Describe a time you were in a place where you didn't know the local language.: IELTS Speaking Cue Card

Repetition of ideas and sentences, such as 'There are many languages that people are using' and 'Learning other languages is difficult to me.'

Avoid repetition by planning your response to ensure each sentence adds new information. Use synonyms and paraphrasing to express similar ideas differently.

Incorrect use of articles and prepositions, such as 'I went that location' and 'I am not aware about that language.'

Use correct articles and prepositions: 'I went to that location' and 'I am not aware of that language.'

Grammatical errors, such as 'There are plethora of job opportunities' and 'There are many languages are using.'

Ensure subject-verb agreement and proper article usage: 'There is a plethora of job opportunities' and 'There are many languages being used.'

Lack of coherence and logical flow in the narrative.

Structure your response by using cohesive devices like 'Firstly,' 'Moreover,' and 'In conclusion' to create a logical flow from one idea to the next.

Overuse of simple connectors like 'and' and 'but.'

Use a variety of connectors such as 'however,' 'therefore,' and 'furthermore' to enhance the sophistication of your response.

The sentence structure is awkward and lacks clarity. The phrase 'the most famous place where I visited with my friend is none other than but Bali' is not grammatically correct.

Rephrase to 'I want to talk about a time when I visited Bali with my friend, a place renowned for its greenery and cuisine.'

Repetition of phrases and words, such as 'we both,' 'we usually,' and 'we spend our time.'

Try to vary the language used. For example, instead of repeating 'we both,' you could say 'my friend and I.'

Incorrect use of tenses, such as 'we did not do not know' and 'we both from India.'

Correct these to 'we did not know' and 'we are both from India.'

Overuse of simple connectors like 'so' and 'and.'

Use more varied connectors, such as 'therefore,' 'as a result,' or 'consequently,' to improve the flow of the narrative.

Lack of cohesive devices and structured storytelling.

Start from describing the past experience, then move to present reflections or future implications. Use cohesive devices like 'Firstly,' 'However,' and 'In conclusion.'

The response lacks a clear structure and does not provide a coherent narrative. It jumps between different ideas without clear transitions.

Try to structure your response using a storytelling technique. Start by describing the situation and your initial feelings, then explain the challenges you faced, and finally, how you resolved them. Use cohesive devices like 'First of all,' 'Moreover,' and 'Finally' to improve the flow.

There is a repetition of the word 'even,' which affects the coherence and variety of the response.

Use synonyms or rephrase sentences to avoid repetition. For example, instead of 'Even I know that,' you could say, 'I was aware that.'

The phrase 'so many terrorist persons' is awkward and lacks sensitivity.

Consider using more appropriate language such as 'due to concerns about safety in the region.'

The response includes grammatical errors, such as 'I got the relief' and 'hardly I managed.'

Use correct verb forms and structures. For example, 'I felt relieved' and 'I barely managed.'

There is a lack of descriptive vocabulary and expressions.

Incorporate more descriptive words and expressions to make your narrative more engaging. Use words like 'challenging,' 'overwhelming,' or 'memorable.'

The response begins with 'Well,' which is informal and can be replaced with a more formal start. Additionally, there are several grammatical errors such as 'I am talking about the languages I learned in my childhood or you can say in teenager.' It should be 'I am talking about a language I learned in my childhood or teenage years.'

Start with a more structured introduction, such as 'I would like to share an experience from my childhood.' Ensure subject-verb agreement and correct use of articles. For example, 'my teenage years' instead of 'in teenager.'

The sentence 'My mom, she is the one who taught me Punjabi language because she is very well knowing languages, very well know Punjabi language...' is incorrect.

Use 'My mom taught me Punjabi because she is very knowledgeable about languages and is fluent in Punjabi.' Avoid redundancy and ensure correct verb forms.

There is a lack of cohesion and coherence in the response. The ideas are not logically connected.

Use cohesive devices like 'Firstly,' 'Moreover,' and 'Therefore,' to connect ideas. For example, 'Firstly, my mother taught me Punjabi. Moreover, it was essential because I lived in Punjab.'

Incorrect use of 'No doubt India have a native language which is Hindi...' and 'every single people, individuals are speak Punjabi language as well.'

Use 'No doubt India has a native language, which is Hindi...' and 'every individual speaks Punjabi as well.' Ensure subject-verb agreement and correct plural forms.

The response lacks a clear conclusion and does not fully address the question about being in a place where the local language was unknown.

Conclude by summarizing the importance of learning the language in that context. For example, 'In conclusion, learning Punjabi was crucial for me to connect with the local community and enhance my social interactions.'

There is a mix-up in tenses, such as 'I don't I didn't know' and 'I feel very uncomfortable.'

Ensure consistency in tense usage. Use past tense for past events, like 'I didn't know the language and I felt very uncomfortable.'

Repetition of words and phrases like 'lockdown' and 'Punjabi.'

Try to use synonyms or paraphrase to avoid repetition. For example, instead of repeating 'lockdown,' say 'during the pandemic restrictions.'

Use of indefinite articles incorrectly, such as 'the Punjab.'

Use 'Punjab' without 'the' when referring to the region. Correctly say, 'I went to Punjab with my father.'

Lack of cohesive devices and structured storytelling.

Introduce connectors like 'Initially,' 'However,' and 'Eventually' to improve flow and structure your story from past to future.

Sentence structure and coherence issues, such as 'and the words in the newspaper helped me a lot.'

Break down complex sentences for clarity. For example, 'Reading the newspaper helped me learn new words, which was beneficial.'

The phrase 'an incident that happened in my life' could be more specific and engaging.

Consider starting with 'I would like to share an unforgettable experience from my trip to Mongolia.'

The sentence 'We know it is a land of Genghis Khan with a lot of mountains, greenery, deserts.' lacks coherence and clarity.

Rephrase it to 'Mongolia is famously known as the land of Genghis Khan, and it's renowned for its stunning landscapes, including vast mountains, lush greenery, and expansive deserts.'

Use of 'Also' at the beginning of multiple sentences.

Try using varied connectors like 'Moreover,' 'In addition,' or 'Furthermore' to enhance flow.

The sentence 'After the arrival, I didn't know their native language.' needs improvement in structure.

Consider rephrasing to 'Upon our arrival, I realized that I didn't understand the native language.'

The phrase 'most of the Mongolians are speaking Mongol' is awkward.

Use 'Most Mongolians speak Mongolian.'

The sentence 'At that, I felt depressed due to lack of communication skills.' is unclear.

Rephrase to 'During those moments, I felt quite frustrated due to the language barrier.'

The sentence 'Also, I spent around one month in Mongolia.' lacks variety in sentence structure.

Try 'I spent approximately a month in Mongolia, which allowed me to explore extensively.'

The phrase 'experienced their famous drink called Kumis' needs more context.

Enhance it by saying 'I had the opportunity to try Kumis, a traditional and famous Mongolian drink made from fermented horse milk.'

The phrase 'me and my younger brother' should be 'my younger brother and I' to maintain grammatical correctness.

Use 'my younger brother and I' to ensure proper subject pronoun usage.

The sentence structure is somewhat repetitive and lacks coherence.

Use cohesive devices like 'First of all,' 'Then,' and 'Finally,' to improve the flow of the story.

The phrase 'we can't understand' should be 'we couldn't understand' to maintain past tense consistency.

Use 'we couldn't understand' to keep the tense consistent throughout the narrative.

The expression 'he was like' is informal and repeated.

Replace 'he was like' with more formal expressions such as 'he said' or 'he responded.'

Lack of descriptive vocabulary to describe the experience.

Incorporate more descriptive words such as 'confusing,' 'challenging,' or 'unfamiliar' to enhance the narrative.

The phrase 'many variety of the places' is incorrect. The correct phrase should be 'many varieties of places' or simply 'many places.'

Use 'many places' to convey the idea more clearly.

The phrase 'I and my friends' is incorrect. The correct structure should be 'My friends and I.'

Use 'My friends and I' for correct grammatical structure.

The phrase 'were not really very known to that language' is awkward and incorrect.

Use 'were not familiar with that language' to express the idea more naturally.

The phrase 'a person who was knowing both the languages' is incorrect.

Use 'a person who knew both languages' to correct the tense and structure.

The phrase 'the variety of picture perfect places' is awkward.

Use 'a variety of picturesque places' for a more natural expression.

The phrase 'I have been to the many places' is incorrect.

Use 'I visited many places' for correct tense and clarity.

The phrase 'I ate there traditional meal' is incorrect.

Use 'I ate their traditional meal' to correct the article and pronoun.

Repetition of 'Well' and 'And so' at the beginning of sentences.

Vary sentence starters to improve flow and avoid repetition.

Lack of proper sentence structure and punctuation.

Try to break down long sentences into shorter, more coherent ones. Use punctuation marks like commas and periods to separate ideas and make your response clearer.

Incorrect use of articles and prepositions.

Use 'an' before 'internship' and 'a' before 'university.' Also, 'Hyderabad, which is a city in the state of Telangana, India' would be more accurate.

Repetition of words and phrases.

Avoid repeating phrases like 'which is.' Instead, use synonyms or rephrase sentences to maintain variety and interest.

Subject-verb agreement issues.

Ensure that verbs agree with their subjects, such as 'my friend and I visited' instead of 'me and one of my friend we visited.'

Overuse of simple connectors like 'and' and 'but.'

Use a variety of connectors such as 'however,' 'therefore,' and 'moreover' to enhance the flow of ideas.

Incorrect use of tense.

Maintain consistent use of past tense when narrating past events, such as 'we realized it' instead of 'we realize it.'

The sentence structure is complex and lacks coherence. It contains run-on sentences that make it difficult to follow.

Break down long sentences into shorter, clearer ones. Use cohesive devices like 'Firstly,' 'Moreover,' and 'As a result' to improve flow.

Repetition of the phrase 'over there' and 'problem.'

Use synonyms or paraphrase to avoid repetition. For example, instead of 'over there,' use 'at that location' or 'in that region.'

Incorrect use of 'have' in 'consists of different kind of trees, animals and have many scenic views.'

Use 'has' instead of 'have' to maintain subject-verb agreement: 'consists of different kinds of trees, animals, and has many scenic views.'

Overuse of 'and' as a connector.

Use varied connectors such as 'also,' 'furthermore,' or 'in addition' to enhance coherence.

The phrase 'we had to suffer about that' is awkward.

Rephrase to 'we encountered challenges due to that' for better clarity.