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Describe a disagreement you had with someone: IELTS Speaking Cue Card

You should say

  • Who was the person?
  • Why did you have the disagreement?
  • Was the issue resolved? If yes, how?
  • And explain what happened after the disagreement.
Show all 113 answers

Cue 1:Who was the person?

  • Introduce the person you had the disagreement with, mentioning your relationship with them.
  • Provide some context about how long you have known this person and the nature of your interactions.

Example

The person I had a disagreement with was my younger brother, Rohan. We have been close since childhood, sharing everything from toys to secrets. We often have friendly debates, but this particular disagreement was more serious.

Cue 2:Why did you have the disagreement?

  • Clearly explain the topic of the disagreement and why it was important to both of you.
  • Share your perspective and Rohan's perspective to give a balanced view.

Example

The disagreement arose over our plans for a family vacation. I wanted to go to the mountains for some adventure, while Rohan insisted on a beach destination for relaxation. Both of us felt strongly about our choices, as I wanted to experience the thrill of trekking, and he wanted to unwind by the sea.

Cue 3:Was the issue resolved? If yes, how?

  • Discuss how you both approached the resolution of the disagreement.
  • Mention any compromises or discussions that led to a solution.

Example

Eventually, we decided to sit down and talk it out. We listed the pros and cons of each destination and realized that we could combine both ideas. We agreed to spend a few days in the mountains and then relax at the beach. This compromise made both of us happy.

Cue 4:And explain what happened after the disagreement.

  • Describe the aftermath of the disagreement and how it affected your relationship.
  • Share any positive outcomes or lessons learned from the experience.

Example

After resolving the disagreement, our relationship grew stronger. We learned to appreciate each other's viewpoints more. The trip turned out to be a fantastic experience, and we created wonderful memories together. It taught us the importance of communication and compromise.

Conclusion

    Example

    In conclusion, disagreements can be challenging, but they also provide opportunities for growth and understanding. My experience with Rohan taught me that listening and finding common ground can lead to better relationships and enjoyable experiences.

    Following this structure will ensure you cover all the essential points while providing a clear and engaging response to the cue card topic.

    Tips to answer this Cue Card

    1: Vague Descriptions

    Using vague language can make your answer unclear. It's important to provide specific details about the disagreement to engage the listener and demonstrate your language skills.

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    Tip

    Use clear examples and specific details about the disagreement, such as the person involved and the exact issue to make your response more vivid.

    2: Ignoring Resolution

    Failing to discuss how the disagreement was resolved can leave your answer incomplete. It’s essential to show how conflicts can be managed and resolved.

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    Tip

    Always include how the issue was resolved, whether through discussion, compromise, or another method, to show your problem-solving skills.

    Lack of Reflection

    Not reflecting on what happened after the disagreement can make your answer seem shallow. It's important to show personal growth or changes in your relationship.

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    Tip

    Conclude by explaining what you learned from the disagreement and how it affected your relationship with the person involved.

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    Anonymous student Band 8

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    The toy which I liked in my childhood was a panda doll, which makes me pleasant and makes me more blush. The pandas are the most beautiful creatures of the world, which looks gigantic and has pooshy cheeks and they are like stars in the clouds and they dream in me. Furthermore, these have been given by my father. My father is a very very beautiful artistic person, who makes me think of that. Every day you will face every difficulties and make you suffer and move forward. Pandas are always seen in Japanese countries. It is my lifelong dream to visit a Japanese country and click a photo with the original pandas, which makes sounds better.
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    Anonymous student Band 6.5

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    As India is a very large country full of diversity, so there are many places which have their own language and speak their native language. The place which I visited and I didn't know about their language was Leladakh, which is about 300 km away from my hometown and it is a very good place as it consists of different kind of trees, animals and have many scenic views and I visited over there last year in summers as it was the best time to visit because it has many, it was cold over there and we had summers in our area so it was the best time to visit over there and I went over there with my whole family.
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    When I was a kid, I had a little pencil box which had these four buttons which gave the pencil box an operative use. When you press the button, the box would open up. When you press the second button, a little part of it would slide out. Basically it was just a little electronical and a fun thing to have and I owned it when I was in 6th. One day after break, I was standing and talking there with one of my friends and another friend of mine was running through the hallway and accidentally she pushed my shoulder and my pencil box hit the ground and it broke into multiple pieces to the point that it was not functional anymore.
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    It Ends With Us is a book I read recently. It's by the author Colleen Hoare. It's mainly a story about two teenagers, Atlas and Lily, and how they just handle their life going through high school, adolescence, and just domestic violence at home. Both of them come from very, very different families. However, they have one common determining factor between them, which is domestic violence. The abuse that they've seen their moms go through is just insane, and they connect through that on a different level. They're actually in the same high school, but they never speak to each other until Atlas actually crashes into an empty house next to Lily's villa. When Atlas is homeless and he doesn't have anywhere to go, he just comes and breaks into the house next to Lily's, and Lily helps him with all the daily necessities like clothes and food, medicines and stuff. Furthermore, their friendship blossoms into love, but it doesn't really fructify as Atlas has to leave. This book really gave me a lot of knowledge about domestic abuse and how to deal with it.

    All Answers

    Here are all the answers by real-users practicing speaking for IELTS Cue Cards on our IELTS Prep App.

    Band 6-7

    Usually I am a very calm person and stay away or avoid any kind of arguments with anyone. But when I am on the sports field playing cricket, the passion takes over my personality of staying calm and relaxed. And that's when I start to argue with anyone if I feel there are differences in opinions there. I once had a disagreement with an umpire about a decision that he made. It was later resolved when the other umpire intervened. And after the match I had a chat with both the umpires and they handed me a demerit point for the arguments that I made on the field regarding the decision. And that's when I started responding to their decisions.

    Band 6-7

    so recently I was talking with my mother and suddenly a topic came out between us that was about dressing code so I really felt bad when my mom was saying that nowadays girls don't wear proper dress code they don't maintain which helps the other person to judge them easily and I was like what are you saying and she told me that girls wearing short dresses are not right they should maintain a dress code because it's India in India we have some dress code we should maintain that then I disagreed with this particular topic I tried to make her understand that nowadays it's not compulsory that a girl should wear sari or a sarwa suit every time they can wear something western clothes also and it doesn't mean that their character is getting bad they are a good person for me but you cannot judge a book by its cover so you cannot say like that then she was like no you're not at all correct it's India you're not understanding what I'm trying to say the society will never leave us and I was like if you stay with society and about your mentality then how can you change the society and have created with the 21st century you are supposed to change your mind and also help them to change their mind then she agreed actually which made me feel happy

    Band 6-7

    A constant debate that is there in our house is which stream is better science or arts. The primary opponents having this debate is me and my younger brother Palash. He has taken up science stream and I have taken up humanities and thus we are constantly bickering over which stream has smarter individuals. He keeps on saying that as science solves world issues and helps resolve real life problems, people who take up science stream are more intelligent than people in humanities. However I believe that humanities and social sciences are equally if not more important than the sciences because only if such social sciences and humanities are studied, a better order can be brought into the society. People can become more aware of social issues and how to tackle with growing population thus making it easier to solve such issues. The disagreement has not been resolved yet and I do not see it getting resolved in the near future. However, our parents keep on encouraging us to agree to disagree and respect both the streams and realize that both the streams have their own pros and cons.

    Band 6-7

    One memorable disagreement that I can remember was with my brother. This was about his spending capacity and his spending ability in shopping or in everyday life. He was a heavy spender and this impacted his overall mental state throughout the month. He'd get his salary at the first of the month and he'd spend the entire amount by the end of the month which costed him to have a lot of stressful days thinking, Oh, I need to wait for my next salary. And this issue was something I had to address with him because I'd rather want him to be peaceful and in a calm state than worry about money. So one day I spoke to him. I was like, I don't think you spending money like this is good for you. And we ended up having a huge disagreement and an argument about how I cannot give my opinions because it is his money and he would do whatever he chooses to do. And I was like, I'm your big sister and I deserve some respect from your end. And I was just addressing an issue that I thought was bothering you. This led to us having a huge disagreement in front of our parents and everybody had to calm us down and separate us. But yes, at the end of the day, we both sat down again and we discussed how he can allocate his resources better to different parts of his life and not end up with no money and no savings and no future wishful thinking and just spend everything he gets. So this allowed him to also retrospect about his own spendings. And we both came to a mutual understanding that it's okay for him to spend, but he needs to spend.

    Band 6-7

    So yeah, I had an argument with my friend regarding working women. According to my friend, she said to me that women should not take much stress and should be a household. But according to me, it is like women should take stress and should be independent and should support the guy, her life partner. That was my thought. But according to her, she says that taking stress shouldn't be there. And yes, later the argument came to an end when I said that whenever her life partner is in a difficult situation or lacks in money or the income which he earns, he needs a lot of support from his surroundings. In order to support him, a woman needs to be independent and needs to be working so that the burden on her life partner becomes a bit less.

    Band 6-7

    Actually, I had a disagreement with my grandma earlier, like 2-3 days ago. It was based on my studies. She thinks every student should study well and score above 95% to be a good one. She personally prefers that everyone should follow the path of others, like choose MPPS, choose to become a doctor and choose to become an engineer or something. Like follow what others followed. She didn't personally prefer someone to go on their own interest and perspective. And I was totally disagreed with that. I was really opposite from her point of view. I strongly opposed her and speak my opinion about that. I said to her that everyone have their own dreams, everyone have a right to chase their own dreams. Moreover, I included examples of some great scientists, some great businesswomans to make her believe what I said was truth. And I am happy that she is aware of it now and she knows what a dream is. She now supports me for my dream to become a biotechnologist other than pursuing an MPPS. And I am happy for that and I am happy for how she sees the world in front of her. I changed her point of view and I am happy for that and I am truly truly happy for that.

    Band 6-7

    So while coming back from the mall with my dad, I suggested the idea of using more recycled plastic and incorporating it to make concrete roads as that would make for a good use of recycled materials. He however, suggested that it is actually very expensive to recycle plastics and hence it's a good idea but it cannot be implemented in reality. And so I suggested what if big companies try and do it instead of, which have more funding from the government, instead of like small start-up companies and then we can have more environmental friendly practices in general. And he also thought that was a pretty good idea. So that's how our disagreement was resolved. I do think he had valid points about it being more of an idealistic idea than practical. I think people should urge the government and big corporations to really enforce the use of recycled materials as well as reusing plastic materials within their work environment and try to launch initiatives around that also.

    Band 6-7

    Since childhood, singing is the significant part of my life. I like singing and I had a dream of becoming a singer. But I had a disagreement with my mother that I don't want to become a singer. Furthermore, she used to tell me that it doesn't have any career. So, I had argued with her many more times. Furthermore, I have stopped talking her to some instance. But as the years passed by, my mother used to see how eager and how curious I am about singing. So, she had agreed with my decision to become a singer. And later on, we both became happy. And after all, my dream became true. And I had taken classes for singing classical music. And after that, I am going for the auditions. So, this is the thing.

    Band 6-7

    The disagreement I had was one with my cousin sister who is in 8th standard right now. As last Sunday I had visited their home as it is near to my hostel and we were having a normal chat and then suddenly a social issue came up like the celebration should go up till late in the night like after 10 and I totally disagreed with her that it is a major social issue and it is not good to have celebrations with loud music and so on late at night specially after around 10 o'clock and she was like no it is so much fun to have it and everyone should celebrate their birthdays and celebrate major festivals with full firecrackers late at night and then I had to explain her that it is not a good idea doing it so as it is very disturbing to the environment, it is disturbing to the old people who have difficulties in sleeping late at night and who are very anxious and they get scared of the loud noise and the music continuous music and even for the young children and the babies they are unable to sleep disturbing the entire home and even the firecrackers sometimes is dangerous so I feel most of the celebrations should take within 10 p.m. and it shouldn't be extended and I personally feel that rules should be made so that no celebrations are made after 10 so there is peace maintained within the community and no complaints are raised and this social issue can be reduced I had to explain her all this in detail and then finally she agreed to me.

    Band 6-7

    disagreement that I had with my classmate which is happened in few months ago discussing about our final year tour program I was the class representative of the batch and on the boy side and Nikita who is the class representative of the girl side so the boys want to go to the Goa and girls want to go to Dandel which is a place with a lot of water activities and the disagreement was the girls does not want to agree with the destination as Goa so Nikita was very frustrated and argue with me and end up to the teachers here and my teacher Akilamis solved this issue she called us to the classroom and sorted two days for Goa and two days for Dandel and the agreement is firstly not agreed by boys but eventually we want to consider the girls side also so we are able to agree to this plan and we successfully go for the trip and the trip was very enjoyable and give lot of memories and the agreements are disagreements are usually a common thing in humankind everyone should be try to solve it
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