IELTS Speaking: Musical Instruments Questions and Answers

February 20, 2015 by 9 Comments

It is possible to be asked about musical instruments in all parts of the IELTS speaking test. Below are some questions which mostly appear in part 1 but questions 4 to 5 can appear in part 1 and part 3. Two model answers are given below as well. This is topic currently being used in 2017.

You can vocabulary for types of musical instruments here: Musical Instruments Word List

Questions: IELTS Speaking Musical Instruments Topics

Check some possible questions for this topic:

  1. Did you ever learn a musical instrument as a child?
  2. If you could learn a musical instrument, what would you choose?
  3. If you had a child, what musical instrument would you encourage him/her to play?
  4. What traditional instruments are there in your country?
  5. Do you think traditional musical instruments have a place in modern society?
  6. How do you think traditional music could be made more popular?

Sample Answers for Part 1

Q. Did you ever learn a musical instrument as a child?

A. No, I didn’t but I always wish I had. If I had had the chance, I would have learned the guitar. The problem was that my parents thought it was more important to focus on school work than learn to play an instrument.

Q. If you could learn to play any musical instrument, what would you choose?

A. I think I’d probably go for the violin. It’s such a beautiful stringed instrument and I think the music that can be played on it, can be really haunting and moving. Yes, I’d definitely choose that one.

Sample Answer for Part 3

Do you think traditional instruments have a place in modern society?

Absolutely yes. Traditional instruments are part of our heritage and our identity. I believe that all school children should have the opportunity to learn to play one of them a part of their music lessons. For example, the tabla, which is like a pair of wooden hand drums, is a traditional instrument in our country and is part of most traditional songs. So, learning it would enable children to appreciate their country’s musical history more.

Recommended for IELTS Speaking:

Common Topics for Speaking Part 1

Free Video: Common Question Types in Speaking Part 1

Part 3 Common Mistakes

Current Topics in Speaking 2017

All Speaking Tips & Model Answers

Musical Instruments Vocabulary

All Vocabulary for IELTS

Main IELTS Pages

Develop your IELTS skills with tips, lessons, free videos and more.

Filed Under: IELTS Speaking Tagged With: , ,

IELTS Speaking Part 1: Vegetables

February 13, 2015 by 23 Comments

It is possible to get a topic about vegetables in IELTS speaking part 1. Below are some of the possible questions with a model answer and also a link to learn vocabulary for this topic.

  1. Do you like vegetables?
  2. Are there any vegetables you dislike?
  3. Did you like vegetables when you were a child?
  4. Are vegetables popular in your country?
  5. Do most people eat vegetables with their meal in your country?
  6. Are there many vegetarians in your country?
  7. Do you think it is important to eat vegetables?
  8. How can parents encourage their children to eat more vegetables?

Model Answers

  • Question: Do most people eat vegetables in your country?
  • Answer: Yes, they do. Almost every meal has either rice or potatoes and also another vegetable as well, such as cabbage, carrots, green beans or something like that. Quite a lot of people have a small proportion of vegetables to meat but at least they always have some kind of vegetable with their meal.

 

  • Question: Are there many vegetarians in your country?
  • Yes, quite a lot. Many people choose to avoid eating meat and their diet consists of both vegetables and grains. There are quite a few restaurants in my city which cater to vegetarians and offer the most wonderful dishes such as fried aubergine, spinach and potato, onion cakes and things like that. They’re actually very delicious.

Click the link to learn vocabulary for vegetables

Filed Under: IELTS Speaking Tagged With: , ,

IELTS Speaking Part 1: Clothes

February 6, 2015 by 22 Comments

Here are some questions for a common topic in IELTS speaking part 1 – clothes.

  1. Do you often buy clothes?
  2. Are clothes important to you?
  3. What kinds of clothes do you prefer to wear?
  4. What kinds of clothes do you wear most days?
  5. Would you ever spend a lot of money on clothes?
  6. Do you think men and women have the same view of clothing?

Model Answer

  • Question: What kinds of clothes do you prefer to wear?
  • Answer: If I could choose, I’d wear casual clothes everyday. I feel much more comfortable wearing jeans and a t-shirt or a jumper. Unfortunately, my work forces me to wear formal clothes like a suit or trousers with a smart shirt which I really don’t like so I only get to wear casual clothes on my days off.

Filed Under: IELTS Speaking Tagged With: , ,

Sample Answers for Travel and Transport in Speaking Part 1

February 6, 2015 by 40 Comments

Below are sample answers for the the topics of travel and transport for part 1 of the IELTS speaking test.

Travel

Q. Do you often travel abroad?

A. Not much, to be honest. I don’t get many days off in a year but when I do have time off, I mainly spend that time with my family in my hometown.

Q. When is the best season to travel in your country?

A. I guess it would be spring. That’s when the weather starts warming up and all the flowers start blossoming. It’s a really beautiful season and most places are at their best at that time. Unfortunately, it’s a busy time for tourists as well but that still doesn’t diminish the beauty of the countryside.

Q. Where would you recommend a foreign to visit in your country?

A. Without doubt, London. Not only is it our capital, but it also has some of the most iconic buildings in our country. I don’t think any visit to England is complete without seeing the Tower of London, London Bridge or Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament. They really are very impressive pieces of architectural work and can’t be missed.

Transport

Q. How did you get here today?

A. I came by bike because the roads are pretty congested at this time and a bike is quicker. It only took me about 15 minutes to get here.

Q. Do you often use public transport?

A. Yes, I do. I use the bus almost everyday. It’s the cheapest way to get around even though it’s really overcrowded and not particularly punctual.

Q. How could the transportation system be improved in your country?

A. Well, I think the first step to improvement would be to widen the roads and build to overpasses and underpasses to help traffic flow more freely which would reduce the congestion in the city center. Also, it would help if the bus service was improved to make it run more frequently which would help with the overcrowding in rush hour. I think those are the two main changes that need to happen.

Recommended

Speaking Part 1 Topic of Sleep with a Sample Answer and Vocabulary

Filed Under: IELTS Speaking Tagged With: , ,

IELTS Speaking Part 1 Topic: Travel & Transport

January 30, 2015 by 7 Comments

It is common to get the topic of travel or transport in IELTS speaking part 1. These topics can actually be divided into subtopics which are all be asked in part 1, see the list below:

  • Holidays
    • Weekend Breaks
    • Hotels
    • Traveling Abroad & Culture
    • Public Holidays (Celebrations and Festivals)
    • Days off work
    • Trips
    • Journeys
  • Tourist Attractions
    • Historical Attractions
    • Museums and Galleries
    • Statues and Monuments
  • Private & Public Transport
    • Bicycles
    • Cars
    • Driving
    • Buses
    • Trains
    • Planes
    • Walking
  • Getting Around
  • Roads
  • Traffic

As you can see above, there are a number of subtopics for the topics of travel and transport. Make sure you prepare a range of ideas and vocabulary for all topics and subtopics.

Filed Under: IELTS Speaking Tagged With: ,

IELTS Speaking Recent Topic: Sky

January 16, 2015 by 18 Comments

This has been a reported topic in speaking this month. It’s a new topic but of course some of the questions will be similar to the topic of weather. Here are some possible questions for this topic.

The Sky

  • Do you ever look at the sky?
  • What do you think about when you look at the sky?
  • Are there often clouds in the sky in your country?
  • Is the sky often overcast?
  • Is star-gazing popular in your country?
  • Are there often spectacular sunsets or sunrises in your country?

Model Answers

  • Question: Do you ever look at the sky?
  • Answer: To be honest, the only time I really pay any attention to the sky is if there is an amazing sunset or if I need to see what the weather’s like. The weather can be changeable where I live, so I sometimes take a quick look at the sky to see if it there are any dark clouds on the horizon and it might rain.
  • Question: Is star-gazing popular in your country?
  • Answer: I wouldn’t say it was popular but there are quite a few people who enjoy it, I suppose. In summer, we often get really clear night skies when you can see a multitude of stars and they’re all incredibly bright. I must say, even I go out and take a look then.
Vocabulary

Here is a useful vocabulary list for this topic. Below is an audio for the vocabulary.

  • overcast = cloudy, no sun is visible
  • a grey sky = overcast, cloudy
  • sunset = the sky turns different shades of orange, pink and red as the sun goes down
  • dark clouds on the horizon = threatening weather in the distance
  • star-gazing = looking at the stars
  • crystal clear night skies = very clear skies at night with excellent visibility
  • cloudless sky = a blue sky without clouds
  • small fluffy clouds = small clouds that do not threaten rain
  • multitude of stars = many stars
  • foggy = misty, low visibility due to mist
  • partly cloudy = some clouds

 

Audio for Model Answers 

Use the ideas and language for the models and adapt it to the questions you might get in the test.

Filed Under: IELTS Speaking Tagged With: ,

Speaking Part 1 Topic: Sleep

January 2, 2015 by 17 Comments

This is a new topic which has appeared in the least few months in part 1 of the IELTS speaking test. Below are some questions for this topic.

Sleep

  • How many hours do you usually sleep at night?
  • What time do you go to bed?
  • Do you go to bed at the same time everyday?
  • Do you ever have a  nap during the day?
  • Do you think sleep is important?
  • Should older people sleep more than children?

Here is a question with a model answer for this topic:

Q. Do you often take a nap during the day?

A. To be honest, I hardly ever nod off during the day but, I suppose, if I’ve had a really exhausting day, which is pretty rare, I may have a short siesta after lunch.

Useful Vocab

  • nap (a short sleep)
  • snooze (a short sleep)
  • nod off (go to sleep – often used for daytime sleeping)
  • drift off to sleep (slowly go off to sleep)
  • deep sleep
  • struggle to get to sleep
  • sleeping pill (medication to help someone get to sleep)
  • 40 winks (short sleep of a few minutes)
  • siesta (short sleep after lunch – Spanish in origin)

The Importance of Sleep is an IELTS reading exercise to practice summary completion for this topic. It contains some more useful vocabulary for you.

Filed Under: IELTS Speaking Tagged With: , ,

Common Questions for IELTS Speaking Part 1

December 5, 2014 by 81 Comments

There are over 15 types of questions which frequently come in IELTS speaking part 1. Even though the topics change, the common questions are often repeat so you should develop techniques for each type of question. Watch this video tutorial to learn what types of questions the examiner usually asks in IELTS speaking part 1 and also learn useful tips to help you identify the aim of each question.  Transcript

Hello my name is Liz. In this lesson I want to look at a different types of questions that the examiner might ask you and IELTS speaking part 1. Now as you know you need to prepare lots of different topics so for example family hobbies going out birthdays but you also need to prepare the different types of questions. So even though the examiner will ask you about different topics the questions are often the same. Let’s have a look at some common questions for IELTS speaking part 1.

So let take a look at a common topic and that’s the topic of cooking. It’s a common topic to get in speaking part 1. Now you can see a list of  questions here so let’s take a look at these questions more closely. What you can see is that each question begins with a different question word and this is very important to understand about speaking part 1 because every topic that you get in speaking part 1 can have questions that start with these question words. So for example, Read more….  

IELTS Speaking Part 1: Common Questions

Recommended

[jetpack_subscription_form title=”Get my free lessons by email” subscribe_text=”Subscribe for free to get my new IELTS lessons sent to your email inbox.”]
Filed Under: IELTS Speaking Tagged With: , ,
error: Content is protected !!