IELTS Speaking Part 1 Topic

Hi guys,

A speaking part 1 topic this summer is the topic of Dreams. Below you will see some questions for this topic.

Instructions

In speaking part 1, you will be asked about 12 questions in 4 to 5 mins. This means you will probably be able to give about one or two long sentences for each answer. Always answer directly and always add a bit more information so that the examiner can hear your English.

Questions

Do you often have dreams?
Do you usually remember your dreams?
Do you think we can learn something from dreams?

Answers

I have posted model answers on this page: Model Answers to Dream Questions

IELTS Speaking Tips

Get all my IELTS speaking tips: IELTS Speaking Tips & Model Answers

IELTS Recent Exam Questions

Get my free lessons by email

Filed Under: IELTS Speaking

Answers to IELTS Writing Task 1 Synonyms Exercise

by Liz 41 Comments

Hi guys,

Here are the answers to yesterday’s exercise about using synonyms in IELTS writing task 1. I think it was a good exercise because I see many students have different answers and are unclear about collocations. Mistakes in vocabulary will lower your score.

Let me know if the lesson was useful 🙂

Questions

Are the verbs correct in the sentences below? Are they Right or Wrong?

More boys than girls enjoyed sport.
Fewer girls participated in tennis than boys.
Almost twice the number of boys played cycling.
More girls took part in swimming compared to boys.
The majority of boys engaged in football.
More girls competed in badminton than boys.

Answers

W = Wrong. The chart is about playing sport but about enjoying it. The chart does not give information about how boys or girls felt. This would be marked as a mistake.
R = Right. The verb “participate in” works well as a synonyms for “play” when referring to sport.
W = Wrong. The verb “play” is not possible with the noun “cycling”. This is a mistake with vocabulary – an incorrect collocation. When writing or talking about cycling, we can use the verb “do”.
R = Right. The verb “take part in” works well as a paraphrase for “play” in this context.
W = Wrong. The verb “engage” is incorrect when writing about sport.
W = Wrong. The verb “compete” is about competitions. This chart is about playing sports, not competing in sports. This would be marked as a vocabulary mistake.

Comment

You can see that paraphrasing is about deciding if nouns and verbs match. It is about understanding the context. It is about choosing correctly. Some words will be repeated – this is normal in English.

Paraphrasing Video

Watch this video to learn more about being careful with paraphrases.

…………………….

Free Subscribe to get new Posts by Email

Filed Under: IELTS Writing Task 1

IELTS Writing Task 1 Synonyms Practice Exercise

by Liz 119 Comments

It is important to use synonyms in IELTS writing task 1. Paraphrasing will help you get a higher band score for writing task 1. However, you need to be careful not to make mistakes.

Look at the chart below and then answer the questions.

IELTS Bar Chart Synonyms

Synonyms Practice Exercise

The bar chart above is about “playing sport”. The list of sports are: tennis, badminton, cycling, swimming, football and hockey. The verbs below are in past tense as the date is 2012.

Decide if the following synonyms are Right (R) or Wrong (W).

More boys than girls enjoyed sport. (enjoyed sport = Right or Wrong?)
Fewer girls participated in tennis than boys. (participated in tennis = R or W?)
Almost twice the number of boys played cycling. (played cycling = R or W?)
More girls took part in swimming compared to boys. (took part in swimming – R or W?)
The majority of boys engaged in football. (engaged in football- R or W?)
More girls competed in badminton than boys. (competed in badminton = R or W?)

Answers

See the answers: Click here: Answers to this Exercise

To see model answers and tips for IELTS writing task 1, click: IELTS Writing Task 1 Page

Filed Under: IELTS Writing Task 1

June 2017 IELTS Model Essay Answer

by Liz 61 Comments

IELTS Model Essay Answer for June 2017. The IELTS essay question was reported in the academic test on 17th June, 2017 – just two days ago. It’s a difficult topic for students who have not prepared ideas for court trials. Use my model essay below to develop ideas.

There is a list of useful vocabulary and useful links below the model answer.

June 2017 IELTS Essay Question

In some countries,some criminal trials in law courts are shown on television so that the general public can watch.
Do the advantages outweigh the disadvantages?

June 2017 IELTS Model Essay

Below is a model essay answer for the IELTS essay question above. Remember there are a number of different ways of writing this essay question and this model answer offers one way.

Model Essay Answer

In recent years, criminal trials have been televised in some countries to allow the public an opportunity to watch them. I believe, although there are advantages, making trials public can lead to too much injustice and other problems.

One of the main advantages of allowing court trials to be broadcast on TV is that the entire judicial system is open to the public to watch and supervise. In some countries where the judicial system is corrupt, it would be a step forward towards more justice by televising the trials as it is overseen by the public. Another benefit is that opening the doors of the court room allows the public rights to information. The public have a right to know the details of trials so that they can form their own opinions. This is important in countries where the government has restricted public access to information.

On the other hand, allowing trials to be shown on TV has serious consequences. Firstly, the public might form opinions which are based on mass media bias and a lack of understanding of the legal system. This public and media pressure might affect the outcome of the trial and justice will not be served. Secondly, the legal team might see this as an opportunity to promote themselves which means they may be distracted and not put all their attention into defending or prosecuting. Lastly, the jury is supposed to decide the verdict but by televising the trial, the entire public removes the effectiveness of a jury system.

In conclusion, regardless of the benefits, the disadvantages of an open televised trial can be devastating due to public and media pressure which might result in a lack of justice.

Words = 284 (please note I put the word count for your benefit, you don’t need to do this in your test)

Useful Language

shown on TV = televised = broadcast on TV

court trials = legal proceedings in court

justice / injustice

judicial system = legal system

outcome of the trial = results of the trial = verdict

defending / prosecuting

jury / judge

More Useful Language: Crime & Punishment Vocabulary for IELTS

See ALL Vocabulary for IELTS pages

Filed Under: IELTS Writing Task 2

IELTS Writing Task 2 Questions June 2017

by Liz 41 Comments

Below is a list of IELTS essay questions reported this month, June 2017. I’ve listed the topics for each question so you can see the common trends this month. There are 10 topics listed.

Notice: These questions are NOT predictions. It is not possible to predict questions in IELTS. They are reported topics. Following trending topics is useful as topics can be repeated but there is no guarantee you will get them.

IELTS Writing Task 2 Questions June 2017

1. Topic: Work

Countries with long working days are more economically successful, but there are also some negative social consequences. To what extent do you agree or disagree?

Some countries have introduced a new law deciding how many hours employers can ask their employees to work. Why do you think they implemented this law? And do you think it is a positive or negative decision?

2. Topic: Education

In some countries it has been observed that many parents choose to teach their children at home rather than sending them to school. Do the advantages of children studying at home outweigh the disadvantages?

The teaching situation of teacher and students in a classroom will no longer be exist by the year 2050.
To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?

3. Topic: Environment & Economy

Some people believe that a country will be able to be economically success and also have a clean environment. Some people disagree. Discuss both views and give your own opinion.

4. Topic: Money & Economy

Some people think that the money they earn should be enjoyed by spending it now, while other thinks that their earnings should be saved for future. Discuss both the views & give your opinion.

5. Topic: Housing

In some countries, people prefer to rent a house for accommodation, while in other countries people prefer to buy their own house. Does renting a house have more advantages or disadvantages than buying a house?

6. Topic: Transport

Many people think that the government should spent money on developing and improving road systems. Others think that car drivers should pay the cost for it. Discuss both views and give your opinion.

7. Topic: Government Funding

Governments spend a lot of money on public celebrations such as national holidays and public festivals. Some people say that the government spends too much on this and that they should use this money on other useful things. Do you agree or disagree?

8. Topic: Society

Some people say that its better for young people to follow the traditions of society. However, others believe that its better to follow one’s own ideas and ways of living. Discuss both these views and give your own opinion,

9. Topic: Crime & Punishment

Some people think that criminal activities can be reduced by implementing long prison sentences. However, others think that it can be reduced effectively by alternative ways. Discuss both sides and give your opinion.

In some countries,some criminal trials in law courts are shown on television so that the general public can watch.
Do the advantages of allowing this outweigh the disadvantages?

10. Topic: Space

Space travel is now possible and some say that space tourism may probably developed in the future. To what extent do you agree?

More Links for IELTS Writing task 2:

Get my free lessons by email

Filed Under: IELTS Writing Task 2

Listening Practice: Office Etiquette

by Liz 158 Comments

This is a listening exercise based on a current IELTS topic. The topic of modern office layout was reported in writing task 2 this year, 2017. This lesson will give you listening practice and also useful ideas for the topic.

Modern Office Layout: Listening Exercise

Instructions

Listen once to the recording and write down your answers at the same time. In the real test, you will only be able to listen once. So, use this practice lesson to try focusing and getting the answers in the first listening.

Questions 1-5

Choose no more than one word from the recording to complete each sentence below. Listen only once and write down your answers.

Many offices favour the ………….. interior design.
There is less ……………. in the modern office design.
The ability to focus on work becomes a problem if there is too much ……………..
Being ………… of other people’s beliefs is important.
If you are ………………., it’s better for everyone if you stay at home.

Recording:

Answers

Click below to reveal the answers and the transcript:

Transcript

Office etiquette is all about common courtesy to other people in the work place. It is becoming more common for offices to have a modern open-plan design with members of staff all working in one large room without dividers. This type of office design unfortunately does result in a lack of privacy which means staff need to be more mindful and considerate than ever before of each other.

Here are a couple of rules for common office etiquette. Keep your desk tidy. There’s nothing worse than working along side someone who has spread their chaos. Focus on keeping your desk clear and avoid too much mess. Also keep the noise level to a minimum as noise can be distracting to others who need to concentrate on their work. Another rule is to be friendly but, at the same time, respect people’s boundaries and wish for solitude. Working in close proximity to other staff means that you need to be tolerant of other people’s beliefs and also work methods. Lastly, keep your illness to yourself and stay at home. Don’t come to work, if you’re sick. Spreading illness will not help you, your colleagues or the company you work for.

Answers

open-plan / modern
1. This answer means that you can have the word “open-plan” as your answer or the word “modern” as your answer. You can’t have both words. Also you can’t have the answer “open”
2. You can’t write “open plan” as your answer as that is too words. There should be a hyphen between the words.
privacy
noise
1. In the transcript you will see that the information about “ability to focus on work” is paraphrased as “distracting to others who need to concentrate on their work”. This is about noise levels.
2. The topic of mess is before this and is not about focusing on work. But it is easy to get confused due to the words “too much…”.
3. If you got this question wrong, read through the transcript and see how you made the mistake by focusing too much on words and less on meaning.
tolerant
1. You can’t have the answer “respectful” because that word is not given in the recording. Your answer must come from the recording – you can’t use synonyms as answers.
2. You can’t have the word “friendly” as the answer. “Being friendly of other people’s beliefs” has not meaning in English and is grammatically incorrect. Your answer must make sense and be grammatically correct.
sick
1. You can’t have the word “ill” or “unwell” because that word was not used in the recording.
2. The word “illness” was in the recording but it grammatically incorrect to use in this sentence and is an incorrect answer.

I hope you found this lesson useful.

Liz

If you would like more listening exercises, see my main listening page: IELTS Listening Lessons & Tips

Main IELTS Pages

Develop your IELTS skills with tips, lessons, free videos and more.

Get my free lessons by email

Filed Under: IELTS Listening

IELTS Reading Practice: Google’s Self Drive Car

by Liz 259 Comments

This is a practice lesson for TFNG questions in IELTS reading.

Google’s Self Driving Car

Google has finally built its own car from scratch. And it looks similar to a gondola with wheels. The two-seater prototype vehicle is Google’s idea of what the modern automobile should look and feel like if you took the human out of the transportation equation and designed something solely to chauffeur passengers from point A to B.

The car — which was conceived and designed by Google, unlike the ones it previously modified — lacks many of the trappings of a normal car, and that includes three of the most essential parts. It has no steering wheel, no accelerator pedal and no brake pedal. The company that designed the world’s simplest home page also decided to lose the mirrors, the backseat, the glove compartment and the stereo. What’s left are lots of sensors, and a transplant of the self-driving software system Google has built to use on the Toyota Priuses and Lexus SUVs it has trained to drive on highways and city streets over the past five years.

Passage from recode.net

Questions 1-3

Decide if the statements below are true, false or not given according to the information in the passage above.

The Italian gondola was used as a design model for the new car.
The new car is aimed at transporting passengers from one place to another using a chauffeur.
The new car has more features than the modern car.

Answers

Click below to reveal the answers

Answers

Not Given
1. There is no mention of what Google used as a design model. It does mention that it likes like a gondola but not that this was a design model. So, the answer is NG.
False
1. The answer comes from “designed something solely to chauffeur passengers from point A to B“. The questions says “The new car is aimed at transporting passengers from one place to another…” this part of the sentence is the same as the passage. The word “chauffer” in the passage is a verb = to transport. So, this part of the sentence is correct.
2. However, the second part of the question sentence “using a chauffer” is wrong. In the question statement, the word “chauffeur” is a noun and it means a person who is paid to drive the car. The passage clearly contradicts this because the new car has no human driver. Therefore the answer is FALSE.
3. This question is really testing your vocabulary. Do you know the difference between “chauffer” and “chauffeur” = one is a verb = transport / one is a noun = a person who is a paid driver
4. A false answer means that part of the question statement is contradicted in the passage. The passage shows that it the statement is written incorrectly.
NG
1. The passage says that the new car doesn’t have many of the features of the modern car – steering wheel, mirror etc. The passage also says that the new car has many new features such as a lot of new sensors and new software. But the passage does not compare the number of features. The passage does not clearly state that the new car has more features than the modern car. There is plenty of information about the features but no clear comparison of the number of features. This means the answer is NG
2. Always look out for comparison statements in TFNG questions.

More Reading Practice for IELTS

You can find more reading practice and tips on the main reading page: IELTS Reading Lessons & Tips

If you want to learn IELTS writing task 2 or speaking etc, just visit the main pages of this website through the red bar at the top of each page.

Get my free lessons by email

Filed Under: IELTS Reading Tagged With: technology topic, true false not given

Answers to paraphrasing practice 2

by Liz 32 Comments

Yesterday I asked you to choose words in order to paraphrase the paragraph below. If you didn’t see the lesson, please check it before you see the answers: Paraphrasing Practice Exercise 2

It is sometimes thought that it is beneficial for companies to sponsor sports events through advertising. By doing this, extra funding, which is often lacking, can be raised to support sports events and ensure that they continue to run. Furthermore, companies can also contribute clothing or equipment which supports the event, teams and players.

Answers

Below you will find two answers; two paragraphs and a list of changes. The first answer is for the yesterday’s lesson. The second answer is a free paraphrasing example to show you how this paragraph can be altered further.

Answer 1: Some people believe that it is advantageous for business to sponsor sports events through advertisements. In this way, extra funding, which is often in short supply, can be raised to support sports events and ensure they continue to run. Furthermore, companies can also contribute clothing or equipment which supports the event, team and players.

Word Changes and Tips

It is sometimes thought that = Some people believe that
it is beneficial = it is advantageous
companies = businesses (you should not paraphrase companies as industries)
By doing this = In this way (you should not write “When we”, it is too informal for an IELTS essay)
extra funding should not be paraphrased as extra cash (it is too informal in this context. Although, the word “cash” can be used in other situations, such as talking about using cash or cards)
is often lacking = in short supply (you should not paraphrase it as “a lack of” because it is grammatically incorrect)
sports events – it’s best not to paraphrase this. The words “sports occasion” is incorrect in meaning. Not all words can be paraphrased. But you can give examples of sports events instead. Some words will be repeated in English.
Furthermore can’t be paraphrased as And. The reason is that “and” never goes at the start of a sentence in a formal essay.
clothing should not be paraphrased as attire in this context. Certainly the meaning is similar but the word attire does not relate to sports wear. The word “sports wear” is the best paraphrase to use.
players should not be paraphrased as “performers”. The word “performers” is not used in sport in this context.

Free Paraphrasing

Answer 2: Some people think it is advantageous for sports companies to use advertising to sponsor sports events, such as football matches or the Olympics. The extra funding from businesses is frequently much needed, as government funding can be limited. Sports events benefit from the extra finances as the money allows them to continue running and also, at times, provides teams and players with free sports wear or equipment, which are often too costly for them to buy.