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.

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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.

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.

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.

Tip

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

IELTS Cue Cards asked last week

Reported by Leap students who gave IELTS

Describe your favourite food at a traditional festival or a special event in your country

Reported by

Anonymous student Band 7.5

Pitampura Test Centre, New Delhi

Answer

I like to taste different types of cuisine. Here I would like to talk about my favorite dish at my traditional festival of Onam which is Sadya. Sadya is popular in my city. We are experimenting these cuisines on Onam festival day. Onam is a famous festival in my city. All family members get together in my home and we make a delicious Sadya. There are many ingredients includes that Sadya. Moreover, we make a big feast that day as well as we create a lot of memories together and we wear that day the traditional dress called Sari and men wear the Dhotis. That festival is really important to us because the whole day we are conducting different kinds of games at our homes and all the family members came together. It's a memorable day in my life. This is the festival. We are making the Sambar and Aviyal. These all the kinds of foods are making with the vegetables.

Talk about a toy you liked in your childhood

Reported by

Anonymous student Band 8

Sector 34 Test Centre, Chandigarh

Answer

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.

Describe a time you were in a place where you didn't know the local language

Reported by

Anonymous student Band 6.5

Whitefield Test Center, Bengaluru

Answer

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.

Describe a time when your friend damaged something you owned

Reported by

Anonymous student Band 7

Begumpet Test Centre, Hyderabad

Answer

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.

Describe a book you recently read

Reported by

Anonymous student Band 7.5

CBD Belapur Test Centre, Navi Mumbai

Answer

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

For this topic, I'd like to talk about my best friend. I met this girl in 7th grade. My then best friend, who I call Rishika, was my ride or die. So, she was Gujarati and so was this girl, who I'll call Hetvi. They used to talk pretty frequently and I was a little jealous of them. I used to think that she was trying to steal my best friend and make me a loner. Obviously, that was not true and that was just a typical mindset of a child or a preteen. But later on, I got close to her in grade 9. And once I got to know her, I realised that she is exactly like me. She is funny, she is everything I need in a best friend. And even today, after graduating school, I am still friends with her. She is now my ride or die. And I basically tell her everything. Furthermore, she literally takes care of every problem I have. She counsels me, she is my personal therapist, she is my motivator, she is everything I want in a person.

Band 6-7

The person I disliked the most was my friend from my schooling period. He was my 3rd standard friend. We have been friends from 3rd standard. And since then I used to, at the beginning I used to dislike him because he was very naughty. He used to trouble me a lot by scolding me. Then I used to be angry with him at first. But nowadays we are very close to each other and we talk on a regular basis. And I think we have been maturely handling our friendship. And being friends with him makes me very special. In addition to that he is very supportive of me. He encourages me in every matter whether it is academic or general life situations where I feel stuck. He advises me on a lot of different situations. In addition to that we have learnt many activities such as cycling, riding bike and learning to drive a car. In addition to that we hang out on frequent occasions and enjoy life.

Band 6-7

One of the person, one of the person might be one of my closest friend actually, Tameem. He is someone, in starting I didn't even like talking, like speaking to him. But, okay, describe a friend you disliked at first, but in return, who the person is, Tameem. Tameem, in my school, my printer, what you disliked about the person, ego, spoke to him. As I started spending, okay, describe a person you disliked at first, but in return, being friends with. That one person might be one of my closest friend actually, his name was Tameem. He was, from the start, we were in the same school, but we never spoke actually. I really, in starting I thought this person has an ego issues and because of those things, I never really spoke to him. Because he was an extrovert and I was an introvert, so I never really, you know, never had a thought of speaking to him, becoming friends to him. And later, when we completed our school, I never spoke to him. Later when, in the inter, I could say that, in the inter, he was in the same college as mine. So, I, you know, started speaking to him. I started speaking to him later on. I, as a person, I understood that how good as a person he is actually. And I really, I had later realized that how wrong was I to, you know, judge him too quickly. I think, when I, you know, spend a lot of quality time with him, I understood him as a person. And I genuinely believed that I was very wrong to have, to create something like a wrong image of him. Later I understood that I was wrong and apologized to him and now he is one of my closest friend actually. I can share a lot of things to him. When I look back, it's really funny to me like how did I even judge him so quickly. So, yeah, I think this is it.

Band 6-7

The person who I was not fond of at first but ended up being friends with was a girl back in my primary school. I met her when I was having lunch in the cafeteria. We had a bad start so we never really got off in good terms and we always differed in views, opinions, habits, likes and dislikes. So we never connected with each other. We were always in different groups of people, never really socialized with each other, never had the pleasure of knowing each other. But one day I did something mischievous for which I had to go to detention and she was not very regular. So she used to be quite often punished for it. So when we had a detention class together, we spent a lot of time with each other and during that time I got to know her. Furthermore, it was a pleasure knowing her. We talked about everything and anything that came into our mind. So it was a delight knowing her. Furthermore, I was very delighted and elated to having the pleasure of knowing her as a person. If the detention would never have happened, I would never have had the chance to get to know her.

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