IELTS essay vocabulary

Expressing personal opinions:

 In my opinion, …
 Personally, I think that …
 It seems to me that ...
 I must admit that …
 I believe/suppose that ...
 I cannot deny that …
 As I see it, …
 As far as I'm concerned, …
 I would argue that ...
 I'd like to point out that …
 In my experience, ...

Very strong opinions:

 I am sure that …
 I am convinced that ...
 I am certain that ...

Example: I would argue that computers are rather beneficial for kids.

Proving your arguments

 to attest, ...
 to prove, ...
 this (fact) is attested/proven by ...
 this (fact) is evidenced by ...
 this (fact) is testified by ...
 this (fact) is endorsed/supported by...
 this (evidence) establishes that ...

Example: Consuming moderate amounts of sweets can be good for

health. This is evidenced by a number of cases when people improved
their health conditions by eating chocolate.

Expressing general point of view:

 It is (generally) claimed that …
 It is (generally) said that …
 It is (generally) thought that ...
  It is (generally) considered that ...
 A common opinion is that ...
 A popular belief is that ...

Example: It is considered that rigorous diets are very unhealthy.

Outlining facts
 The fact is that …
 It is obvious that …
 It is clear that …
 There is no doubt that …
 This proves that …

Example: It is obvious that deforestation has no positive effects.

Generalizing
 Generally speaking, ...
 On the whole, ...
 Typically, ...
 By and large ...

Example: Generally speaking, smoking is a bad habit.

Giving examples
 For example, ...
 For instance, ...
 A good illustration of this is ...
 Evidence for this is provided by ...
 We can see this when ...

Example: A lot of wild animals are endangered. Evidence for this is

proved by decreasing number of species.

Concluding
  To summarise, ...
 In conclusion, ...
 Overall, ...
 On balance, ...
 Taking everything into consideration, ...

Example: Overall, no parents should neglect their children.

Vocabulary to describe graphs

Introducing the graph

The graph/table/pie chart/bar chart/diagram ...

 gives information about/on ...

 provides information about/on ...
 shows ...
 illustrates ...
 compares ...
 explains why ...
 describes ...
 draws the conclusion of (a survey) ...

Example: The pie charts provide information on the proportion of males and
females working in agricultural sector.

Types of changes
 Nouns

a rise (of)

an increase (of)
a growth (of)

a peak (of)

a surge (of)

Example: a rise of prices

a fall (in)

a decrease (in)

a decline (in)

a dip (in)

Example: a fall in prices

a fluctuation (of)

a variation (in)

Example: a fluctuation of prices

Verbs

to rise

to increase

to surge

to grow

to peak

Large rises:

to rocket

to soar
to leap (->leapt)

to fall

to decrease

to decline

to dip

to dive

to plunge

Large falls:

to plummet

to fluctuate

to vary

Description of changes
 Adverbs

sharply

suddenly

rapidly

abruptly

dramatically

significantly

considerably

markedly

wildly

Example: the prices rose sharply

slightly

gently

gradually

steadily
modestly

marginally

Example: the prices increased modestly

Adjectives

sharp

sudden

rapid

abrupt

dramatic

steep

significant

considerable

marked

substantial

spectacular

Example: there was a considerable growth

slight

gentle

gradual

steady

consistent

modest
marginal

Example: there was a gradual decline

Useful phrases
a small fraction, a small number, a small minority

a large portion, a significant majority

nearly a fifth, almost 10%, in region of 40%, more than a half, over a quarter,
around two thirds, more or less three quarters, exactly one in ten,
approximately a third

abandon to give up, relinquish, or discontinue

amend to make revisions or corrections

spect to look or observe