IELTS Phrases: Writing Introductions There are many ways to introduce an academic essay or assignment. Most academic writers, however, appear to do one or more of the following in their introductions: establish the context, background and/or importance of the topic indicate a problem, controversy or a gap in the field of study define the topic […]
IELTS Vocabulary: Language for Bar Charts The bar chart is another typical frame for the presentation of statistical information. Expressions from above may be useful but these could also help. • The data in the chart indicate that… • In percentage terms, (household access to computers or internet) in 2008 was/ stood at…%. • The […]
IELTS Vocabulary: Language for Process Diagrams Have a look at these sentence starts/items of vocabulary when responding to a process diagram. The diagram illustrates/shows… The first step in the process of… is/involves (+ing) the… The process of (+ing)… begins with… The next step/stage in the process involves (+ing) the/a… In the stage after that, the… […]
IELTS Vocabulary: Language for Maps When asked to write about maps you may need to compare places at two different times, or discuss locations or layouts. Compass directions It is useful to be able to discuss location using the compass points: To the north/south/east/west is situated … To the north of the (road) there is […]
IELTS Vocabulary: Language for Graphs and Tables Graphs and tables are commonly used in Task 1. These formulations/items of vocabulary will be helpful: • In 2000 the level/number/proportion/percentage of… stood at… • In 2005 it increased/rose sharply/suddenly/dramatically • By 2005 it had increased/had risen to… • …fell/went down/declined/dropped/dipped by 5%/to 10% • …fell/went down marginally/significantly/markedly/sharply/dramatically […]
IELTS Vocabulary: Paraphrasing by using synonyms to avoid repetition It helps the quality of your writing, especially your vocabulary score, if you are able to avoid repetition by using synonyms for key expressions or categories. Please note, however, that synonyms are not usually z 100% interchangeable. In other words there may be contexts where the […]
28IELTS Vocabulary: Word forms Although this is also a grammatical issue, we have decided to mention word form in our vocabulary section. It is vital for students to know the different forms of base words and select the appropriate one. Much / Many These are popular expressions; however, you should try: a) to use them […]
IELTS Vocabulary: Income, Population, Volume of production These are also popular measures for statistical displays and each requires its own appropriate expressions. % Income ($) Expression to describe each group 45% 20,000 Those on the lowest incomes comprised 45% of the population. Those earning the lowest incomes made up 45% of the population. The group […]
IELTS Vocabulary: Talking flexibly about percentages and numbers Graphs and tables often use percentages. It helps if you can use expressions which reduce the number of times you repeat the same style, such as, ‘forty per cent’, or ‘twenty per cent’. Take a look at some possibilities. Figure Alternative expressions 0% zero per cent/none of/absolutely […]
IELTS Vocabulary: Avoiding other general expressions It is important to write precisely, especially in Task 1 so you need to avoid general expressions that may either be incorrect or lack precision. Here are some examples: Incorrect Use this instead do swimming swim/go swimming do the making of cars carry out the production of cars/manufacture cars […]
IELTS Vocabulary: Achieving Appropriate Level of Formality A…might write… An … might write… In the picture is… The graph/chart/diagram shows… was the same levelled off, remained the same, didn’t change, remained unaltered/ stable numbers figures/statistics/data got bigger increased went up rose at the time in the table during the period shown got money earned/received an […]