IELTS Speaking : Suggested Questions : Part 1

Test Tip
The questions in Part 1 are on three familiar topic areas. The first topic will be Studies, Work or Where you live. Your
answers are from your life and experience. There is no right or wrong answer.

Warm-up

 Could you show me your identification card please?

 Could you tell me your full name please?
 What shall I call you?
 Does your name have any special meaning?
 Why do so many people change their names?
 Is your name important to you?

Hometown or birth place

 Where do you come from?

 Where do you live?
 Can you tell me something about your hometown?
 Can you tell me some famous landscapes or scenic spots in your hometown?
 Can you tell me some history of your hometown?

Personal background and information

 Are you a student or do you have a job?

 What do you like most about your study?
 What kind of job do you prefer after graduation?
 What is your major?
 What do you do for living?
 Could you tell me a typical day of yours?
 How do you get your job?
 Are you satisfied with your job?
 What do you like most about your job?
 What kind of job do you prefer in the future?

Hobby or inclination

 What do you usually do in your spare time?

 Do you prefer to stay alone or with your friends?
 What do you usually do on weekends and weekdays?
 What do you usually do when you go out?
 What do you usually do with your friends?
 Do you like reading?
 What kind of books do you like best?
 Do you like English? Why or why not?
 What do you think of the importance of English?
 What are good hobbies and bad hobbies? Why?

Future plan

 Why do you take the IELTS test?

 What are you planning to do in the next five years?
 What are you planning to do in the next ten years?
 What is the first thing you will do when you arrive at the new place?
IELTS Speaking : Most Frequently Asked : Part 1
Test Tip
Travel/Travelling = moving from one place to another: I think travel/travelling  helps to educate you about the world.
NOT I think tourism helps to educate you.
NB Travelling = UK spelling, Traveling = US spelling.
Luggage is uncountable and refers to all of your bags: Put your luggage/suitcases here. NOT Put your luggages …

Traveling

 Do you like traveling?

 Do you like travel alone or with your friends?
 Have you traveled to other places? Where are they?
 What do you usually do when you first arrive in a new place?
 What are the benefits of traveling?
 Why do so many people like traveling nowadays?
 Do you think it's true that travel broadens the mind?
 Do young people and older people benefit differently from travelling?
 How can you make sure you get the most from your travels?

Family

 Tell me something about your family.

 What do you like doing most with your family?
 Who are you close to in your family?
 In what way is your family important to you?
 In what ways have families changed in the last hundred years?
 Should we rely heavily on our families or is it better to try to be independent?

Friends

 Do you have many friends? Are they casual acquaintances or close friends?
 Do you prefer to stay with your family or with your friends?
 Do you prefer one or two close friends or many friends?
 Can you talk about your best friend?
 How to make friends?
 What do you usually do with your friends?
 Is the time you spend with your friends as much as that you spend with your family?
 What do you expect from a good friend?
 Are friends as important to you as family?
 Do you think friendships change as we get older? How?

Music

 Do you like music?

 What are the benefits of listening to music?
 What kind of music do you like best?
 Why do you like this kind of music?
 What is your favourite musical instrument?

Transportation

 Can you say something about the transportation in your hometown?

 What is the common means of transport in your country?
 Do traffic jams often occur in your hometown or in the city where you live?
 How to solve the problem?
  What changes in transportation have taken place in the past several years in your country?

Sport

 Are you good at sport?

 What sports do you play?
 What is the most popular sport in your country?
 What do you do to keep fit?
 What are the best ways to keep fit?
 Do you think most people consider exercise a chore or do they find it fun?
 What is the most popular form of exercise in your country?

Speaking : Suggested Topics : Part 2 & 3

In the second section candidates are given a topic card and then have one minute to prepare after which
they must speak about the given topic. The third section involves a discussion between the examiner and
the candidate, generally on questions relating to the theme which they have already spoken about in part 2.

 Describing things (1 test item)

 Describing people (3 test items)
 Describing places (2 test items)
 Describing media and communication (4 test items)
 Describing celebration and leisure time (4 test items)
 Additional test items (4 test items)

Describing things (1 test item)

1. Describe a piece of equipment you often use at home or at work.

You should say:

 What it is
 What you do with it/ How to use it
 How long you have had it
 How important it is to you

Discussion:

 What are the impacts of electrical equipment on human’s life in the past ten years?
 What are the differences of the life in the past and at the present?
 What role does technological development play in people’s life?
 How will technology develop in the future?
 Do you have a mobile phone? What are its advantages?
 Why do many foreign countries develop faster than China?
 Why does the China’s West develop faster than China’s East?
 What are the advantages and disadvantages of computer and internet?
Describing people (3 test items)

1. Describe a well-known person.

You should say:

 Who he/she is
 What makes him/her famous
 Why you admire him/her

Discussion:

 Do you want to become famous?

 How to become a well-known person in China?
 What kind of people can become famous in China?
 What are the advantages and disadvantages of being famous?
 What do you think of the privacy of a well-known person?
 What do you think of the relationship between a well-know person and advertising?
 Would you be influenced by the well-known persons in TV commercials?
 Do you often talk about singers with your friends? What do you often talk about?

2. Describe a friend in your school time you like most.

You should say:

 Who he/she is
 When did you became friends?
 Why do you like him/her or why do you think that he/she is important to you?
 How he/she influences you

Discussion:

 What are the differences between adults and children in terms of making friends?
 Can adults make friends with children?
 What do you think are the most important factors when making friends?
 What are the possible factors that cause the break-up of friendship?
 Why is it difficult for adults to make friends?
 What will the friendship become like when getting old?

3. Describe a person whom you like to work or study with.

You should say:

 Who is he/she?
 When did you work/study together?
 What do you often do together?
 Why do you like to work with him/her?/ What can you learn from him/her?
 Why is he/she particular?

Discussion:

 Do you like to work alone or with a partner?

 What do you think of teamwork and team spirit?
 What kind of people are good to work with?
  Do you like group work or group learning?
 What is your opinion on efficiency?
 What are the advantages of studying by yourself?
 What do you think of efficiency?

Describing places (2 test items)

1. Describe a restaurant or a cafe.

You should say:

 Where it is
 What it looks like
 What kind of services are provided
 What kind of food you like there/ What kind of food is famous?
 Why you like it

Discussion:

 Do you like cooking?

 Will you cook for your friends when they visit you?
 Who cooks in a Chinese family?
 What do you think of the advantages and disadvantages of fast food?
 Why is fast food so popular?
 Where would Chinese go when they eat out?
 What changes would take place in terms of Chinese eating habits?
 What food is popular?
 What is the difference between fresh food and canned food?
 What can we do to solve the problem of food shortage?
 What are the advantages and disadvantages of family food?

2. Describe an interesting building.

You should say:

 Where it is located
 What it looks like
 What services are provided
 How you like it

Discussion:

 What role do old buildings and new buildings play in modern society?
 What changes have taken place in architecture in the past two decades?
 Do you think it necessary to protect old buildings?

Describing media and communication (4 test items)

1. Describe a kind of book you like.

You should say:

  What kind of books you like most
 What they are about
 Why you like them most
 What effect have books brought on you?

Discussion:

 What is the difference between men and women when choosing what to read?
 What kind books do children like? Why do they like reading?
 What is the difference between reading and watching TV?
 What is the relationship between reading and computer?
 What are the advantages of reading books?
 Why do children like pictorials?
 What books are popular in China?

2. Describe one of your favorite books.

You should say:

 What kind of books you like

 What is your favorite book?
 What it is about
 When did you get it?
 Why you like it

Discussion:

 Do you like other books?

 What kind of books do Chinese people like?
 What kind of books do Chinese women like?
 What kind of books do Chinese children like?
 What kind of books do you recommend to others?

3. Describe a letter.

You should say:

 When you received it

 Who sent it to you
 What it is about
 Whether it is important to you

Discussion:

 What is the difference between letter and e-mail?

 Do you often keep diaries?
 What is the difference between diary and letter?
 What is the difference in the past and at the present as regards communications?
 What is the role of letter 50 years ago and at the present?
 What do you think of the role 50 years later?
 What do you think of creative writing?
 Would post office disappear 50 years later?
 What role does computer play in our society?
 What changes have been brought by the computer? What is professors’ attitude?
4. Describe a kind of music.

You should say:

 Whether you like music

 What kind of music you like best
 What role music plays in people’s life

Discussion:

 How long do you listen to music everyday?

 Why is it easier for children to learn playing a musical instrument?
 What are the benefits of learning to play musical instruments?
 Discuss the impact of western music on the world music?

Describing celebration and leisure time (4 test items)

1. Describe a traditional festival in China.

You should say:

 What it is
 When is it celebrated?
 How to celebrate? / what you usually do on that day
 What you like and what you don’t like

Discussion:

 What is the concept of holiday in China?

 Why is holiday so important to modern people?
 Do you think it is necessary to observe the traditional customs?
 What changes in terms of spending festivals and holidays have taken place in the past decade?
 What is the difference as regards celebration in different part of the country?

2. Describe a perfect trip/holiday.

You should say:

 Where you would go

 When would you go?
 Whom you would go with
 What you are going to do

Discussion:

 What is the difference in the past and at the present as regards travelling?
 How would the tourist industry develop in the future?
 What should the government do to attract tourists?
 What should the people do to attract tourists?
3. Describe an interesting trip you have taken.

You should say:

 Where you went

 When you went there
 Whom you went with
 What you did there
 Why you like it

Discussion:

 What is the difference in the past and at the present as regards traveling?
 How would the tourist industry develop in the future?
 What should the government do to attract tourists?
 What should the people do to attract tourists?

4. Describe an interesting hobby.

You should say:

 What it is
 How long you spend on it
 How often you do it
 Why you like it

Discussion:

 Do you think that surfing the Internet, watching TV, listening to music or keeping a pet are interesting hobbies?
 Do you think it will cost too much time to do them?
 Do you like hobbies requiring teamwork?
 Why do people usually do in their spare time?

Additional test items (4 test items)

1. Describe an environmental problem.

You should say:

 What it is
 How long it has existed
 What effect it has brought to people’s life
 What we can do to solve it

Discussion:

 What causes environmental problems?

 What should the government do to protect the environment?
 What should we do to protect the environment?
 What other measures can you think of to protect the environment?
 How should we educate children to protect environment?
 What’s the difference between the old and the young as regards environmental protection?
2. Describe a kind of extreme weather.

You should say:

 What it is
 When did it happen?
 Where you were
 How you felt at that time

Discussion:

 What should you do in a bad weather?

 Will bad weather mould or change people’s personality?
 What is the relationship between weather and culture?
 The climate has changed these 50 years. Have you noticed the changes?
 What changes do you predict in the following years?
 Are the people interested in gathering the weather information in your place?
 How does weather influence people’s personalities in your country?

3. Talking about learning English.

You should say:

 When and where you began studying English

 What is the most interesting thing in an English class?
 What is the most effective way of learning English?
 What difficulties you have when learning English
 What are the advantages of learning English?

Discussion:

 What problems do you have when studying English?

 Do you think that English is the most important language in the world?
 Can English take the place of Chinese in China?
 What other languages are taught in China?
 Do you think that age is the most important factor of learning English? Why?
 What difficulties would a foreigner have when he learns your native language?
 What problems would Chinese people have when communicating with foreigners?
 When would be most suitable for children to learn English?
 How will translation and interpretation develop in the future?

4. Describe different ways of getting news.

You should say:

 Whether you get news every day

 Whether the news is national or international
 How you get news (via newspaper, TV, Internet, radio or other people?)
 How do most Chinese people think about the importance of getting update news everyday?

Discussion:

 Do you think the information on the Internet believable or not?

 What is the most effective way of getting news?
 How do reporters gather information?
  What do you think of the importance of privacy?
 How do journalists entertain their customers?
 What role do media play in people’s life?
 How do Chinese people gather information?
 What are the advantages and disadvantages of different media?
 Do you think it necessary to control the news coverage?
 What kind of news do you think should be controlled?

5. Describe a skill you want to learn.

You should say:

 What it is
 Why you think it is important
 How you are going to learn it
 What role it will play in you future life

Discussion:

 What do you think of the traditional skills?

 What skill do you think the university has provided for your job?
 What skills can you learn in school?
 What kind of skills have your parents learned?
 What do you think of the role of family for children to learn skills?
 What is the most popular skill that people want to learn?
 What kind of school would you send your children to? Why?
 What are the advantages and disadvantages of school education and family education?

In order to introduce your personal opinion, you can use:

 In my opinion, people felt safer in the past.

 From my point of view, tourism has really changed this place.
 As far as I’m concerned, it was the holiday of a lifetime.
Note: The phrase According to… can be used to introduce another person’s opinion. We do not use it to
introduce our own opinion. According to the government, the new law will reduce crime.

Phrases which introduce a that clause:

 I think that the internet has changed the world we live in.
 It seems to me that people need to care about the environment more.
 I tend to think that parents are usually to blame.
 My personal opinion is that education is the key to solving the problem.