Common Questions, With Common Vocabulary Keyword

IELTS Speaking

Benefits: advantages, positive aspects, is beneficial (i.e. The main advantages…/One of the most positive aspects…/Being able to converse in more than one language is extremely beneficial.)

What do you think the benefits of being able to speak more than one language
are?

Examples: for instance, a good example, the best example (i.e. For instance…/A good example…./The best example I can give you…)

Important: significant, indispensable, valuable (i.e. The most important /significant /indispensable /valuable item I possess is a silver bracelet from my
late Aunt Sue.)

Can you describe a person or incident that made an impression on you?

Activities: hobby, leisure pursuit, pastime (i.e. My favourite hobby/leisure pursuit, pastime is riding my bicycle.)

What type of activities do you like to do in your free time?

Important: significant, indispensable, valuable (i.e. The most important /significant /indispensable /valuable item I possess is a silver bracelet from my late Aunt Sue.)

Can you describe something that you own that is very important to you?

In Part 2 of IELTS Speaking, also known as the Speaking Test’s “long turn,” you will need to give a 2-3 minute speech about a selected IELTS Speaking topic. You’ll be speaking on your own without feedback.

The IELTS Speaking “Long Turn” (Part 2)

for example, for instance, to give an example, such as, to name a few

in addition, furthermore, moreover, not only/but also, next

so, thus, because of, as a result, which caused, this caused

by this I mean, in other words, which is to say, or to put it another way, I mean (x) and not (y)

unlike, as opposed to, on the other hand, even though, although, having said that

as I mentioned, like I said, in short, all in all, to sum up

even more, above all, in fact, truly, indeed

however, sometimes, still, except for, unless

In the conversational parts, transitions are important. Here, transitions most often take the form of verbal pauses. Verbal pauses are natural ways to slow down a conversation so that speakers can collect their thoughts.

Transitions in IELTS Speaking Parts 1 and 3

- Um…/Well…/Hmm… (in hesitation)
- That’s a tough/interesting/good question.
- Hmm… That’s difficult.
- Wow, I really don’t know.
- Offhand, I’d say…
- Let’s see…
- Good question
- Well, I suppose…

Transitions in IELTS Speaking: Verbal Pauses

- First, Second, etc…
- First of all…
- For one…
- How about…? (to offer an example or introduce a topic)
- For a start…
- So, what about…?

IELTS Speaking Transitions: Introductory Phrases

After making a statement, a you may ask a question such as, “Understand what I mean?” This is not meant as a real question. Speakers naturally do to keep a conversation moving forward after they’ve concluded a statement

Concluding Phrases in IELTS Speaking Conversations

- …You know what I mean?
- …, you know?
-  Does that make sense?
-  …, right?

hobby: a specific activity someone does in their spare time
pastime: an activity done for enjoyment 
collect:a hobby in which someone purchases and keeps a certain kind of thing (ex: collecting sea shells)

outing: a planned activity, done outside of the home for fun, with other people
date: a planned meeting of two people, either romantic or between friends

primary: the beginning grade levels of school, for young children; elementary and middle school
secondary schooling: taken immediately before university; high school

discipline: in educational vocabulary, either an academic field of study OR guidance/punishment given to students
marks: scores or grades that students receive on their academic assignments and exams

major: a chosen field of study that a university student earns a degree in

itinerary: a formally planned trip, usually one arranged through a travel agency, airline, or other travel-services company

vacation package:a group of travel services that are purchased together; a vacation package may include hotel fees, airfare, restaurant meals, a trip on a tour bus,
etc….
abroad: outside of one’s home country

local: connected to one’s area of origin; local travel is travel in one’s own country or region, and local people are people who are found in their own country or region
road trip: a long travel by car

Career: “Career” is a more board term than “occupation.” It refers to the category of work someone does, and suggests a long-term commitment.

shift work: “Shift work” refers to work that is scheduled with a specific beginning and ending time. A shift at a workplace often lasts 8 hours, but can be shorter. Shift work is usually paid on an hourly basis.

salary work: Salary work may have an expected schedule, a shift where the worker will normally be at work. Salary workers aren’t paid by the hour and instead receive a
fixed rate of pay per week or month.

unskilled: Unskilled work is work that requires little or no training, such as fry cook work at a
fast food restaurant, or work cleaning and maintaining buildings.

skilled: Some workers are so highly skilled that they have doctoral degrees — lawyers and doctors for examples. Other skilled occupations require less training.

Manual labour: work that is very physical, requiring a lot of strength and physical activity. Manual labour jobs include unskilled work such as stocking shelves at a grocery store, and skilled work such as welding.

downtown: The traditional centre of a city, usually a business district
rural: describes an area that containing farmland and countryside
urban: describes a city area that is heavily developed and has a large population

outskirts: the areas at the outer edges of a city or town
suburb: a town or city that is very close to a much bigger city; people who live in the suburbs often travel to the big city for work, shopping, events, or social

get on:to enjoy the company of another person, and to have a good relationship with them (if two people are good friends, you could say they “get on” well)
night out: an fun evening spent outside of the house & in public

meet: to see someone and get to know them for the first time (as in the question “How did you meet?”); to see someone and join them for an activity or event (as in the
statement “Let’s meet at the new restaurant.”)

casual: when referring to friends, this means friends that don’t know each other very well
(ex: “I don’t even know her family name; we’re very casual friends.”)

close: when referring to friends, this means friends who know each other very well, and perhaps love each other (ex: “He is like a brother to me; we’re very close friends.”)

chilly: when referring to weather, this means cold in a way that is uncomfortable
muggy: very hot and humid
balmy: not too hot and not too cold, a comfortable outdoor temperature, usually with some gentle wind

sleet: a mix of snow and rain, falling together from the sky
mist: fog; tiny droplets of water that are in the air, close to the ground

arid: a climate that is dry, with little or no rain
tropical: a warm climate with rain and no winter, found in the regions of the earth near the equator
temperate:a climate with mild temperatures; not too hot or cold

Mediterranean: the climate found in nations along the Mediterranean sea; also any climates similar to the Mediterranean, even if they’re found in other parts of the
world

seasonal: when referring to climate, this describes the weather that is a typical of a specific
season (ex: “South Pacific Islands get seasonal rain and storms every summer.”)

chain restaurant: a restaurant owned by a large company and has many locations, across a nation or across the world; McDonalds is an example of this
cafeteria: a restaurant or other place where customers serve themselves

ingredients: the things that are combined to make a certain kind of food or dish; (ex: “The ingredients of a hamburger are bread, meat, pickles, ketchup, and onions.”)

seasoning: a ground, chopped, or shredded ingredient or sauce that is added to food to give it extra flavour; salt, pepper, and mustard are examples of seasoning

recipe: instructions for preparing a certain kind of food; a recipe will include a list of ingredients, as well as an explanation on how the ingredients are mixed and how
the food is cooked

episode: one movie in a series of movies that tell a story; one installation of a television
series (TV shows usually have one episode on television each week)

chapter: one specific part of a long book; a chapter will usually have a clearly marked beginning, end and number (ex: “Chapter eight of the novel starts on page 115, and is one of the most exciting parts of the book.”)

album: a set of songs or musical compositions that are sold together on a single CD, vinyl record, or cassette tape (ex: “The singer just released a new album with 13 songs.”)

plot: in a fictional book, movie or TV show, the plot is the series of events in the story
setting: in fiction, the location of the story, or the location of part of the story

aerobics: fast-paced exercise, designed to make the lungs and heart stronger
workout: a time period during the day that is spent exercising (ex: “I run for 30 minutes every morning because i like to workout)

gym: at a school, this is a large indoor room where students have physical education; also refers to a room or facility where people can use exercise equipment such as treadmills and weights

sports: competitive athletic games; activities that involve killing animal outdoors for fun (hunting and fishing)

generation: a group of people who were born in the same time period; their children would be the next generation (ex: “Many generations of my family have followed these customs.”)

custom: a specific activity that has been done by a certain group of people for many generations (ex: “Many different countries have a custom of honouring the dead at
a certain time of the year.”)

holiday an individual day or limited time period on which a culture or nation celebrates something (ex: “The Christmas holiday lasts one day, while the Ramadan holiday lasts for a month.”)

observe: when referring to traditions or celebrations, to observe is to do culturally required activities (ex: “In many parts of the world, people observe birthdays by eating
cake and giving gifts.”)

festival: a public cultural event where a large group people are happy and celebrate

social media: websites or phone apps that allow people to share their thoughts and ideas with friends (famous examples include Twitter, Facebook, WhatsApp, and VK)

device: an electronic item that allows people to get on the Internet, make phone calls, or sent messages; this word can also refer to any technological machine

mobile: this word describes technology related to phones or other wireless devices that can connect to the Internet or send calls and text messages to people

innovation: a new and valuable idea or invention; this word can also refer to technological changes in general
revolutionise: referring to technology, this means to make a big, important change the way we use technology

flat/apartment: a home that is part of a larger building; the larger building may also contain other homes or places of business
detached home: a single building that serves as a single home

neighbourhood: the area surrounding someone’s home; generally defined as anything in short walking distance of someone’s home
location: In IELTS, it refers to the kind of neighbourhood and city that the home is in

roommates/flatmates: people who are not related to each other, but live together in a home and share housing costs such as rent, electricity bills, etc…

headline: the title of a news story that is shown the most clearly in a news publication; in a newspaper, the headline is at the top of the front page, in a magazine, the headline is featured on the front cover

disaster: an event where lots of property is damaged or lots of people are hurt, all by accident; hurricanes or oil spills are disasters that you might commonly see in the news

live: news that you hear or watch at the same time as it is happening; often reporters will film a disaster or record a politician’s speech live so that people can see the disaster or listen to the speech in 'real time'

conflict: in the news a “conflict” usually refers to a war or military battle

print vs. broadcast vs. Internet: “print” refers to news that’s printed on paper (magazines and newspapers), “broadcast” refers to television and radio news, and “Internet news” is (of course) news that’s on the Internet

sale: an event where a store sells items at less than their usual price; in a more general sense, this word refers to the act of selling something to someone
discount: the act of selling a something for a lower price

bargain: a good price; the act of convincing someone to sell something at a lower price
haggle: to negotiate with a seller in an effort to buy something at a different, lower price than the advertised price

spree: an event in which a person does a lot of shopping and buys a lot of things