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Describe a person you disliked at first but ended up being friends with: IELTS Speaking Cue Card

You should say

  • Who the person is?
  • When and where you met him/her?
  • Why you disliked this person at first?
  • And explain how your opinion of him/her changed and why.
Show all 104 answers

Cue 1:Who the person is?

  • Introduce the person by name and describe your relationship with them.
  • Mention any relevant background information that helps to understand who they are.

Example

The person I initially disliked is named Rohan. He was my classmate in college, and we were both part of the same study group for our engineering course.

Cue 2:When and where you met him/her?

  • Specify the time and place where you first met this person.
  • Provide context about the situation that brought you together.

Example

I first met Rohan during our first semester at university, in a crowded lecture hall. We were both attending an introductory class on computer science, and it was a bit overwhelming for all of us.

Cue 3:Why you disliked this person at first?

  • Clearly explain the reasons for your initial dislike.
  • Share specific incidents or traits that contributed to your feelings.

Example

At first, I found Rohan to be quite arrogant. He often interrupted others during discussions and seemed to think he was better than everyone else. This behavior really annoyed me, and I felt he was not a team player.

Cue 4:And explain how your opinion of him/her changed and why.

  • Describe the turning point that changed your perception of this person.
  • Explain how you got to know them better and what positive traits you discovered.

Example

Over time, I had to work closely with Rohan on a group project. As we collaborated, I discovered that he was actually very knowledgeable and passionate about the subject. He was also willing to help others, which made me appreciate him more. I realized that his confidence was just a way of expressing his enthusiasm for learning.

Conclusion

    Example

    In conclusion, my initial dislike for Rohan transformed into a strong friendship as I got to know him better. This experience taught me the importance of looking beyond first impressions and understanding people more deeply.

    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: Avoid Vague Descriptions

    Using vague language can make your answer less engaging and informative. Candidates often fail to provide specific details about the person or the situation, which can lead to a lack of clarity.

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    Tip

    Include specific examples and anecdotes about the person and your initial feelings to create a vivid picture for the examiner.

    2: Don't Overemphasize Negativity

    Focusing too much on negative feelings can create a one-sided narrative. Candidates may dwell on their initial dislike without explaining the positive changes that occurred later.

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    Tip

    Balance your response by discussing both your initial dislike and the qualities that led to your friendship, highlighting personal growth.

    Neglecting the 'Why' Factor

    Failing to explain why your opinion changed can leave your answer incomplete. Candidates often skip this crucial part, making it hard for the examiner to understand the transformation.

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    Tip

    Clearly articulate the reasons behind your change of heart, emphasizing specific interactions or experiences that influenced your perspective.

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    All Answers

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

    Band 6-7

    Here, I would like to describe about one of my new friend that has recently got in friendship with me but at the starting we were really I think so her as my enemy and doesn't like her at all. First of all, her name is Srishti Sharma. She is really a great personality but before I just knew her properly, I judged her just by the cover. As it is said, don't judge a book by its cover, I judged her in the same way. I saw her as an arrogant child. I met her for the first time in our school where it was the first day of her while I was there from two years back. I think so at the first sight, I saw her moving in attitude, her not calling to anyone, just being arrogant to everyone. I think so this made me feel like she is really a personality who have a lot of attitude and doesn't pay attention to anyone, be in herself and doesn't help anyone but this my perspective changed when I found that she really is a great personality and a great person. First of all, I wasn't able to make my assignment for my project. She was the one who stood from all other person and came to me, helped me out, figured me out the problems and gave me the viable solutions. I really thank her and that was a day I really felt the phrase coming true and made an idea, gave a big thank to her.

    Band 6-7

    So this was this world, so there it was. When I was pursuing my bachelor's degree in law, during my first year, we had a conference in our auditorium where I met one of my closest friends. During the conference, we were sitting across each other, so there were a lot of question-answer sessions going on. So when I asked, when I was noting down something, I asked him about a part that I had missed. So he was very adamant on not telling me that part. He said that, please don't disturb me. I want to concentrate on the topic that is going on. I did not like that at first, I disliked it, but then after the legal awareness program got over, one day when we were sitting in the library, so there was a topic on something which I did not understand. There was a professor there, I went up to the professor, I tried asking her about the topic and asked her to explain about the topic, but then she was too busy for that. So instead, that same friend of mine, he came up to me, he told me that he knows about the topic. He wanted to discuss the topic with me and he wanted to make me understand about the topic. So we had a fruitful half an hour discussion on that topic and that's how we became friends.

    Band 6-7

    so this person person that I met so there was a mad person here so the person I'm gonna talking about is like now right right now is my best friend but let's talk about who is this person so I met this person through my schooling years and initially like when I come across this person he didn't give me like a chill vibe he sort of seems like a rude person so I didn't like get much good impression from him about me neither I give him up so we just kind of ignore each other for the that years of the schools and just do our work so but slowly slowly we just been beginning to develop you know friendship kind of like toward each other like going to for a wash walk for some time and just being nice to each other like we beginning to develop this kind of bondship so it turned into eventually I don't know how but it just turned into into friendship I think there is a one reason why it turned into friendship is because we spend more time with each other and understand each other better and I think it's like was a nice journey of me and him being friend and how my dislike turned into likingness of him

    Band 6-7

    A person that I felt instantly like for is one of my school teachers, max teacher specifically. A person that I felt instantly like for is one of my school teachers, max teacher specifically. A person that I felt instantly like for is one of my school teachers, max teacher specifically. His name was Vineet Sir. So I first met him when I was in high school. And the first day that I saw him, he was really tall and he looked very stoic and rigid. So he permeated a kind of strictness around him whenever he walked about. So he added to the dreadfulness of the subject that mathematics already was. So obviously, and when in high school you are introduced with algebras and letters starts entering and mixing up with numerals. So it's an already difficult subject. However, when a teacher who's really strict comes to teach it, you start dreading the subject even more. So that's what happened. So I kind of projected my insecurity and fear for the subject of mathematics towards the Sir who was teaching it as well. After a certain point, I started seeing that he was genuinely passionate about teaching and how he wanted to ease our tensions regarding the subject. He took particular initiative to make us understand the nuances of the subject. So this was something that redeemed the subject itself for me. So he kind of made me realize mathematics has some positive attributes to it. And in this way, he won my heart and I started liking him as a teacher. So now looking back, he's one of the best teachers that I ever had and I respect him for that. So yeah, that's it.

    Band 6-7

    So, this person, a person that I disliked at first but ended up being friends with is my current best friend. She is different, she used to be different and she is different now. We met in the college during the first or second week of the admission. I disliked about her, the thing I disliked about her is that she was an introvert, even I was an introvert, but until and unless you go and talk to her, she used to not talk to anybody. I was the one who made an approach to talk to her and be friends with her, but she didn't like me at first, in the beginning she used to tell, I am not interested in being friends with anyone, this was the line that she told in the beginning, but then I kept on talking to her, I asked her notes, I asked her any silly questions and then she was like, okay, now I can't get rid of her, then she became my friend and now we are best friends and it's been like 3 years since we have been friends, she has been through my thick and thin and I have seen her every phases, like in the 3 years what and all has happened, I have gone through with her, so I am happy that I ended up being friends with her than staying like enemies, I am happy that we are best friends right now and I would love to continue this friendship with her.

    Band 6-7

    A person I disliked at first but ended up being friends with is my best friend now. His name is Lucky. I met him in school during grade 10. He was a new admission. I had heard about him before from mutual friends and all I've heard was that he had a bad image and was involved in many fights. After he joined school, I noticed that he didn't get engaged in studying and always ended up getting bad grades. But I didn't care a lot about it. One day I saw him outside of school with elderly people. He behaved really well with them and wasn't at all rude like everyone had described him. So I got interested as I'm a curious person and I decided to find out more about him. So first I talked to my cousin about him and she explained to me that everybody's opinion is different about everyone and she gave me an example of her friends having a different opinion about her at first. Also she told me to get to know about him more so I decided to do so. I tried to talk to him the next day in school but as always he behaved rude but I didn't give up and got to know him more. Also I helped him with his studies by tutoring him. Now we are best friends and I'm glad that I decided to learn more about him. He has a great personality and also understands me a lot and I look up to him always.

    Band 6-7

    One incident that came to my mind after looking into the question is Aryan. He is my student and looking at him for the first time, I had very negative feelings for him regarding his appearance, the way of communication he had with me. But later on, after understanding his perspective and sense of knowledge, I appreciated the way he carry himself and the way he is expressing himself to others. He is just the way he is, no wearing mask, no any other kind of blindfolds or manipulative faces or nature. That's why at the end, I started liking him and approached him in a better way as a student.

    Band 6-7

    Back in school days I had one friend named Aryan. Actually we both were not friends before but we were just in the same class and as we have male ego we both used to just give each other a dramatical look to each other by which I thought he had anger issue or ego problems that was the biggest clash we had same sports in same team by which we started was not the problem we started sharing our things to each other and our enemy bonding just turned into friendship just because of the game and now we both are best friends and maybe I just forgot to tell myself that never judge a book by its cover we should know the person fully in and out then only we should comment about them and not early as that before it

    Band 6-7

    So, there's this friend of mine, her name is Aastha and we both met at a coaching centre that was for our medical exam coaching centre and this one time we, I happened to see her, she was like shouting on top of her voice from the balcony and she was basically shouting at this person who was serving us food and I was like very disappointed as to why this girl is shouting out of nowhere, this person is in return like serving us and giving us all the good food he could at that particular time because she did not want to have the mess food so she was having the canteen food and then also she was shouting, so that was something that did not like impress me and before that also we did not have any conversation with each other, we did happen to see each other quite a lot in the corridors but never had a conversation that time, so after we were done with our coaching and we left for our homes, during the COVID period we got connected through Instagram and she was going through a phase, so she started telling me that I am going through a phase that this is something that is bothering me and after having good conversation for over two months I also started sharing things with her and we happened to discuss that when I first saw you I did not like your attitude towards this person, why were you acting in a certain way so she was like oh I did not like you when I first saw you because I saw you doing this to that person and that way she was telling me why was that attitude coming through that day because she has had a bad day but she felt sorry that she should not have done that.

    Band 6-7

    The person I would like to talk about is my colleague Rohit. I first met Rohit about 3 years ago when I joined my current company. He was already a senior member of the team and I was fresh out of the college, quit eager and perhaps a bit naive. We met in the office primarily in team meetings during onboard process. Initially I honestly found Rohit quite arrogant and a bit considering. He had a very direct communication style that I pursued as dismissed and especially when I was trying to learn the ropes, he often interrupted and his feedbacks were usually accurate, felt sharp and critical rather than constructive. I remember thinking he was around, was trying to assert his dominance and I found little seeming knowing its all attitude quite off-putting. There is particularly incident during a project where I made a minor error and his public correction felt quite harsh which solided my intention. However, one time my opinion of Rohit completely shifted. Initially I perceived an arrogance. I slowly began to understand as the deep passion of his work and commitment. His directness which I disliked was actually a type of honesty and his desire to get things done right without beating around the bush. The turning point came during a particular challenging project. I was struggling with a complex technical issue and out of everyone, Rohit was the one who sat down with me for hours patiently explaining concept and debugging the code. He stayed late with me offering practical solution with sharing his extensive knowledge without any judgement through which I saw his honesty and the inner person of him and I became friend with him because he was a very good person.
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