Speaking
You will need IELTS vocabulary for describing people in every part of the speaking test. Part 1 asks about your family and friends, Part 2 regularly gives you a cue card about a person you admire or have known a long time, and Part 3 turns the same theme into questions about character, relationships and society. Candidates who own thirty precise character adjectives are visibly ahead of candidates who own nice, good and kind.
Before the exercises, check you can define each of these. If any are unfamiliar, look them up now rather than guessing your way through the practice.
One word fits each description. Each word is used once.
My friend Tom loves mountain climbing, abseiling, white-water rafting and skydiving. Dangerous situations seem to excite him, and sometimes I wish I had that little fear. He is a very person.
My friend has an important interview today and he is worried about it. He keeps biting his nails and cannot sit still. I told him to relax, but he says he feels far too .
My friend lost his job last month and his relationship ended a week later. He is very low and quite , and I am not sure how to help.
Their dog never does what it is told. It runs through the house and breaks things constantly. It is extremely , and they need to be firmer with it.
My friend's niece smiles and laughs at everything. I do not think I have ever seen her in a bad mood. She is a remarkably child.
My friend almost never cleans his room, and you should see the state of it. It is unbelievably in there.
He did not like what his partner bought him for his birthday, and it showed on his face. He looked so that I think he genuinely hurt her feelings.
She studies harder than anybody I know. Her assignments are always in on time and her results are excellent. She is extremely , and I should probably follow her example.
Since he started his new job, all he talks about is money. He used to be generous and completely uninterested in possessions. Now he is selfish and rather .
My friend waits tables, and the job suits her exactly, because she is unfailingly . Even when customers are rude to her she stays warm and professional.
Many character adjectives carry a clear judgement, and using a negative one by accident about somebody you are supposed to admire is a common and expensive slip. Others shift depending on context: describing a colleague as ambitious can be a compliment or a warning, and reserved is neutral in one sentence and critical in another.
open-minded, trustworthy, optimistic, sociable, attentive, cheerful, hardworking, generous, caring, careful
impatient, selfish, aggressive, impolite, moody, lazy, indecisive, greedy, unreliable, dismissive
ambitious, spontaneous, sensitive, reserved, competitive, particular, forceful, single-minded
Part 3 asks you to evaluate. Being able to say ambitious in the good sense, or reserved rather than shy, is exactly the precision that separates bands.
Complete each extract with the best word. Each word is used once.
He is so that it can take him an hour to choose from a menu, but he loves parties and meeting new people. He is far more than I am.
He has good qualities, though he can be a little dull. Everything has to be considered carefully before he will do it. I am much more — I go ahead and think about the consequences afterwards.
I think we became friends because he is so . He is one of those people who smiles regardless. I cannot stand people, because you never know what you are going to get from one day to the next.
If I had to name someone who influenced me, it would be my father. He does not like being the centre of attention — not shy exactly, just — but he is enormously . I cannot remember the last time he took a proper holiday.
I liked the job but not my manager. He would never listen to a new idea or consider a different way of doing something, and someone in that position should be a great deal more .
Living abroad has changed me. As an only child I was probably a bit , but sharing a flat has taught me to think about other people. My flatmate is a genuinely person who always asks how my day has been.
I met an old schoolfriend for lunch recently. He spent the whole time describing his business plans and how he intended to be more successful than everyone else. I suppose he is simply , but he came across as , talking about dominating the market and leaving no room for anyone with a conscience.
Lexical resource rewards variety. If kind appears four times in two minutes, that is four uses of one word. Learning a second word for each idea doubles what you can produce without learning any new concepts. Match each word with its closest synonym.
amusing
diligent
easy-going
fearless
generous
intelligent
loyal
optimistic
passionate
creative
rational
utopian
Finish each sentence aloud with an appropriate adjective from the list above, then check yourself.
creative, or inventive
diligent, or dedicated
loyal, or faithful
utopian, or idealistic
fearless, or intrepid
passionate, or enthusiastic
rational, or logical
optimistic, or positive