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Describe a time when your friend damaged something you owned.: IELTS Speaking Cue Card

You should say

  • What was it & when did it happen?
  • How was it damaged?
  • How did you react?
Show all 41 answers

Cue 1:What was it & when did it happen?

  • Begin by clearly identifying the item that was damaged and provide context about its significance to you.
  • Mention the time frame of the incident, including the location and the occasion during which it occurred.

Example

It was a beautiful ceramic vase that my grandmother had gifted me on my birthday. This incident happened about six months ago during a small gathering at my house.

Cue 2:How was it damaged?

  • Describe the specific actions that led to the damage, ensuring to highlight your friend's involvement.
  • Explain the circumstances surrounding the incident, including any distractions or accidents that contributed to the damage.

Example

While we were playing a game, my friend accidentally knocked the vase off the table while reaching for a snack. It fell to the floor and shattered into pieces.

Cue 3:How did you react?

  • Share your immediate emotional response to the incident, whether it was anger, sadness, or understanding.
  • Discuss how you communicated with your friend about the damage and any steps taken afterward to resolve the situation.

Example

At first, I was really upset because it was a cherished item. However, I quickly realized it was an accident, so I took a deep breath and reassured my friend that it was okay. We cleaned up the mess together, and I appreciated their willingness to help.

Conclusion

  • Summarize the overall impact of the incident on your friendship and any lessons learned.
  • Reflect on how such experiences can strengthen relationships through understanding and communication.

Example

In the end, this incident taught me that accidents happen, and it’s important to handle them with grace. Our friendship grew stronger as we learned to communicate better and support each other during mishaps.

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 item and the incident to engage the listener.

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Tip

Use descriptive language to clearly explain what was damaged and the circumstances surrounding the event.

2: Lack of Emotion

Failing to express your feelings can make your story less relatable. Sharing your emotional reaction helps to connect with the examiner.

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Tip

Include your feelings about the damage and how it affected your relationship with your friend.

Ignoring the Timeline

Not mentioning when the incident occurred can confuse the listener. A clear timeline helps to structure your response effectively.

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Tip

Start by stating when the event happened to provide context for your story.

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Anonymous student Band 7.5

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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
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Reported by

Anonymous student Band 8

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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
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Reported by

Anonymous student Band 6.5

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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
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Reported by

Anonymous student Band 7

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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
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Reported by

Anonymous student Band 7.5

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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

During my college days, I think it was my sophomore year, I got close to a friend whose name is called Vimal Nath. He was a good friend and still is a good friend actually. So, he asked me a favor of whether I could give him some advice or not. And I said I would agree to give him some advice. After that, he made me do one thing, which is borrowing the watch that I owned to him. I said it was quite okay because we are friends and borrowing the watch for one day won't change anything, right? So, after that day, he returned the watch that I gave it to him into pieces. That made me feel like my whole life has been plucked out from my body. I felt shattered and I was quite furious and scolded him in front of everyone, why did you do this and what happened and all. And he explained that he went for a party and met with an accident there. It was quite unfortunate which happened to him. I felt bad of saying such harsh words because he was already traumatized with accidents that he had. And I also added much agony to his pain by asking something rude.

Band 6-7

I recall that my friend when I was in 10th standard borrowed a beautiful white attire that I had got for my sister's wedding and she had borrowed it for a family function that she had but when she returned it back to me it had a huge ice cream stain on it and when I saw it initially I was pretty livid and contacted her and called her up asking her how it had happened initially since the stain was brown I couldn't really figure out what it was but then she told me that it was an ice cream stain I was able to remove it after two or three washes but still I did not talk to her for a few days but later my mother explained it to me and I realized that it was quite a bad move on my part because in the past as well I had given her a lot of my belongings like a piece of jewelry or a piece of or a pair of slippers to wear for different occasions and she had returned them to me without any damages apart from this I feel she had also shared with me her belongings whenever I required them so I realized that friendship in itself as a whole is a relationship of giving and of gratitude and sharing so realizing the vital importance of such a relationship I decided to forgive her and forget about it

Band 6-7

so it was a gift which was given on my birthday which was 17th birthday by my other friend it was carried by my best friend it just slipped unknowingly from her hand so it just slipped it was a glass jar so it just broke him it cannot be glued or it cannot be fixed you won't get the original back I reacted with a mixed emotions it was not just scolding her and making her weep will give me the gift back I was with a mixed emotion I was so connected with the person who gifted me and the person who was carrying it and dropping dropped it was totally unintentional she was actually trying to help me grab all my gifts to my upstairs where my room is situated so it was a merry help but unknowingly it unfortunately it fell and it was broken so instead of fixing the broken I can't broke one's heart so I reacted in a normal way saying that it's okay X will fix it it's not a big deal don't weep or cry it's about a new year of my life so I have to be mature enough to face the difficulties and shortcomings instead of reacting too much because once you become a mature you have to be in a way that is more nurturing the environment accepting the reality and just going with the flow so that's how I reacted

Band 6-7

Actually, three years back, one of my friends visited me at my house and he came along actually to have a dinner, a work dinner. And while he was rounding around the house to see the rooms, the kitchens, the living room, accidentally he hit one of the frames, image frames at my house and it fell down and broke into pieces. That image was for my former daughter who passed away five years ago and it was the only memory left from here.

Band 6-7

So, I do remember a time when one of my friend damaged, as in broke my cycle that was gifted to me from my mom and this was back in 2005 when I was 8 years old and that was a gift which my mom gave me and it was very close to me as in it was my first bicycle my mom brought me and there was this my friend named Harshal I gave this cycle to him because he even liked riding bicycles but he didn't have one so he took it from me and he went a bit far away and then when he came back I saw that the tires are being are crooked and I can see that the bicycle is broken down and when he just came and he told me that he was just going at a normal speed and there was a dog in front of him and he tried to brake but for some reason there was mud in the road and the bicycle tires just skid and it was just bent right away and even my friend Harshal got hurt in that process. I was angry at that time and even scared because how would my mom react on it as it was a bicycle I just recently got for my birthday and it was now I can see it's broken apart in front of me. I was angry on him but when I showed it to my mom, all my mom said was if Harshal is doing fine or not then that day I realized that I shouldn't have been angry on him breaking the bicycle but should have checked on him first that if he is okay or not but at that time at that age I guess we were all materialistic but now I understand and that was a good lesson and a learning from learning from my mom that I could gain.

Band 6-7

I have a very beautiful flower vase that was my favorite vase and one day my friend has broken it while he was playing football. His football touched the vase and it falls down from the table. I was very upset with him but then he gave me another vase. Thank you for watching!

Band 6-7

Oh yes, I remember that incident very clearly. I had lent my car to my best friend. His name was Ashwath. I had lent him his car. So he had went for a trip to Ooty. Ooty is like a famous tourist destination in Tamil Nadu. He took the car and went to Ooty. And he had a small accident. So the mirrors and the doors of the car were damaged during the accident. I felt really bad but I couldn't say anything to him because it would have damaged his mood and he would have felt really bad. He was already feeling extremely bad because of the accident and he also felt really bad about the fact that he damaged my car. So I really couldn't say anything. I really did not say anything to him. Yeah, that's how it went.

Band 6-7

I would like to tell one incident when my friend damaged my sunglasses. It was three years ago. We were walking to our house from a bus station and we were going to a mall for shopping. As we were walking, we were doing chit-chat and laughing and so on and I had given my friend my sunglasses to hold so he was not taking care of it properly and therefore he dropped the sunglasses on the road. Because it was very expensive sunglasses, I told him, told that what did you do and I was very angry. So, I hit him with my hand on his shoulder then again I slapped him which I had regretted after but yeah hence this was a time when I reacted very angrily.

Band 6-7

I recall when my friend she created a total mess in one of my electrical labs what happened was that I was patiently doing the circuit problems and making the circuit arranging everything on breadboard but she got angry with me for some reason and she you know dismantled all the stuffs and it really made me despondent very it was very hard for me to react to her that during the heat of the moment but later on I talked to her and then I listened to her that what was her mistake and then our task was to rebuild that circuit again because the next day we were having an examination of a lab so again we had a very nice talk in the night and then while just putting the circuit it was just like we were putting our emotions right on the right track just like we were putting the wires together it just really meant that we are putting ourselves in the same frame and we are just connecting not the wires but our connections and yeah metaphorically it meant me like that and yeah I was definitely then I understood the situation and I was really happy to make her realize her mistake and how we can make things better in the end after everything

Band 6-7

My friend was disappointed in my own thing. It was a mobile phone. When we had taken the admission in Diggory, so I gave to my friend my mobile phone to keep it with her because I was going to the lab. So in lab there is no phone allowed. So I kept with her. I went to the lab. After 3 hours I came back and I asked her that where is my mobile phone. She answered me that she don't have any mobile phone. She lost my phone. So I was worried. I thought she is joking with me. She is doing prank with me. So I thought keep going that please give my mobile phone because I am addicted to my phone. But she said really Ayesha there is no phone with me. I went to the washroom and when I came back I did not saw your phone. So I really really got shocked. Where is my mobile phone. I searched a lot but there is nothing clue I got where my phone has went, who has taken. And at that time teachers also not supporting me to check whether where is my mobile phone. I was crying, crying, crying, crying because I am very addicted to my phone. So I was crying and my friend is not totally saying me that my phone is with her. She is very jealous of me. So she has done with me like this. But I think it is very bad scenario for me at that time when I believed her.
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