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Describe something you bought that you really wanted to return: IELTS Speaking Cue Card

You should say

  • What you bought?
  • Why you wanted to return it?
  • What happened when you tried to return it?
  • And explain how you felt afterward.
Show all 319 answers

Cue 1:What you bought?

  • Begin by clearly stating the item you purchased and its significance to you.
  • Include details about where and when you bought it to set the context.

Example

I bought a pair of expensive wireless headphones from an online store during a sale. I had been wanting them for months because I love listening to music while commuting and exercising.

Cue 2:Why you wanted to return it?

  • Explain the specific reasons that led you to want to return the item.
  • Mention any expectations you had that were not met.

Example

After using the headphones for a few days, I realized that the sound quality was not as good as I had hoped. Additionally, they were uncomfortable to wear for long periods, which was disappointing since I had read many positive reviews.

Cue 3:What happened when you tried to return it?

  • Describe the process you went through to return the item.
  • Share any challenges or frustrations you faced during the return process.

Example

When I contacted customer service to initiate the return, I faced long wait times on the phone. They informed me that I needed to send the headphones back at my own expense, which I found frustrating. Eventually, I managed to send them back, but it took a lot longer than I expected.

Cue 4:And explain how you felt afterward.

  • Reflect on your emotions after the return process was completed.
  • Discuss any lessons learned from the experience.

Example

After finally returning the headphones, I felt relieved but also a bit frustrated with the whole experience. I learned to be more cautious when buying expensive items online and to read reviews more thoroughly before making a purchase.

Conclusion

    Example

    In conclusion, returning the headphones was a challenging experience, but it taught me valuable lessons about online shopping and managing expectations. I now feel more confident in making future purchases.

    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 response unclear. Avoid general statements that do not provide specific details about the item you bought or your feelings about returning it.

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    Tip

    Be specific about the item, including its name and features. Describe your feelings and experiences in detail to create a clearer picture.

    2: Neglecting Emotional Impact

    Failing to express your emotions can make your answer less engaging. It's important to convey how the experience affected you personally.

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    Tip

    Share your feelings before and after the return process. Use descriptive language to express your emotions, such as frustration or relief.

    Ignoring the Return Process

    Not explaining what happened during the return process can leave your answer incomplete. Candidates often skip this crucial part, which can lead to a lack of depth.

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    Tip

    Detail the steps you took to return the item, including any challenges faced. This adds depth to your story and shows your problem-solving skills.

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    Anonymous student Band 8

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    Anonymous student Band 6.5

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    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

    A few months ago, I was searching for some fog lights for my scooter. Then I came across with a website who sells these unique accessories. Then I decided to buy a pair of fog lights. I ordered from the website via UPI and got my delivery in the 8 days. So I was very happy while I got my parcel. Moreover, I felt very overjoyed, breaking the ice with the topic why I want to return it. Because I ordered for the lights which were 3 stage reflectors, but they accidentally provided me with 2 stage reflector. So when I installed it on my bike, it was not so convincing for me. That's why I took a decision to return it or I thought to replace it. But the site was not authorized, so I decided to return it and not get anything in return. So with that motto, I returned the headlights. I wrote an email to them, XYZ, please retake your item as it is not the proper one which you have sent it to me. From that point onwards, I packed the headlights as it was before and returned them via courier service. In 2 hours, they responded me with, thank you sir, we will return your parcel and we will repay your amount back.

    Band 6-7

    Usually, I don't shop for myself. It's my sister or my mother who try to, who shops for me. But at once, my parents were out of town and my sister too was with them. So, I was really bored of going out and buy a mobile cover which I was in need. So, I just went online and ordered a phone case that I liked from a local website which was recommended through a social media platform. So, it was of around thousand bucks which is usually a lot for a normal cover, mobile cover. So, when it was delivered, it was really in a bad condition. The old covers of mine was in a better condition than which I got. So, I just filed a complaint against the product on its website and I really wanted it to return. I sent them the proof that it was in a bad condition while I received the product. So, they accepted their fault and I had to return that mobile cover as I was really pissed off of getting such a worse service even after paying thousand bucks for a normal case.

    Band 6-7

    Well, I'm a makeup artist and in my industry to stay updated we need to have all the advanced tools that can help us to do our work faster, easier and efficiently. So I thought of investing in one of the key items for hairstyling that is Dyson Airwrap. So I brought that item from a Costco store which cost me 50,000 rupees and it's not a small amount to spend upon and I tried using them on myself and my clients but I realized it's a lot of effort. However, with the fluctuations in the voltage, in the current, with the fluctuations of the electricity, it doesn't used to work all the time at all places and I was having a hard time, you know, using it everywhere. So I thought of returning it but it was a huge amount and I couldn't use it because of the electricity fluctuations in my country. So I went to the store back and tried to return it although it was within the warranty period and there was no hassle in returning it but they did ask me for the receipt and the reason why I'm returning it and is there any issue with the product. They checked the product, they make sure they switched it on and see if it's in working condition or not. So I just told them that it doesn't work in all the electric city conditions in my country due to the fluctuations and sometimes it doesn't get switched on. So they happily accepted the return and there was no hitch in it and I've had a huge sigh of relief and when I saw that money reflected back in my credit card statement, it was like, oh my god, thank god they took it back otherwise it would have left a big hole in my pocket for sure and would have left me, you know, feeling sad that I've spent a huge amount on a product which I thought

    Band 6-7

    Oleh itu, saya membeli sebuah kasut baru-baru ini yang ingin saya pulangkan. Sebenarnya, saya membeli kasut itu untuk kerjayaan dan pakaian yang saya fikir tidak berpasangan dengan sebenarnya kerana kaki itu tidak berlaku kepada saya. Saya fikir ia boleh kelihatan baik kepada saya tetapi ia tidak. Jadi, saya berfikir untuk pulangkannya tetapi ketika saya pergi untuk pulangkannya, penjaga kasut itu telah ditinggalkan untuk mengambilnya kembali. Terlalu banyak kekacauan dan masalah berlaku di luar sana dan saya berusaha keras untuk membuat penjaga kasut itu faham tetapi dia tidak cuba untuk memahami perkara. Saya benar-benar memerlukan kasut segera dan kasut yang saya beli tidak berpasangan dengan sebenarnya.

    Band 6-7

    I am very fond of buying new sneakers. Whenever I see a new sneaker I usually want to add it to my collection. And recently there was a summer sale on Flipkart which offers a huge discount and in that offers that it included so many sneakers. But out of that I liked one sneaker which is of Jordan's and it cost me around 8000 rupees at that moment. And after sometime I finalized to order it because it gives me huge affection. I was so attracted towards that Jordan and I always wanted to try it and it was also in my budget due to its discount. And once I ordered it I choose payment option via card and I payment it online. And once I ordered it, it got dispatched on next day and reached my home after 3 days after I ordering the sneakers. When I opened the box and I literally found that it was a defective piece though its shoelace was broken and there was a cut on its sole. And I was disappointed by that and I called the customer service of Flipkart and they said that we will exchange this with the new one. And I said I want to return it and I want money instead of new one. So they said okay our worker will come and he will pick up your order and refund your money. And after he pick up my shoes from my home and I offered a refund and they said.

    Band 6-7

    So, I brought this I recently ordered cargo pans from the Meishu application which is available in the India I don't know if it is available in other countries. It is the app which gives you clothes or the accessories at the minimum low price so that everyone can afford it. At that time I was suffering from financial crisis I thought of trying that app and I ordered the cargo pans which really cost me around 250 rupees I guess so I ordered two pans I was really excited and I was waiting for the cargo pans to come and I would wear it and I would go to the sports week but then it was taking a long time to arrive and finally one point it came and I was really excited I just ran I gave the money to the delivery boy I came back to my room I opened the packing and all and I saw it was not cargo pans and that there was some jeans which was really torn no one can wear it and a piece of cloth was like old cloth and I was really disappointed by the app I wanted to give zero rating when I got to the customer care she couldn't solve my problem she told me that she could not do anything if I if I would talk to the manager also she could not do anything and she told me there is some issue in the intermediate of delivering that package and I told her what would I do if there was an issue in the intermediate situation but still that was really bad experience and I wanted to return it but I couldn't

    Band 6-7

    so the thing that I bought and really wanted to return is a shirt I bought it from an online platform that is called Myntra. I basically like to shop in offline stores because in offline stores we can get to explore a lot of options and we can try the size on and we can also get the get to know the quality of the fabric but my friend suggested me that there is a sale going on in the online platform shop and I visited the website and order a shirt from it it was a shirt a check shirt and I do not like it because the quality was not that much good and the size was also small and it was very different from what it was looking in the picture I found distressing that how will I return it and how it how I will get my funds back and then my friend suggested me that you should apply for its return and refund option then I click on it and I submit all the details with a photograph of the particular shirt and then their team member contacted me and I gave him my address and my account number to which I wanted the refund of my purchase and after 7 to 8 working days they process my order and I got the refund and I feel very relaxed because it was a tense situation because I it was my first time that I have shopped online and it went wrong

    Band 6-7

    I have recently bought a smartwatch with an expectation of it being very useful to me. Initially I had in my mind that if I had a smartwatch at all, I can reduce the use of my phone. A good smartwatch will allow you to do the functions of the mobile just in your wrist. And eventually I purchased a Samsung Galaxy 4 watch which costed about Rs.10,000. I was expecting it to be a good watch. However, it turned out to be not useful for me, especially when we consider the price range. What actually happened is that while we are having a phone which has a bigger screen, which can do the things tasks more easily, we will not attend to the watch. After a while, the rate at which I used the watch diminished and now I rarely use it. I need to charge it too frequently. Moreover, I think it is not worth the price. I really do want to return the watch and I am looking for options for an exchange or returns. Since it has crossed the period of return to the buyer, I can't do that anymore. Now I understood that before purchasing such a watch,

    Band 6-7

    A few months ago, I bought a pair of wireless noise cancelling headphones from an online store. They were from a popular brand and I had been saving up for quite some time to get them. I was really excited because I needed something reliable for my online classes and also for listening to music while travelling. However, when the headphones arrived, I was quite disappointed. First of all, the sound quality did not live up to the glowing review I had read, the bass was too heavy, the terrible pause muffled, and the noise cancellation sling barely made a difference. On top of that, they were quite uncomfortable to wear for long periods, which was a big issue for me since I planned to use them for an hour at a stretch. Naturally, I decided to return them. I contacted customer service and explained the issue, expecting a smooth return process. Unfortunately, things did not go as planned. The customer support was unresponsive at first. When I finally got through, they told me that I had missed the 7-day return window by just one day. I was frustrated because the product had generally not met the advertised quality. Afterward, I felt a mix of emotions. On the other hand, I was annoyed and slightly cheated because I had spent a significant amount of money on a product that did not meet my expectations. On the other hand, I realized it was a learning experience. I became more conscious with online purchases, always reading the fine print and watching unfiltered reviews before making a decision. In the end, while I did not get my money back, I gained a valuable lesson.

    Band 6-7

    In the olden days, people used to shop from stalls or roadside vendors, but in the recent years, we have seen the development and the change in the manner that individuals like us have started preferring shopping online. The best part is the one-day delivery options that are available through so many of the shopping websites such as Amazon, Flipkart, or even 10-minute delivery options available through Swiggy, Instamart, and so on. There was one time when I ordered a pair of shoes in a hurry through one-day delivery. Since I was joining a new company and it was my first day, I did not have a good pair of shoes. So I bought stilettos through Amazon and they were quite expensive. They looked amazing. Although the next day when I wore them, I realized that they were extremely uncomfortable. The fact that I also got scammed since it was not leather from which the shoes were made of. It was a coating which started chipping off and that is the reason why I wanted to return it. Although expensive, I could not return it and I regret purchasing it till today. Websites like Amazon do not accept used products, but I am still planning to sell it at a thrift store. I am aiming to at least attain half of the price of the original amount from which I bought it. With which I bought it.
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