 for Task2 is it fine or have I crossed the required word limit?
Second i missed 7 questions in my reading section because i was concentrating more on yes/no/true/false/not given type of answers and I couldn’t finish that on time. How much will it affect ?
Third when speaking was conducted my interview lasted for longer period comparing to others. I didn’t gave bookish or computerised answers my answers were very natural for all the topics because i related it with my life. However in the cue card portion I spoke for around 1 and a half minute nkt exactly 2 i guess I stopped because I couldn’t find more ideas to speak. But according to me i performed well in my third round. So how much again is it going to affect on my ielts band scale.
There is no upper limit for writing. Task 1 is usually between 160-190 words, but 151 is still ok. Task 2 is between 260-290 words.
Each answer in reading is worth one point. If you miss an answer, you don’t score that point.
The speaking test can last between 11 and 14 mins – not more and not less. The actual length has no relation to your score. In part 2, you should aim for 2 mins, but 1.5 is fine.
Good luck with your results 🙂
While speaking instead of intimate I pronounced intimidate are they chances for my scores to get affected
All scoring is based on your overall performance, not individual errors.
Hello Liz,
I had my speaking test on August 18th @ Vancouver. I am just wondering was it the one who was recording our speaking, which means the examiner, to mark our test? Will they play the audio recording for several times, then decide our score? Or he/she just give a mark right after the exam, and take the recording as evidence? In addition, I have a question about self-correction.If I say something wrong, but I don’t wanna repeat it, let’s say if I say “you are short’, instead of saying “no, you are tall’, I say ” I mean you are so tall and smart” to correct my previous statement, would this be considered self-correction/self-repeat? My example may be a bit awkward, as long as you understand. Thanks.
The recording is only for remarking purposes if you want to do that later. The examiner who asks the questions will decide your score when you leave the room. Self correction means you are correcting what you have just said – it is not good for fluency.
Hlo Liz,
My speaking was done yesterday. But i saw my examiner that she marked 53,55 at the end. What does it mean? Related to band score or not. Please tell me about it. I am very confused since yesterday. Answer me soon.
It has no relevance to scoring.
Hlo sister, yrsterday was my speaking and the cue card was about a beautiful or handsome person, however i spoke less about beauty and more about the person’s ideas, and also i made a few grammer mistake but corrected them immediately. For example, i said telled then corrected to told.
So can you please tell me that would it effect my score, and to what extent
You decide what content to include in your talk – content is not marked in IELTS speaking. Self correction is not recommended because it lowers your fluency score. However, just one occasion makes little difference when the score is based on an overall performance. Good luck with your results 🙂
Hello ma’am.. Greetings for the day..
I have given my speaking test few hours ago. Everything went well except part 2 cue card in which I was not able to produce more information. I stopped and the teacher kept on seeing the watch before beginning with section 3. Will it effect my score. I became quite nervous as I wasn’t able to analyse the time. Moreover, she did not prompted me to continue and speak more
Fluency is 25% of your marks. Part 2 is a great time to show fluency because it is about speaking at length without effort. So, if you didn’t use the full 2 mins, it is a wasted opportunity. However, fluency is measured based on your overall performance, not in each part. So, your score will ultimately depend on how you did overall.
Hii liz,
I had just finished my speaking exam yesterday. My part 1 amd part 2 were really good, but my part 3 was not good because some of my answers were irrelevant. So, it will affect my score?
The speaking test is marked on: fluency, grammar, vocab and pron – relevancy is not a marking criterion.
HI! Today I had IELTS speaking exam. After my exam finished I have realized that the examinator asked me, probably, because I don’t remember pretty well: What is your favorite public celebration/ event -and I have answered: EASTER and described why….. I’m not sure whether this answer is ok or not. How it will affect my IELTS speaking score? I’m pretty nervous about it…. Thanks in advance.
Your score will be based on fluency, grammar, vocab and pron of the English language you produce – nothing else influences your score.
Hi Liz,
I attempted my IELTS and got a band 6. In part 3, the examiner asked me a question and after my answer asked me “Why” on that question. Even though, I answered with a reason and conclusion.
I got confused that what does the examiner wanted, is this the correct way they ask you questions? Can you please clarify
You are not being marked on your reason or your conclusion. In fact, you should not have a conclusion in any question in IELTS speaking. It is an informal chat with the examiner – not a formal essay. Task response is NOT marked in IELTS speaking. The examiner asked “why” because the examiner wants to hear more English and explanations offer a greater range of English language. The examiner was asking you to keep talking to hear more language from you. IELTS speaking questions are an opportunity to showcase language skills – not knowledge, ideas, conclusions etc. It is 100% normal for the examiner to do that in part 1 and particularly in part 3.
Hello Liz. I completely missed my part 2: I was asked asked to describe a historical building but ended up saying all about our trip, and couldn’t even terminate it properly. How adversely will it affect my score?
Sorry I don’t understand. You talked about what trip? Do you mean you completely changed the topic from buildings to holidays/travel? If you completely change the topic, the examiner might think this is because you memorised your talk – IELTS will not accept memorised answers. It is fine not to complete the prompts on the cue card – there is no score for task completion in IELTS speaking.
Hello ma’am.
I have my test tomorrow and my question is about your video for 25 listening tips. Sorry for asking here as there is no comment box in its page.
In tips number 8, you said if we use lower case for answers, we should use capital letters for names and places? What about the words in the beginning of sentences?
Thanks
It is best to use ALL CAPITAL LETTERS FOR YOUR READING AND LISTENING ANSWERS.
Hello liz. I wanna ask that I done my speaking test on Wednesday and in that I start the questions wrongly but mam repeat that question and I answered it correctly. So this repetition affects me or not
Only the English you produce will affect your score – nothing else matters.
Hello Liz.
I have taken my speaking test in couple of hours ago. My goal is band 6 in speaking. I was good at part 1 and 2 which i think my answers were appropriate for band 6 but in part 3 questions were alittle bit conceptual and i was not familiar with the topic as well as the examiner was reading the question in part 3 very fast. So i lost my confidence and i could not answer well especially the last question that i asked the examiner to repeat the question but examiner said “this is the end of the speaking test ” and nothing happened. Will part 3 affect my score to become less than 6? I am very nervous at the moment.
Your score is based on the level of English you uses over the whole test. You can’t estimate your score based on one part only. You’ll have to wait for your results – good luck 🙂
Thanks for your answer. Yes, i have to wait for results.
You know why I think it will affect my score? Because one time examiner interrupted me due to the fact that I was talking about myself in part 3 and he asked me to speak generally. Therefore i think, whole of these bad atmosphere will decrease my score.
The examiner did that to encourage you to show a range of English. Part 1 and part 2 are about yourself. Part 3 is the time to show the examiner you can speak about abstract issues and people in general – the examiner was trying to help you. The examiner wanted you to use different English so he could give you a better score.
it seems to me that the test was done very fastly, does it have any effect on the score ?
The speaking test lasts between 11 and 14 mins. It cannot be less and it cannot be more. If your test is 11 or 14 mins makes no difference to your score – it is a choice of the examiner.
Hi Liz,
I just finished my speaking test couple of hours ago, and the weirdest thing happened. O don’t know if it was my nerves but after one of my answers I laughed.. Not loudly, but yea. It was a laugh.
Her question ‘would you buy an expensive perfume for yourself ‘
My answer ‘ Well I wouldn’t buy one for myself but I certainly don’t mind recieving them as gifts’ and then I laugh. I have a feeling it’s going to affect my scores and I am unable to prepare for the rest of my exam with the above scenario playing in a loop in my mind.
🤐😥
IT is 100% fine. I like your answer and it is normal to laugh a bit after saying it. The speaking test is informal – you should be relaxed, chatty, friendly and act normally. Definitely, nothing to worry about 🙂
I had a speaking test today. My cue card was “talk about a friend you know who learned a foreign language”.
I talked about my wife learned foreign language. Do I lose marks??
It’s 100% fine. You are not marked on your choices.
Thank you, happy to hear that.
Today I have taken my speaking it was going all right, but in part 2 examiner asked questions immediately without stopping me. Also she stopped me when I have given half answer. Was it inappropriate
It is normal for the examiner to interrupt your answers in part 1 and part 3 as explained above. However, they cannot stop you during your 2 mins talk. They can only stop you after the 2 mins has finished or if you stop speaking they can move on to part 3.
Liz, same happened to me. I also got two questions in part 2 of speaking test which I wasn’t expecting. I talked about the topic for 2 min then she stopped me, asked me two questions and then she said this is the end of part 2. Is there any change in speaking pattern?
My test center was in the USA.
I don’t understand. What do you feel is different? What was unexpected for you?
She gave me a cue card, I prepared it for 1 min then I started talking about the topic and then she interrupted me (may be after one and a half or two min) and asked two questions regarding the cue card, I answered those questions and then she ended part 2. I wasn’t expecting questions in cue card (part-2)
I am not talking about the what you should speak. They were real questions like follow up questions but in part 2. I answered those questions and then part 3 started.
The examiner interrupted you at the end of 2 mins because those are the rules of IELTS. Your talk cannot last more than 2 mins. Following the cue card are one or two rounding off questions before starting part 3. This format of the test has not changed at all. The examiner does not ask questions during your talk, the rounding off questions are after your talk has finished and before part 3 starts.
Got it. Thank you.
Hello, today was my ielts speaking exam just couple of hours earlier. It was overall good but i have certain quarries related to it. In between the interview i replied to examiner”okay mam” twice or thrice. Will it affect my scores to an extent and in part 3 examiner had just asked me 9-10 questions, was she getting boor?
Please reply ne as soon as possible..
The examiner chooses how many questions to ask based on many things – but not boredom. Don’t worry about that. In the UK and most other English speaking countries, it is not usual to use “mam” unless you are hotel staff speaking to a customer. However, your score for speaking will be based on much more than just a few words. Try not to worry and wait for your results. Good luck 🙂
Hello today was my ielts and it went really wierd. Section 1 and 2 went fine but in section 3 she asked me the question- do you think normal people make plans for which i replies i thinks yes even i do. And without completing my sentence she interrupted me saying that i am asking about normal people which i find rude. She also kept eye rolling on me and was asking at a little rude tone. I could feel she was angry at something. When i recording stopped i said i am sorry i got nervous and she rudely kept on saying bye again and again.
Iknow that she can’t mark me on the basis of my perspective on a question but she felt rude to me and she might not give me correct marks.
There are two points to understand in your situation.
1) It is normal for an examiner to interrupt you in part 3 if you start talking about yourself or your family/friends. Part 3 is about the world in general. The examiner needs to see how you are able to use English for more abstract concepts about people as a whole, not specific people. This is something you must understand if you are to get a good score based on part 3. Failure to do this is frustrating for the examiner. When the examiner corrects you, they are trying to help you. It is hard for them to do more to help you. So, in this respect, the examiner acted 100% normally and followed test procedures which are there to help you maximise your score. Failure on the part of the candidate to understand this means you didn’t prepare properly. Speaking about yourself or friends/family in part 3 can result in a lower score because you aren’t demonstrating new and higher level language enough.
2) It is not ok for an examiner to make a candidate feel uncomfortable. There should be no eye rolling or any sign of negative body language coming from the examiner. The examiner should show positive and encouraging behaviour at all times during the test so that the candidate is not affected in a negative way by their presence in the room. Their tone should be pleasant. Their face should be engaged, not bored. They should direct the test firmly and strictly but without creating discomfort. But, the truth is that not all examiners are perfect. Some are better at this than others. I’m not saying it’s ok, I’m just saying it is part of life that some people are more professional than others. Certainly, you could complain if you want, but it is unlikely to change your score.
Once you get your results, you can decide if you want to remark. It’s your choice. But think carefully about whether you nailed part 3 and spoke a lot with the perspective of the world in general taking onboard abstract concepts. I’ll keep my fingers crossed for you – good luck 🙂
Hlo mam my speaking interview was on 25 april I am truly nervous because my examiner donot stop mean when I am giving answer to the questions either I gave long answers or short or even in cue card I speak about 2 min but after even examiner gave me posture to speak more and in intro she put 13 question on 3 different topic I am scare that is it is good or bad for me
I am confused by your message. Why do you think 13 questions on 3 topics in part 1 is not normal. It is in fact 100% normal – that is actually what part 1 is – 3 topics and about 12 questions. I think the problem you had it that you didn’t understand what is going to happen in each part and you also didn’t understand the examiner’s role (for example, the examiner will normally interrupt your answers). Hopefully you will still get the score you want. But if you don’t, please don’t book another test until you learn more about the speaking test – you must be fully prepared.
Hello Liz. I’m really grateful to you because of this helpful site. I have given my speaking exam on 2nd of April. I have some doubt. Part 1 and Part 3 was fine for me and gave some good answers. However, in part 2 i had 2 3 seconds pause. Will it really affect my score? Minimum i need 6 band in speaking.
Thank you 😊
Your score will be based on your overall performance. Fluency is based on more than just continuous speaking. Wait for your results to come. Good luck!
I wasn’t able to answer all the last question in part 2 since the time got over. So will this affect my score. I did answer all the other ones properly. I was asked to about my dream home. where it must be located, how it must look like and how many rooms it should and why you want to live there ?. I’m expecting a minimum of 6.5 in speaking.
There are no questions on the cue card.
Mam , today is my speaking module..and topic was..” talk about an old man you met..but in hurry I read wrong and started speaking about any famous personality..the mam who were presented their also did gesture that you are speaking wrong but I wouldn’t get..and stuck to the same topic..but mam was sporting and I finished my 1st and 3rd part in good note.. Could you tell me mam what is the penalty of talking on the wrong cue card..??
If the examiner thinks you did this as a mistake, it will not impact your score at all. If the examiner thinks you memorised the answer and changed the topic intentionally that would be a different matter. But it most likely the examiner understood and it will be fine.
Thanks mam..let’s see what will happen..!!
But it’s not intentionally, I hope mam will understand..!!
Hi,
I just finished my speaking test and I attended part 1 quite well and entered part 2. I started to speak for 2 min but I missed one of the sub question due to insufficient time because the examiner stopped me. Will that affect my score. I answered the rest of the questions well
There are no questions on the cue card. None at all. There are prompts which are guidelines to help you if you wish.
Good Afternoon Liz,
I took my speaking exam 2 days ago, I think i did a good job in part 1 and part 3 using good English, vocabulary and was relevant in most of the conversations. However in part 2 i got an unusual topic and i think i answered it in a decent way and i stayed relevant to the topic but i blanked out after a minute and a half of speaking and couldn’t think of anything else to say but the examiner didn’t stop the recording and i had to repeat myself in the last 20 seconds. Do you think this will affect my score? (I need a total score of 7)
Sorry I don’t understand. What do you mean the examiner didn’t stop the recording device? The examiner always stops the recording device at the end of the test. I’m not sure exactly what you are asking me. Can you rephrase it?
Thanks for the feedback Liz, i meant to say that in part 2 i gave a good relevant answer to the topic but i only spoke for 90 seconds and not the full 2 minutes. I thought the examiner would move on to part 3 straight away but she didn’t and I went silent for a few seconds and had to repeat myself for 20 seconds until she moved on to part 3. Other than that i think i did a good job with part 1 and 3, will that affect my score?
It is 100% normal that the examiner will remain silent if you finish early. The examiner cannot take time away from you unless you have finished your talk. Did you tell her you had finished? Did you say “That’s all.”. If you didn’t tell her, she must wait to see if you will add more. Don’t worry about it. It is just a formality and doesn’t mean anything with regards your score.
Thank you! I just thought it would be worse if i told her that i’m done so i preferred to repeat what i said instead.
Don’t worry. It isn’t a big problem at all. But if you take the test again, you can remember to tell her you have finished. However, it would be better to extend your talk anyway. You can add any kind of information at all – being off topic isn’t marked in IELTS speaking. If your topic was about your favourite season – you could extend your talk with information about what other people think, or weather in the past, or living in a hot country vs a cold country, or problem with weather in your country, or climate change – anything related to the main topic.
Thank you so much for the advice, hopefully i won’t need to re do the test again tho!
What happens if the question in part was about a place (ex. a place where you go for entertainment), but I misunderstood and talked about the concert I saw. Will I lose points? Thank you.
It would make no difference as long as you stuck to the main topic. A concert is a place with music – it’s fine.
Hi Liz,
In section 3,I didn’t give elaborated answers .My answers were just upto the point and she asked me around 7-8 questions. Is the short response is going to impact my score ?
Thanks
The aim is to show you can speak at length. It is part of the marking criterion for fluency. You should never give short answers. You always speak until the examiner stops you to ask a new question. You are not marked on your ideas, so being “to the point” carries no weight in IELTS speaking. However, your score will be based on your overall performance throughout the whole test.
Mam Speaking off topic in fire round may affect the marks?? Actually I said little bit about the question but covered most of parts Off topics.
I have no idea what “fire round” means. There is no fire round in IELTS speaking. There is part 1, part 2 and part 3.
Part-3 I’m talking about it
You are referring to the Discussion which is part 3. Why would you speak off topic? You are given specific questions to answer. You answer them directly and then explain what you mean or give your opinion in more detail. I do not understand “covered most of parts off topic” that has no meaning in English. Why would you speak off topic in most parts of the test? I think the problem here is your English – it is very difficult for me to understand what you are asking.
Hey Liz I guess I have the same problem. The examiner asked me “why do you think people post videos of the msekves on the Internet” and I said that I’m right person to answer this since I am a blogger and then he stopped me. I would really like to know how it will affect my score.
It wouldn’t affect your score. But why did you tell the examiner that? That was an opportunity for you to use all the relevant vocabulary about videos and blogging without telling the examiner you have expert knowledge in the field. This is a language test. If you have a chance to shine in a topic, you should use it and blow the examiner away with your fantastic English – without mentioning that you are involved in that field. IELTS is based on how broad your range of topics is which means showing that you can talk beyond your own field. You missed a great chance to push your level up.
Hi Liz, I had a speaking yes today. The examiner asked to me ‘my country politic problem and what am I think for president ‘ before test. I think this is not acceptable. You think is it normal? Also I prepared in one minute my answer but when I start speaking that the examiner stopped me after one mins later. He moved last part of the test.I couldn’t finish my answer. You think they usually finish before than 2 mins. Thank you 🙏
It is highly inappropriate for any IELTS examiner to refer to anything political. Even if it is a comment before the test starts – it is 100% wrong. Also NO examiner can stop you before 2 mins is up in part 2. Your talk cannot be interrupted until 2 mins has finished. These are the rules of IELTS which cannot be changed by any examiner. You have the option to complain, but I do not know how that will affect your score. You have the option of a remark, but there is no guarantee it will change your score. Your message above contains many English language errors, so this will limit your score. I wish you all the best with your results. If you need to take the test again, you will need to work on your English is you need a high score.
Hi Liz,
I had taken my speaking test today morning, was just done with sometime back. This is the second time I am appearing as I lost my desired score for writing section in my previous attempt. I got a band 7.0 last time for speaking section however I feel the examiner was acting quite rude and it made slightly lose out my confidence. In Cue card topic it was about whom you consider intelligent, why etc and I spoke about 3 folks to showcase past present and future and concluded with one person whom I consider most intelligent, she was like when I started said slowly its 1 person not 3, will I lose marks on it? I had spoken at length, with appropriate verbs and I almost ended in close to 2 mins. Follow up questions were about intelligence and I managed to answer although may not be the accurate answers , she tried deep diving to answers so I’m really unsure of my performance.
I feel quite dissatisfied as in comparison with my previous test had kind off under performed although spoke decently.
I am really apprehensive on my scores.
You were using a formula which appears like a memorised answer for IELTS. You need to avoid doing that. Use the prompts that were given to you and stick to one person. But add extra information such as comparisons with others, hopes, experiences, opinions etc – you can easily get plenty of grammar tenses into your answer still describing one person. It is important that the examiner does not think you rehearsed the answer at home. Will you lose marks? It depends if the examiner thought it was a memorised answer or not. Most likely, you will be ok.
As you didn’t explain why you thought the examiner was rude, I can’t comment on that.
man liz recently i appear my ielts i was not nervous but because of her low voice ane quick asking i had to asked her for twice in test like sorry!!! pardon!?! and because of not understanding of her voice in follow ups questions there is little bit time to get understand i had to take just two sec and more but sometime i also gave her answer but there are little bit variation in task response what it affects my score?? six
Task Response does not exist in the IELTS speaking test – that is a marking criterion for writing, not speaking. You are not marked on your understanding in IELTS speaking. You are marked on: fluency, grammar, vocabulary and pronunciation – nothing else matters.
Hi Liz,
I took a test last week and got 7.0 for Speaking, which really shocked me because I got 8.5 just two months ago. On the test day, I was nervous, and I think that I didn’t perform as well as what I did in the test 2 months ago. Should I request for a re-mark? Is it possible that I could be marked 1.0 point below my actual level?
There is no way to know how well you did and if the scoring is accurate without listening to the full test. This is one time when you need to use your own judgement. In each test, you will use different English, perform differently and tackle different topics. So, you really need to think about your fluency, grammar, vocab and pron – do you feel that in this test, you should have got higher than band 7? If you feel that it was marked unfairly, you should consider going for a remark. If you do go for a remark, let me know how it goes – good luck!
Hi Liz,
I had my speaking test today and the topic was “Describe a person whom you never met but would like to meet in the future”. I was fluent but gave irrelevant answers thrice and the examiner repeated the questions. Is that ok?
You are marked on the level of English language you produce for the IELTS speaking test, not your understanding and not your relevancy.
liz i am a very naughty person. In each ielts speaking test , i answered questions very well but they were funny. Like the question in one of the reply “Describe a person whom you never met but you would like to meet in future?
I have a funny answer for this “I would like to travel in time,to the future, meet with my reincarnated self, whom i never met. I would warn him about not to make mistakes that i made.”
That’s a great answer 🙂 But remember, you are not marked on your ideas in IELTS speaking. Even so, I enjoyed reading your answer and I’m sure the examiner would have enjoyed it 🙂 It also contained great English – reincarnated self.
Hi Liz,
You have been doing wonderful job. Took my speaking test today. Cue card a decision you took and changed later. I did well I feel but then he interrupt me before I could continue and stopped me. I continued though as I needed only 10 more seconds to conclude. What is your suggestion in this????
Thanks
If you have reached the time limit, the examiner will stop you. These are the rules of IELTS speaking and has no impact on your score.
I don’t remember when did the examiner asked me to write in 3rd part of the speaking test. I spoke without writing anything. I know i was very much relevant to the topic and the examiner also helped me. But i want to know if that will affect my score
Part 3 is a discussion and you have no pen and no paper. In part 2, it is a talk and you are given pen and paper to plan your talk. Are you referring to part 2? Not using the time to plan is a mistake because you obviously didn’t think about which language features to showcase. Otherwise, you are not marked on your writing in your speaking test.
Today was my speaking test and i assume it was a disaster .
i believe the examiner was not profsstional at all in the way he conducted the test.
He seems to be in a huury and wanted to finish it as soon as possible.
he kept interupting me while i was trying to answer the questions and he didin’t give me a fair chance to demonstrate my English.
He either didn’t pay attention or he didn’t understand my answers since he re-asked me several question twice dispite answering them .
i was anxious and my mind went blank during my attempt to answer the question which resulted in a poor performance as i was not fluent nor able to answer most of the questions completly . in addtion to that i stuttered and hesitated a lot.
in part 2 i could not finish on time as i barely was able to exceed 1 minutes. this is because of my anxiety and inability to gather thoughts to extend my speech.
the examiner attitude i assume increased this feeling by being hurry and barely smiling nor encouraging. He didn’t try to relieve my anxiety .
My only hope is my use of advance vocabulary would indicate, to the examiner, that lack of the communication is attributed to mainly to lack of thouts instead of my competency.
After the test, my examnier went to the supervisor and he handed him the recording device despite the present of other candidates wainting their turn. I assume he was running of space or time on the recording so he wanted to finish as soon as possible.
This my third attempts and this experince was the worts as a performance and as a negative attitude by the examiner .
It is important that you are prepared for examiners having different attitudes and manners – unfortunately. Being interrupted is a natural part of the speaking test and you should be prepared for that. You should also have prepared ideas for so many topics that you always have something to say – especially in part 2 when I have posted a list of topics: https://ieltsliz.com/sept-to-dec-2018-ielts-speaking-part-2-topics/. Take a look at the page and see if your topic was listed.
Same thing happened with me. I was interrupted multiple times in part 2. The examiner was stopping me and prompting me to say something that she wanted to hear. But I had other things in my mind and the examiner did not let me to say that. As a result, I went blank and part 2 was a disaster for me.
Hi Liz,
‘You have wonderful blogs. And thanks for the guidance you provide to each of the aspirants. I had my IELTS exam yesterday. I was not happy with the speaking part. I felt that it got over very quickly and examiner was rushing through all the questions I would speak hardly 10-15 seconds and examiner would give me a look and start with the next question. Even the cue card section I was kind of got to speak hardly one minute and the followup questions started. At no point I felt that examiner was moving on to next question because I was lacking content not was I prompted to continue in case I finished early and time was left per 2 minute rule.
I am really worried on the outcome and not sure if I errored or was so bad in speaking that examiner just wanted to get over with the already long day that they were having.
Any thoughts you think what would be the reason. Do you think IETLS evaluates the recording and would note that the test lasted under 10 minutes.
Any guidance or pointers can help me if in case I need to gie exam once again in future.
Thanks.
Pat
The only time anyone will listen to the recording is if you pay for a remark. At that time, your recording will be examined and remarked by a senior examiner. It is 100% normal to have your answers interrupted and be asked a new question. However, it is not allowed to interrupt your talk until 2 mins have passes – that is a rule and any examiner who does it is breaking the rules. Wait for your results and I wish you good luck!
what was your score on this test? Since I have experienced the same problem today
Hello.
I believe that my Part 2 in IELTS Speaking lasted less than 1 minute, but i have heard that the examiner will prompt you to continue if that is the case. Please confirm this?
You are allowed 2 mins to talk. If you finish early, the examiner MUST encourage you to keep talking.
Hi ..
My IELTS exam was today
The examiner asked me about “ plant” in my home
Unfortunately I missed understand the question as she speaks in british accent so i think she was asking about “ plan“ then she tried to help with her hand explaning for me it was wrong answer so I shifted my answer to another wrong answer.. but at the end I recognized what she ment .. i feel disappointed .. plz tell me how much this well effect on my score.?
It will not affect your score at all. You are not marked on understanding the question. You will still be marked on the fluency, grammar, vocab and pron of each answer you gave. The problem is that it affected your confidence and that might impact your English language and the quality of the language you used in your answers. If you take the test a second time, never lose your confidence for any reason.
I took my speaking test today. So, i’m skeptical about the fact that I finished it around 1.30 min in pt2, where the examiner told to me continue so, I continued even when I had concluded and the next thing is the examiner just asked 3 or 4 question in pt3. I’m really worried about the score. I scored 6 last time and want to score more this time. However, I think I made a mistake.
I see nothing wrong with your speaking test. It sounds fine to me.
thanks for the warm words. I always followed your instructions.
Hi liz. How it effects the marks if the candidate gets aggressive while answering the question?
If you actually act aggressively with an examiner, the examiner will probably have the right to terminate the test. No company allows their employees to suffer aggressive or abusive behaviour from others. This is a very unusual question. No person should act aggressively towards another.
Hello liz,
I had my speaking section today. It went pretty well, i believe. I spoke on cue card topic until the examiner stopped me. But i belive my exam was ended within 10min…she stopped me within 1min in cue card section i believe…i couldn’t cover all the questions of the cue card…will it affect my grades. I am worried about it.
The examiner MUST give you 2 mins for your talk – that is the rule and the examiner can’t break the rules. The test cannot last less than 11 mins. There are no questions on the cue card, there are only prompts which you do not need to cover or use.
Hi Liz,
I gave my speaking test today. I dint read the cue card questions. I just started speaking about the main topic. I spoke less I suppose n examiner asked me to continue I then added some examples. But checking the cue card just slipped off my mind. This happened twice. Will it impact my score?
There are NO questions on the cue card. There are prompts which you can use or not use as you wish.
Hello Liz,
I would like to recheck with you on the use of the prompts in the cue card. Are they really optional for consideration ?
Thanks a lot in anticipation.
They are guidelines which you can use or not use, as you wish. I personally recommend people to use them. They provide ideas and a great structure. However, you should also add more to your talk – go beyond the prompts.
Dear Liz, first of all, a heart full of thanks to you for your amazing Videos.
I Just gave the speaking test & I am so worried about it. Why?
My cue card was about an occasion that I met someone special with explanation of why the person os special and what we did together. Rather than saying about the occasion, I just spoke about the person and I couldn’t even speak for a minute.
When I stopped talking, the examiner again restated about the occasion and moved on to follow up questions related to building relationships.
I believe I did splendid except the cue card part.
What do you think my score will be? I’m really frightened. 🙁
You won’t be marked down because you didn’t cover an aspect of the cue card. But you missed an opportunity to show your fluency and your ability to speak at length without effort. Even so, your score will be based on your overall level of English, not on each part. Good luck with your results 🙂
Hey liz,
I’m done with my speaking test today and I’m not at all satisfied with the test as well as with the examiner. Although, i did pretty well, she did stop me from answering for almost all questions and proceeded to the next question. My exam was done in a jiffy (8-9 min). Will that effect my bands? Should I book another test??
It is not possible for a speaking test to take under 11 mins.
Hey.. I had my speaking test today.
Even my test got completed under 10 minutes. Is it a bad sign?
It is not possible for an IELTS speaking test to be under 11 mins unless the candidate cannot produce enough English.
I’m done with my speaking test today , i did average in pt1 and pt2 nd i was trying to speak as long as i can in discussion and introduction. He asked me 10 12 questions in introduction i was quite comfortable with 8 9 question but i was strugglng in 2 3 questions but in discussion part i did well
But i wasnot able to complete 2 min. In pt2 only 1.30 min. I covered so, please predict my ielts score.
Firstly, I am not a fortune teller and cannot predict results which are based on fluency, grammar, vocab and pronunciation without actually hearing your fluency, grammar, vocab and pronunciation. Secondly, there is no introduction – there is part 1, part 2 and part 3. Part 1 is simple questions mostly about yourself on common topics such as work/home/hometown/weather/family etc which lasts for 4 to 5 mins. Your score is based on your overall performance on all parts. Each part is not marked separately. Good luck with your results.
Cue card was on studies i was intrested in my school
The examiner also asked after cue card that is this subject availble today also in studies?
I answered i m not sure as the syllabus is changing mostly 1 or 2 years… Then the examiner stopped me and moved to part 3 so it can have any impact on it… Plz liz i knw i m disturbing u but i m in a great tension so plz reply me as soon as possible
It sounds fine. Stop worrying. Relax! 🙂
So if my cue is discounted than approx what bands i can get if overall it was good
Band scores are not calculated in that way. You will need to wait for your results to see if it has had any impact.
But my answer was made by me only also at that time when I have done the same cue card so I was having the much of the content for it and i not at all stopped while speaking cue card it was in a continuous flow.. Thats it.. So plz tell if answer is not of any book or source but made by me only
If the examiner is sure that you memorised each line, it will be discounted. This means if you wrote down each line by yourself before the test and memorised each line to give in your answer, it will be discounted. But if you spoke naturally and spontaneously, it’s fine.
I have given up the test today and the topic of the cue card was done by me before so I spoke the same Continuously for 2 Mins so is it possible that they can cut the bands for memorized answer.. And also i gave answers which were contrasting my own opinion in 2 different questions
If they think your answer is memorised, they can discount the entire answer. At no time can you use memorised language. You can prepare ideas and vocabulary, but what you say or write must be produced naturally in the test.
Hi Liz,
I’m having my speaking exam on 11th august.
actually i m not having my last name in my passport so i’m confused, when the examiner would ask me about my full name. what should i say, only the first name that is in passport or i can say my full name.
When the examiner asks your full name, you need to say the name on the ID card that you give him/her.
hey liz! i have my ielts speaking exam tomorrow! I am scared and i just wanted to ask that whether we’ll be able to look at the timer during the part 2- individual long turn or not?
The examiner controls the time in all parts of the IELTS speaking test. You should keep talking until the examiner decides to move on.
Hello. I have been worried about my exam that I took last week, about the speaking session. I was stopped to speak by the examiner because of that my answer did not answer the question correctly. I could not understand his answer properly and I got his question in a wrong way. After he asked the question in a different way, I think I could answer his question.. Does it affect the result? I think It does because it meant that I could not understand his questions in English, so it would have shown my English was not enough to listen to an English speaker?
I cannot do anything now and just have to wait for the result though…I would like to keep on it and try it again! Because I like to learn English and would like to have deeper conversations with more people:)
I would be happy if you could reply to me. Thank you so much. Ruri
The speaking test scored are not based on understanding. If you don’t understand a question, it doesn’t affect your results. Only the language that you speak is marked so you need to aim for accuracy and range when you showcase your English.
What’s your score in Speaking. I have faced the same situation in my today’s speaking test.
Hey Liz!
Tomorrow is my speaking test.. I am suffering from cough which starts when I start speaking..I am very nervous what will happen tomorrow, as it is difficult to speak continuously. Will I get some water or help from there or will they wait and give me chance to speak? Please reply
Ask if you can take a glass of water into the room with you. I don’t know if it is allowed, but you should ask and explain you have a dry throat due to sickness. The examiners decides when to move to the next question – let the examiner make those decisions. It is only 14 mins of your life – it is a short time and I’m sure you can push yourself to do well. It is an informal speaking test – be friendly and chatty 🙂
Hi Liz,
Me and my wife had IELTS speaking test today. I messed up twice and had a strange point to discuss.
1) while asked for ID I just handed over the passport and uttered nothing. Was blank and not thinking anything at that point out of boredom probably.
2) While answering something i got into an unusually long complex sentence and i sense a possibility of grammatical error i could have made.
3) main reason why i am writing this is this point. For the cue card question, i was talking and i think quite likely i finished 1min+ of time, the examiner made gestures thrice making me feel as if she wants me to wrap up. When i did, there was blank silence for couple of secs and she glanced at the timer. I felt odd and I started talking again.
Couple of points, she was interrupting quite a bit during part1. She didn’t let me speak at few occasions where i had some good words/lines. I was quoting real life examples from my work (topic was about clothing and culture) and she mentioned that i need not quote my office examples and answer generically. Co-incidently my wife had same examiner and very similar experience of being constantly being interrupted.
What do you think about this? Could this affect the scores? I was pretty fluent, logical and confident otherwise.
Your message tells me that you were not prepared for your speaking test. You went into the test room without understand what your role is and what the examiner’s role is. You don’t seem to understand what is normal and what is not normal.
1) You don’t have to say anything particular in the ID check unless asked – it isn’t marked.
2) Your grammar is scored over your whole performance, not on one answer.
3) The examiner was trying to use body language to tell you to keep talking. Your task in part 2 is NOT to cover all points in the cue card. Covering all points is not an aim and does not improve your score. Your task is to expand your talk and show the ability to speak at length (for two minutes). You seriously need to review your understanding of part 2. When you stop speaking, the examiner will wait and give you a chance to keep talking.
4) It is 100% that the examiner will interrupt your answers in part 1 and part 3 – you should expect that to happen.
5) Your ideas are not marked in IELTS speaking. You do not need to explain where your examples or ideas come from. You speak about yourself when the question is about yourself. You speak about the world in general when the question is general (such as all questions in part 3).
The only thing that will affect your score is that you don’t understand the purpose of the questions and how the test is marked. This means that you might have missed great opportunities to show more flexible language. But nothing else will affect your score.
It is still possible that you did well. If you don’t get the score you want, you now at least know why. You need to learn more about IELTS. I hope this helps.
Hi Liz,
Wanted tomupdate my scores as well as need another advice. I scored L-8.5, S-8, R-8, W-6.5.
As you know I wasn’t expecting good score on Speaking but i can’t believe the score in Wroting module. I definitely did well based on how i think i covered all aspects as well as structured my ans. I scored W-7.5 around 2013. If i remember something different i did this time it was that i crossed the word limit by quite a bit. It would be vlose to 450words for essay. What could be reasons for low W scores – I couldn’t think of many reasons that i could have done wrongly.
I am thinking of revaluation of Writing scores. What are success rates? How long should it take? Thanks again in advance..
Why would you write over 400 words? What was your aim? It certainly isn’t an IELTS aim to write a long essay. Your essay should be under 300 words, highly focused with each sentence 100% essential to your essay. The more you write, the more mistakes you make. More mistakes = lower score. you should be aiming for quality and NOT quantity. Very well done with your speaking score !! 🙂
Hi Liz I had a speaking test today I spoke fluently for two minutes but all in a sudden was stopped by the examiner, I didn’t stop anywhere I could talk even more on that topic I believe I missed few important stuff regarding the topic and I could easily cover them If I was not put on halt by the examiner, so since she stopped me from speaking more would it hurt my chances of getting above 7 bands ? Please answer me
The examiner is not interested in your ideas and is not interested in you finishing the answer. The examiner is marking your spoken English and will decide when to test a new aspect of language.
Thanks for sparing ur precious time for me, god bless u liz
Hi Liz,
Today I had my speaking test. In part 2 the examiner asked if I wanted to do it again. What that actually means? Will I get worst band score?
Really worried about it.
I have never heard of an examiner offering for you to completely do part 2 again. It is possible you misunderstood the examiner.
What was the topic?
I have took the speaking test today . Unfortuntlely, i forget the name of river in my country . Therefore i stopped to remember it . Then the examiner moved to the second question.
I am afraid to get low mark like band 5 in speaking.
Is that could happen ??
Of course it won’t matter. Your score is based on your overall performance.
Thank you very much
I was worried about that and makes me feel – after completion of the test – dout about other questions .
Thank you agian 🥀
Today I have taken ielts exam( speaking section), where the interuptions by examiner made me quite confused… It seemed I was digressing from the topic , while I was trying to give proper and large answers.As she stopped , I failed to answer to the major points. Unfortunately , I don’t anticipate a high score, however I was focused for 7,5 as minimum.
It is part of the test that the speaking examiner will move on the next question when they want. This is something you should have prepared for and be comfortable with. If you didn’t know this would happen, it means you didn’t prepare properly for the test. See this page: https://ieltsliz.com/why-the-ielts-speaking-examiner-stops-your-answer/
1. May be ur answer sufficient so no need to linger on discussion . Or other way u are going out of the track.
2. If it is positive intrupption it will not affect ur score. But of it is negative then it can affect ur score.
The interviewer can interrupt the candidate, and this is normal in speaking test. There is a time limit for every question and as such the candidate should give sufficient answers.
This should not affect the candidate’s score.
May be the examiner think that the student is memorizing the answer or does not understand the question so he or she want to redirect the student to the appropriate way.
To my mind, there is a high probability that examiner thinks that you learned by heart the answer, and this obviously has detrimental effect on your grade and also your fluency because it can spoil your flow and might be hard to get back on track.
There is 3 reasons
1- there is a time limit .
2- the examiner is satisfied with your language.
3- your answer has gone out off topic.
i dont think its deduct mark
I think the reason for question 1 is if the student is giving their answers too long or he is going off topic, the examiner might interrupt him/her and then rephrase the question again
And for second, It depends on examiner, if he thinks that you are giving long answers for Part 1 specially, it might lower your score, but if its for part 3 then most likely examiner will not reduce the score.
Mainly in part 2 sometime we can’t speak 2 minutes contineously so Examiner stop us because if we pause few seconds we become more nervous and can’t speak confidently in remaining questions or part.
Respected Madam,
My answer to this is that it never affect someone’s score. Perhaps, examiner stops to ask another question or for the follow up question. In IELTS, if someone makes mistakes, examiner never bother, So there is no reason to decrease score of IELTS
Yeah…i have speaking test today i.e 23 november and while answering particular question answer she immedaitely ask another question without being finished my answers. I don’t understand why this occur. Pleasr provide me info. about this? Is this affect the score?
Same happened with me also today.. Even I am wondering.
Yea exactly, this is the case I have experienced today. As I couldn’t finish my answers they seemed to be unrelevant, I am very annoyed with such impatient examiners, due to her I have disrupted all my speaking 😁
Hlo liz
I think examiner does not want to listen more and more on one question
So that’s why he/she interrupts u
It is less likely that it effects score
1. The examiner interrupts in the middle for time management. As examiner is provided only 15-20 minutes to complete the whole test, hence he or she is well concerned with time by allocating sufficient time for each section.
2. I don’t think so, it will affect one’s IELTS score as it is done by examiner’s own discretion.
Because examiner has to manage time.
He or she satisfy with your answer. 😊
In part 1 examiner often stops a candidate if he is answering too long.so examiner stop him to ask an other question
In part 3 examiner usually stop when :
i)a candidate does not understand the question and speaks irrelevant.
ii)a candidate’s answer is off the topic
ii)
1. Examiner wanted to judge candidate confidence while speaking.
2. Yes, this interruption will effect in score.
I think the examiner interrupts us because he/she wants to check our confidence level or may be he find something….
2. May be it effects our score …
Hii according to me following are may be the reasons that examiner stops you..
If you are on off topic or may be you could not cover all sub questions especially in part 2 and you still speaking.
One more possibility is that examiner judged you on some skills but he/she wants to examine you on some other skills then he/she stops individual and ask something else…
she/ he thinks your answers are likely to be scripted?
Due to time contraints
It will confused me.
My question is why examiner could do that?
1.0 The examiners test English skill not knowledge of candidate therefore it quite often to stop you in between if you have shown your English skills during the initial part of answer and you are trying to extend it beyond. Additionally s/he has to ask around 10-11 question within limited time of 4-5 minutes, therefore its become imperative them to stop you in between to move on next question. Finally it might be there strategy to do rapid fire round type of exam to evaluate whether any one giving memorizing answer or not, or check the fluency of candidate.
2.0 I don’t think this type of awkwardness in the speaking test affect scoring, but yes it completely depends on your task response, and English language, and other IELTS assessment criteria
1. Most of the questions in first part is related to normal things, so may be their main motive is whether we as students can understand the questions well or not.
2. What’s our level in English
3. They have time constraint.
4. We might be speaking unnecessary or learned answers.
May be because the answer is irrelevant
I think the examiner does that in order to control exam time . And for the score , I guess when examiner stops someone , the score does not get affected by that.
I am of the view that,
When it happens, it shows that you are not speaking to the point or you have given the answer and unnecessarily explaining further.
It would make you a less efficient communicator and reflect on your score as well.
Thanks.
I personally think that the answer is too long and the examiner can comprehend fully ideas. The bottom line is that it doesn’t influence candidate’s score. However, it can impact her/his metal.
Do you agree or disagree with me?
1. Their might be two scenarios here, if examiner feels that the candidate is repeating same and even got paused using filler “Um” for thinking. Rather if it is quite an elaborate answer exceeding time limit.
2. I am quite sure that scores will be effected for my initial reasoning but not with second one.
Please note my answer is based on only of my findings as I myself have never appeared for IELTS exam but is scheduled for attending one in coming week.
Will be looking forward to your answer Liz. Thank You in advance.
Examiner wants to check our confidence level or may be he is against of our views.
I think that they are satisfied with our answer or some time they take more time on part one introductory questions so might be they stop us.
If all points are covered within a time they might be able to stop us.
There is no much more important to affect our score.
I believe the most common reason behind the examiner blocking us from completing the answer is due to time crunch since they’ve to examine and rate the speaking skills of all of the candidates appearing to them. Other reasons might be as follows:
1) To see observe the candidates reaction
2) To observe whether the candidate maintains attitude and maintains eye contact
Please correct me if i am wring
I think he might be satisfied with our reply and wanted to move on to next question.
Hi,
I think it do not affects band score.
He is having time bound with the parts and
No this interrupt would never effect anyone’s score
Passage: mobile telephone interferes with patients monitoring equipment.
Question: radio can interfere with hospital equipment.
Answer: not given
My question is the answer could b false as this is opposite .
Plz explain
Why it happens?
Sometimes examiner wants to ask another question . In addition , to utilise time in an appropriate manner , examiner interrupts . I don’t think , this behaviour of examiner affect the scores .
I think the examiner stops those who speak more than what is required in a response. Responses in Parts 1 and 3 should neither be too short nor too long. The aim is to hit the questions with substantially precise answers.
1.- The examiners are bound by a certain time constraint.
– The person being interviewed is going off topic.
2. No, it doesn’t.
I have no idea why the examiner will do this.
One question please: if the examiner is the person that tests you, in one word, what do we call the writer of the exam?
no it will not affect your score
No,they just try to put in time frame
Off topic
Or wrong grammar
I think so. Yes
Is it because we have exceeded the time fixed?? In my case actually, the examiner asked me to say a little bit more as there was time remaining and I had finished earlier.
If you tend to answer too long or give memorized answers or the examiner is satisfied with your answers, he or she will interrupt you because he or she has to save time and move on to the next questions.
And I don’t think this affects your score.
1. Taking more time than assigned to part one or three.
2. Score depends on the content which is I am speaking. If it’s relevant then it may help me to score high.
Hope my assumptions are correct.
Just started practicing for the IELTS exam.
Thank you for all the content you provide on this website.
So that youll be out of focus with your answer. It tests you if you memorize your answer
I think they interrupt you when they see you are in the right direction in answering the question and they have already assessed you, so there is no point listening you on that particular question.
I was too nervous in the speaking pArt, i spoke non stop but my voice showed nervousness, and the examiner was trying to help ….do u think it will affect my score.? I am seeking for band 7 in speaking
Your score is based on fluency, grammar, vocab and pronunciation – nothing else will affect your score.
This is a strategy to check the spontaneousness of the speaker. I don’t think it affects your score negatively.
I think that the Examiner is happy with your answer and that you have elaborated enough on the question asked.
It happened to me last exam ,I think it does affect my score
No , i don’t think that. This thing affects the band if examiner stops in the middle of questions. because this same thing happened with me and even i got good score according to my talent.
Hello ma’am Liz, I have watched most of your videos on YouTube .They’re all very use ful. . . .i think the examiner stops the student because of time and maybe because the examiner have already answered the question well.They need to move to the next question
To disturb the Student.
It happened to me twice: during part 1 and part 3. And I think the reasons are different in each part. During part 1, it was because he was satisfied with the answer and wanted to go further, and in part 3 was because he understood that my level was not enough to reach a superior level so he was sure about the classification I will receive…. no matter how I would continue speaking he will not change his mind.
I think there may be two possibilities. Either the examiner find your answer sufficient, or you are on the wrong way.
Hi Liz, Thanks for putting up such amazing videos on IELTS. I had the IELTS speaking test today and I am unhappy in the way of examiner took the test. In part 1 and part 3, she would ask the question and within 5 seconds into my answer she would ask ‘why’ making me unable to complete the bit I was taking about. As per the format I have seen, at least 20 seconds per question is given. Due to this, I felt that I could not bring out the answers I wanted to give. I got interrupted thrice by her like this during the examination.
Also, there was a question where she asked about how people or how in general people react on X y X thing. I started answering by saying I would take my example here or what I feel and she interrupted again by saying I am not taking about you, I am taking about people in general. Hence, again interruption and I have to start my answer again.
I wanted to ask is this normal to happen? Or should I report it somewhere?
It is 100% normal. It is something you need to be prepared for as the page above explains. Also it is essential in part 3 that you talk about the world in general and about people in general, not about yourself or your personal life. Sounds like you were surprised. It is important that you enter the test room with a clear understanding of how it will most likely be conducted. Good luck with your results.
Thanks for your reply. Will this cost me negative marking as I started answering about myself and then turned to people in general when the examiner prompted me to do so?
No, it doesn’t affect your score, but it does mean you waste valuable test time.
Dear Liz,
I am kind of worried in part 2 where I am asked to describe what sport I would like to try for the first time as I went home and checked it seems the issue of whether chess is considered sport is at best contentious – many countries don’t seem to recognise chess as sport and some pointed out it is not sport as no intense physical movement is involved so doesn’t fit disctionary definition of “sport”.
If chess is not a sport then I might have gone totally off-topic by describing something that is factually incorrect in part 2.
Also a bit shivery today due to nervousness couldn’t control slight body movements throughout parts of the test. But generally I thought I answered everything that were asked.
Is band 7 still possible under such circumstances?
As the ideas you give are not marked it doesn’t actually matter. In fact, it’s a great way to begin the talk:
“I’m going to talk about chess. I know some people don’t really consider it as a sport, but it is a competitive game between two people that requires skill and concentration…”. This opens up your talk at the end to debate what is or isn’t considered a sport and your views etc (if you wish).
It is important for everyone that you enter the test room confident that you understand how the test is marked and what you can/can’t do. Don’t lose confidence because you think you made a mistake that isn’t actually a mistake.
Good luck with your results!! Let me know when they arrive.