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Describe an unforgettable experience that you had: IELTS Speaking Cue Card

You should say

  • What the experience was?
  • When and where it happened?
  • What made it memorable?
  • And explain how it changed you.
Show all 117 answers

Cue 1:What the experience was?

  • Begin by clearly stating the unforgettable experience you had.
  • Make sure to include specific details that highlight why this experience stands out to you.

Example

One unforgettable experience I had was when I went on a solo trip to the beautiful hill station of Manali in Himachal Pradesh. It was my first time traveling alone, and I was both excited and nervous.

Cue 2:When and where it happened?

  • Provide the time frame of your experience, including the month and year.
  • Describe the location in a way that helps the listener visualize it.

Example

This trip took place in June 2022, during the summer holidays. Manali is a stunning place surrounded by snow-capped mountains and lush green valleys, which made it the perfect getaway from the heat of the plains.

Cue 3:What made it memorable?

  • Share specific moments or events that made this experience special.
  • Explain your feelings during these moments to convey the significance of the experience.

Example

What made this trip memorable was the sense of freedom I felt while exploring the local culture, trying adventure sports like paragliding, and meeting new friends from different parts of India. One evening, I sat by the river, watching the sunset, and I felt a deep sense of peace and happiness.

Cue 4:And explain how it changed you.

  • Reflect on the personal growth or insights you gained from this experience.
  • Discuss how this experience has influenced your perspective or future decisions.

Example

This experience changed me by boosting my confidence and independence. I learned that stepping out of my comfort zone can lead to wonderful experiences. It inspired me to travel more and embrace new challenges in life.

Conclusion

    Example

    In conclusion, my solo trip to Manali was not just a vacation; it was a transformative experience that taught me valuable life lessons and helped me grow as a person. I will always cherish the memories I made during that trip.

    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 less engaging and informative. It's important to provide specific details about your experience to capture the listener's interest.

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    Tip

    Include specific names, places, and emotions to create a vivid picture of your unforgettable experience.

    2: Lack of Structure

    A disorganized response can confuse the listener. It's essential to follow a clear structure to ensure your answer flows logically and covers all cues.

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    Tip

    Use the provided cues as a guide to structure your answer: start with the experience, then the time and place, followed by what made it memorable, and finally how it changed you.

    Overly Short Answers

    Providing overly brief answers can make it seem like you have nothing to say. This can lead to a lower score as it may not demonstrate your speaking ability.

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    Tip

    Expand on each cue with detailed explanations and personal reflections to showcase your language skills and depth of thought.

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    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
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    Reported by

    Anonymous student Band 7.5

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    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
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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
    anonymous person icon

    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

    So, the unforgettable event, experience that I had was with a swarm of honey bees which attacked me when I was on a holiday with my family and we were in this village named Jatola. It's in Haryana and we have lands over there which we have given to people to cultivate over there. So we were just chilling and suddenly a swarm of honey bees literally attacked us and it was really funny and hence it's memorable for me. I got attacked by almost 50 honey bees and my uncle got attacked by a 100 honey bees. So it actually, like I developed a fear of honey bees after that so yeah it was pretty memorable for me and scary as well. Now whenever I see a honey bee I just, I don't know, I just run away from there so yeah.

    Band 6-7

    Now I would like to tell about my unforgettable experience, that is my entire farm day journey. First of all, since childhood I have dreamt to become a doctor. But after missing my MBBS seat, I forcefully enrolled into agriculture courses. But after 2 days I got a call from my brother. He taught me about the farm day course and what are the advantages. So I decided without any hesitation and I got enrolled into farm day course. After joining Avanti college, in my mind I had many doubts like will I handle the course. Moreover the subjects are also very hard and the exams are also very hard. So I decided to try well. During these days I have suffered with many health issues like typhoid fever and blood motions. Particularly in my exams time, I suffered with heavy health issues. So I thought I will get a low score. But at last I got a very good percentage and I secured a job in Pinnacle Hospital as a quality aggregator. It is my dream.

    Band 6-7

    Although I have very good memories from my friends and family, but one of my favorite memories is when I visited Hyderabad last summer for an internship program. I was selected for a very amazing opportunity which was about learning Spanish as a foreign language and expanding its knowledge. The course was funded by European Union. Although I have many good memories given by my friends and my family, but one of my favorite memories is when I visited Hyderabad last summer for an internship program which was funded by European Union. The program was about learning Spanish and teaching it as a foreign language. There were many teachers and students that were a part of it. Only 60 candidates across all the world was selected for this program and I was lucky enough to get selected. The whole program was funded by European Union. They funded for each and everything whether it be accommodation, food or anything which was necessary for the student. The program was co-hosted by University of English and Foreign Languages which is a central university in Hyderabad, India and it was also co-hosted by University of Salamanca which is one of the oldest universities in Spain. There were many native teachers who were a part of this program. They taught us various things and they even taught us how to make a manual to expand the knowledge of Spanish and to teach Spanish as a foreign language in India. We did many different activities and I made many friends and connections from that course. The course was fun. In the days, we used to do classes and in evening hours, we used to go out and have friends and explore the city of Hyderabad. We did a lot of various activities there. Apart from this, we also made connections which are now helping me to get better at my studies.

    Band 6-7

    One unforgettable experience that I had would be teaching of phonetics to students. I had this opportunity given by Ms. Thaye and she entrusted me to give a demo class or introduction of the IPA to the students. It not only boosted my confidence but I was able to gain more knowledge through my preparation and that is exactly what I wanted to do and I wanted to become in the coming years. So, that's one unforgettable experience.

    Band 6-7

    so this is once when I went to a school which was my old school in which I had completed my 10th standard so now after completing my graduation I wanted to become a teacher English teacher so I came to that school to give a demo class now the teachers who were sitting in the demo class the teachers who were sitting for the demo class in there in the class they were my old teachers who once had taught me when I was in 10th standard they were sitting with the other students and they constantly kept staring at me and that thing made me really very nervous and I could not understand what to do but anyhow I collected myself and I started asking a few questions to the students I asked that if they had learned direct and indirect speech and they replied yes but after that I asked them if they had learned active and passive voice so that thing they again told yes but I told them that I would tell you something which you would not have learned earlier which they would not have learned earlier so here I started with the differentiation between active and passive voice why and when active and passive voice is used and in what context it is used so

    Band 6-7

    The most uncomfortable moment of my life was when I am practicing medicine and I am posted as an intern in ICU, medical ICU. I came across a patient who is in step down ICU for minor stroke symptoms. At the midnight around 1 a.m., he got excessive symptoms where he is unconscious with altered mental status. Then they got shifted him to MICU. When the doctor approached their attendants to explain his condition, they said they can't afford the ICU charges, so they want him to shift into the regular ICU. We convinced them that the care is not sufficient in that ICU, but they can't afford that, so we shifted to the small ICU. Later on, when we are mounting the patient, we can't find his vitals, and we declared him dead. In that situation, I thought maybe the sufficient effort can be put into the patient's condition so that we can save him. In such moments, we felt helpless in that situation, so that incident struck me hard. So I keep on thinking, there is so much uncertainty in life, that anything can happen. If we are alive, so we should live with a little bit of gratitude and do something for the sake of others. That is what I learned from that incident.

    Band 6-7

    Once of the unforgettable experience I had was when I went on a school trip on Simla two years ago. It happened during our final year of school. I was around 16 years old at that time. The school arranged a three-day trip to Simla for all students in our class. It was the first time I was going to the hills, so I was very excited and I went with my classmates and a few teachers. We travelled by bus and the journey itself was full of fun. We sang songs, played games and clicked some pictures on the way. When we reached Simla, the weather was very cold and fresh. I still remember the feeling of cold. Once that second day, the snow was an amazing part. It was the first time seeing snow in real life, so I could not stop smiling. My friend and I made snowballs. I had snow fights.

    Band 6-7

    I have done post-graduation from Khalsa College Amritsar, which is 40-50 km away from my hometown. Therefore, I had to live there at a hostel facility, due to which I get an opportunity for life experiences and become independent. The one unforgettable experience that had a wonderful impact on me was preparing for a workshop that I delivered when I began my teaching career in 2022. Since I have done MSc Mathematics and B.Ed, I began my teaching career in 2022. When I initially joined it, they just wanted to check out my calibre, due to which they assigned me with the task of delivering workshops among 200 plus students. The topic was Happy Classroom, but I was afraid to prepare it, because I was not at all a good public speaker, specifically when it is not related to my own subject, i.e., Mathematics. But still, they insisted, because they just wanted to test my calibre. Also, they offered me to collaborate with one of the superior and senior employees, that was Ms. Kirandeep Kaur. She was the best public speaker, so I accompanied her and the event was wonderful. I prepared a PowerPoint presentation and then explained each and every point among students and inspired them a lot to create a positive environment while learning. Later on, after the end of the workshop, I realised the hidden calibre inside me and I just felt over the moon, because it created a huge, wonderful impact on myself and I became a better version of myself.

    Band 6-7

    Usually, on Fridays and Sundays, I go to my church for Holy Mass. There is a tradition on the Fridays where the church provides food to everyone who attends. After the Mass, a large queue forms as people wait to receive the food. One day, I noticed an elderly woman who was struggling to walk. She looks weak and no one around her seemed to notice or help her. I went up to her and asked if she needed food. She said yes, but she wasn't able to stand in that long queue. So, I stood in the line and took a piece of food and brought it to her. She looked at me with so much gratitude and said, God bless you. That moment touched me deeply. I felt incredibly peaceful and proud to have helped someone in need. It reminded me how small actions can mean a lot to others. But, nowadays, I think because many are focused on their long lives and problems, they often don't pay attention to others' needs. However, not everyone is like that. Some people still genuinely care and try to help those who are struggling.

    Band 6-7

    It's rather a very tragic experience. It started when I went to visit my friend. We went to the mall and after the day, I was returning back home when I saw a middle-aged woman crossing the highway, which is not legal of course, it's illegal. She was crossing the highway. It was around 6 pm, around sunset. It was not very dark, but there was no light as well. So, I saw a car speeding in 120 kmph and the car crashed onto that lady and dragged her for around 100 meters. It was right in front of my eyes. It was a very tragic experience. I have never seen an accident like that before in my life. So, when I saw that accident, it just stayed in my head for a very long time and it's very unforgettable for me. Till now also, I still remember that day and every time I drive, I just pray to God and thinking that something like that never happens to anybody. Of course, it was not legal to cross the highway because it was a highway, but the lady, I think she was a worker. She was just crossing the road. There was this village on the other side of the road, so she wanted to go to the village, I guess. So, she was crossing the road that way, but it led to a big, big hazard and I would recommend never to break any traffic rules or do anything that's not legal. For some shortcut and lose your life like this or risk your life like this. So, yeah.
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