IELTS Speaking Examples - Part 2
This page provides you with IELTS speaking examples for part 2 of the
IELTS test.
In this part of the test you are given a topic card by the examiner and you
have to talk about it for two minutes.
You will be given a pencil and paper and one minute to prepare your answer.
You should talk about the points that are on the card, but you will need
to add in extra information otherwise you will probably finish before the
time is up.
When you read the model answer, notice how the short talk
is introduced and also concluded.
Also, notice how it is well-organized. The parts in bold show you how the
speaker follows and addresses all the parts on the card in a clear and coherent
way.
IELTS Speaking Examples - Cue Card 1
Describe a present you have given someone.
You should say:
Who you gave it to
What kind of present it was
How it compared to other presents you have given
Explain why you decided to give this particular gift.
IELTS Speaking Examples - Model Answer
I’m going to talk about a present that I gave to someone.
The person that I gave it to was a very good friend of mine at the time. His
name was Kaaliya and he came from India. I knew him because we studied
together at a language school in Cambridge. Although we were from different
backgrounds and cultures, we got on really well and we had the same sense
of humour so we became very good friends.
The present was a picture that had been painted of the River Cam in
Cambridge. It was not so big - maybe around 10 inches by 14 inches, but it
was very beautiful. It came in a gold plated frame and the picture had been
drawn by a particularly well-known Cambridge artist. It had been signed by
this person as well.
It’s the first time I have given this person a present, and I guess it’s quite
different from presents that I have given to other people before – I don’t
recall ever giving someone a picture actually. If I’m buying for family then
I’ll usually buy clothes or maybe some jewelry if it is a special occasion.
Normally when I’ve bought something for friends it’s something more jokey
so we can have a laugh about it, nothing that serious.
The reason why I decided to give this particular gift is because we had
spent a lot of time together in Cambridge and we had had some really fun
times punting on the River Cam – that’s obviously why I thought this was an
appropriate present. We used to go punting at least once a week, sometimes
a couple of times. On one occasion there was a group of about ten of us that
went down there, and we spent the whole day sitting by the river in the sun
and as usual we went on a boat trip together. We all have a lot of photos to
remind us of this great day.
So my friend, Kaaliya, is the person that I gave a present to and this was
because I felt it would always remind him of the fun times that we had and
also of Cambridge.
IELTS Speaking Examples - Cue Card 2
Describe an old person that you know.
You should say:
What your relationship is to this person
How often you see them
What people think about this person
Explain why you like them
IELTS Speaking Examples - Model Answer
Ok, I’d like to tell you about an old person that I know.
His name is John, and he is the owner of a small convenience store at the end
of my street.
I would say that my relationship with him is as a friend. I know him
because I regularly go to the shop in order to buy things when I don’t have
time to go to a supermarket. He’s quite friendly and I always have a chat with
him. I’ve known him now for about five years - since I’ve lived in the area in
fact. That’s why I’d now call him a friend.
I’d say that I see him fairly regularly. Like I said, I go to the big
supermarket out of town sometimes to stock up, but you always need odd
things during the week such as milk, or some snack or other. So when this
happens I just have a walk down to his shop. So I’d say I see him every one
or two days.
I think John is pretty popular as he’s been there for years as far as I’m
aware, so most of the locals around the area know him. There will always be
someone in the shop having a chat with him. They like him because he’s not
just the shopkeeper but he’s also very involved in activities in the
community. For example, I know he helps out at the old people’s home some
nights, and he runs the quizzes at the local pub. He also helps to organize the
fete that is held each year in the town.
The reason that I like him is that he’s great to have a chat with. For
instance, a while back I was having problems with my work, and I was really
feeling stressed. I didn’t really have anyone to talk to at the time as my
family is abroad and a couple of my good friends were not around. I
mentioned it to John and he was great. He listened and also gave me some
really good advice. He didn’t need to do that so it was great that he made the
time to anyway. Generally, though, he’s really welcoming when you go to his
shop. He’ll always have a smile on his face.
IELTS Speaking Examples - Cue Card 3
Describe a happy childhood event.
You should say:
When it happened
Who was involved
How you felt at the time
Explain why you remember this particular occasion.
IELTS Speaking Examples - Model Answer
I’m going to talk about a happy childhood event that I remember, and that
event was my 13th birthday.
It was 10 years ago now because I’m 23. My birthday is on the 7th May.
What happened was my parents surprised me on my birthday by telling me
that they were going to take me to a theme part that is a few hours from our
house. I’d never been before - it had only been open a few months and they
knew that I really wanted to go. As I recall it was a Saturday that we went.
They didn’t tell me until the morning when I woke up that day.
My whole family was involved in the event. I have a brother and a sister so
of course they came as well as my Mum and Dad, and not only that, we also
picked up my grandparents on the way so they could join us. They were too
old to go on the rides but it was still a great trip out for them!
The theme park was really amazing. There was a huge roller coaster which I
remember was really scary but still excellent fun. One particular thing I
remember is the ghost train. My younger sister was not allowed to go on the
ride because she was too young and she was really upset and jealous of me
and by brother! I think it was lucky she didn’t though. It was really realistic –
there were real people in there who were actually dressed up as ghosts and
they jumped out just when you weren’t expecting it – it made us jump so
many times!
How I felt really depended on what I was doing. Obviously I was excited
the whole day, but I remember that I felt really exhilarated when I was on the
rides such as the roller coaster, and scared but still excited on the ghost train.
The reason that I remember it so well is that I had been so desperate to go
to the theme park and I’d been talking to my friends at school for ages about
how I wanted to go. So it was so great when I found out that I could. Also I
remember it so well because all of our family was together. My Dad was
pretty busy most of the time with his work so we didn’t always have much
time to do things together when I was a younger.
So for these reasons, is was a really special occasion that I’ll never forget.
IELTS Speaking Examples - Cue Card 4
Describe an environmental problem that has occurred in your country.
You should say:
The cause of the problem
What effect it has had on your country
The steps, if any, that have been taken to solve this
Explain why you think this problem is so important to solve.
IELTS Speaking Examples - Model Answer
Ok, I'm going to talk about a problem with the environment in my country.
One of the most serious problems at the moment is flooding. This is
starting to happen every year and each year it seems to get worse. I think it
may be caused by a number of factors. Firstly there has been a lot of
deforestation in the north of the country, a lot of it from illegal logging.
Because of this, when it rains the water has nothing to soak it up so it just
runs down the mountains and into the villages and towns. Another factor may
be global warming. Scientists believe that this is causing more severe weather
so this may account for the increasing amount of rain that we seem to be
seeing. It also means the soil is more dry so again the rain water runs off it
rather than being soaked up.
Unfortunately, there have been really serious effects on my country. As I
said, the excess water runs into the villages and the towns through the rivers
and the rivers then overflow causing massive flooding. This effects thousands
of people who then become homeless. Several hundred usually die each year
as well. It travels through the country as it starts in the north and goes down
to the sea, so it can affect many towns and the capital city too. This also has
repercussions for the government as they have to spend so much money
managing the disaster each year.
The government is trying to tackle the problem, but it is not easy. They
are trying to stop so much deforestation but a lot of the damage has already
been done so what can they do? They are also starting to build defences such
as walls along some of the major rivers that run through the town to try to
stop them overflowing. Another thing they are doing is trying to improve
their response systems. In most towns there is now a government
organization responsible for coordinating relief operations and making sure
they are prepared in advance.
I think this problem is a top priority to solve because it has such
devastating impacts. As I mentioned before, it causes suffering for so many
people and it is also a huge expense for the government and as we are not a
rich country we cannot afford this. It means that other services suffer because
of a lack of money. There are other problems that my country has but I think
that is by far the worst.
So, that is the serious problem in my country, and I only hope that it does not
continue to get worse.
