Vocabulary
The thing that limits most candidates above Band 6.5. Free topic word lists and study methods.
IELTS vocabulary is assessed in every paper. In writing and speaking it is one of the four marking criteria; in reading and listening it decides whether you understand the question at all. It is also the slowest part of the test to improve.
Technique will carry most candidates to about Band 6.5. Beyond that the limit is usually the range of language you can use accurately, which is why vocabulary work should start early rather than in the final fortnight.
The test
Differently in each paper, and precision matters as much as range.
One of the four criteria in both writing and speaking. It assesses range, precision and how naturally you use words together.
A simple word used correctly scores higher than an unusual word used approximately. This is the most common misunderstanding candidates have.
Words that naturally go together, such as cut emissions or sit an exam. Wrong pairings are noticed even when both words are real.
Vocabulary is not marked directly, but it decides whether you can follow a passage or recognise a paraphrase of the question.
IELTS returns to the same subjects: education, environment, health, technology, work, crime. Preparing those pays back repeatedly.
In reading and listening a misspelled answer is wrong. In writing, repeated errors affect your band.
Free guides
Word lists with meanings and pairings, each with a practice exercise.
Method
Six principles behind every method that works.
Longer lists cause words to become confused with each other, and a confused word is worse than an unknown one because it produces errors.
A word learned inside a sentence about your own life is remembered far better than a word learned from a list.
Educate, education, educational, educator. Four forms take barely longer than one and give you much more to write with.
A word without its usual partners is only half learned, and wrong pairings are one of the clearest markers of Band 6.
Words need several encounters over weeks. Reviewing is worth more than adding.
Vocabulary improves more slowly than any other part of the test, so it is the wrong thing to leave until the last fortnight.
There is no official figure. Accuracy matters more than size, so a smaller vocabulary used precisely scores higher than a larger one used loosely.
Only if they are accurate and appropriate. Lexical Resource assesses precision as well as range, so a misused long word costs more than a plain word gains.
Education, the environment, health, technology, work and crime come up most often across all four papers.
Most candidates notice a clear difference after six to eight weeks of daily work, which is why it should not be left until the end.
Not directly, but it decides whether you can follow the text and recognise the paraphrase in the question, so it affects those scores too.
Full membership
Most candidates who plateau at Band 6.5 have the technique and lack the language. Finding out which applies to you is worth knowing before you book.
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