arrow back icon Top Answers

Describe your favourite way to relax.: IELTS Speaking Cue Card

You should say

  • What is it?
  • How effective is it for you?
  • When and how do you relax?
Show all 67 answers

Cue 1:What is it?

  • Begin by clearly stating your favourite way to relax, such as reading, meditating, or watching movies.
  • Provide a brief explanation of why this activity is your preferred method of relaxation.

Example

My favourite way to relax is by reading books. I find that immersing myself in a good story allows me to escape from the stresses of daily life and enter a different world.


Cue 2:How effective is it for you?

  • Discuss the benefits you experience from this activity, such as reduced stress or improved mood.
  • Mention any specific instances where this method of relaxation has helped you cope with challenges.

Example

Reading is incredibly effective for me as it helps me unwind after a long day at work. Whenever I feel overwhelmed, diving into a novel not only distracts me but also lifts my spirits. For instance, after a particularly stressful week, I read a gripping mystery that kept me engaged for hours.


Cue 3:When and how do you relax?

  • Describe the times when you usually engage in this relaxing activity, such as in the evenings or on weekends.
  • Explain your routine or environment when you relax, like a cozy corner at home or a park.

Example

I usually relax by reading in the evenings, right after dinner. I have a cozy nook in my living room with a comfortable chair and a warm lamp, which creates the perfect atmosphere for getting lost in a book. On weekends, I also enjoy reading at a nearby park, surrounded by nature.


Conclusion

  • Summarize the key points about your favourite way to relax.
  • Reiterate why this method is significant to you and how it contributes to your overall well-being.

Example

In conclusion, reading is my favourite way to relax because it transports me to different worlds and helps me manage stress effectively. It is a cherished part of my daily routine that contributes significantly to my mental well-being.


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: Being Too Vague

Candidates often give very general answers without specific details. This can make the response less engaging and informative, leading to a lower score.

bulb icon

Tip

Provide specific examples of your relaxation method, including details about what you do, where you do it, and why you enjoy it.


2: Lack of Structure

A disorganized response can confuse the listener. Failing to address the cues in a logical order may result in a less coherent answer.

bulb icon

Tip

Follow the cue card prompts in order: start with what it is, then discuss its effectiveness, and finally explain when and how you relax.


Overly Short Responses

Some candidates give very brief answers, which can limit the opportunity to showcase language skills and depth of thought.

bulb icon

Tip

Expand your answers by including personal anecdotes or feelings related to your relaxation method to create a more engaging narrative.


calendar icon

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
anonymous person icon

Reported by

Anonymous student Band 7.5

location icon

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
anonymous person icon

Reported by

Anonymous student Band 8

location icon

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
anonymous person icon

Reported by

Anonymous student Band 6.5

location icon

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
anonymous person icon

Reported by

Anonymous student Band 7

location icon

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

location icon

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, my favorite way of relaxing is reading books and doing mindful meditation. It really helped me to surpass some difficult kind of situations. And it is very effective to my daily life because it give me so much of relaxation when I go through very toughest time. When I get time, when I do this, I really become unconscious about my problem and it really help me to relax and calm down. While reading new books, I discovered new words, new way of solving the problems in my life and really get into it and it really help me to move away from the problem and I just have a peaceful mindset. Whenever I read the book, I really get a kind of satisfaction when I discover another world and it keep me very happy about it. And when I practice mindfulness in those time, I really don't get nervous about things. My mind is calm, my body is calm and really it rejuvenates my mind and body and I can deal with the whole day without my problem. So, my best way of relaxing is reading book and doing mindful meditation and it help me a lot in my life.

Band 6-7

As we all know that relaxation nowadays has become a habit instead of a... As we all know that relaxation nowadays has become a habit instead of a... ...habit as it used to be in the past. Relaxing is quite important as our brain requires some sort of the silence and peace... ...that is required to soak up all the stress that is present in our surroundings. Dave, nowadays the work-life balance is not exactly followed by all the organizations... ...and so people are getting more and more stressed. So my favorite way to relax in this stressful environment is to meditate. Usually I meditate at least twice a week to keep myself calm... ...and to calm my nerves also to ensure that my thought process is clear... ...as whenever you are stressed and tensed, the decisions that you make are generally wrong. However, relaxation is not that easy as it seems to be as it requires a peaceful environment. Also, you need to sit quiet for at least 10-15 minutes with yourself and do absolutely nothing... ...which is practically impossible these days as our mind as well as our body is constantly working. In addition to this, I also believe that certain relaxation way for me is to read. Reading also gives me relaxation as it takes me into a completely another world... ...and makes me forget the things that are going on in my life which are quite affecting my personal opinions... ...as well as the peace of mind can be achieved from meditating or relaxing... ...or sometimes exercising too. So it is important to relax.

Band 6-7

My favorite way to relax is definitely playing games or sports, if that may be. I make it a point to always take some time off every day from my normal work style to spend it on playing games. It has proved to be so effective that I never had to find a different way, a different approach to relaxing myself. I have tried multiple other ways but nothing has come to be as effective as gaming. It just draws me into this new reality where I have the reins, the control and it just is magical in my eyes. I would say everybody should adopt this though there is a very relevant stigma around gaming to which I totally disagree. Gaming can be proven to be effective not just to relax a person but to boost a person's mental capacities like let's say analyzing something that's there in front of your eyes or decoding what's wrong, what's right and finding your own path to success.

Band 6-7

I would I would love to relax myself by having a good really good nap and before that I like I would love to take a good bath and have some hot pack and watch my favorite series friends and then I'll fall asleep like that it will be a good relaxation for me then if I'm more stressed then I'll listen to music which will make me which will put me in a good mood and I would like to have some good delicious food so that it will make me feel better and relaxed then I would love to play some mobile games then I'll call my sister and usually talk about my daily routine or my and all the thing or the interesting things that happen in my life so the I would like to so to sum up I would like to listen to music sleep talk to my sister friends take a good bath and listen to music

Band 6-7

Well, although our lives are full of hustle and bustle, there are few ways to relax. For me, for my relaxation and to revertalize is to visit my farm. Today, I am going to talk about one of my favorite place for relaxation is my farm which is located in Kerala in a small town. My farm is in a beautiful location. It is very vibrant, attractive and intriguing. There are several mango and coconut trees there. My farm also contains a house. We have a servant who looks after the farm. The farm's tranquil, pleasant and relaxed atmosphere makes it the ideal spot for me to revertalize. I often visit my farm once in two months with my family members and friends. I am pleased on my farm. My farm swings provide a relaxing experience. I can appreciate the dawn and sunset. The air is soothing and cold. Sleeping beneath the open sky on the farm includes a sense of peace. The sounds of birds singing and water flowing air are comforting to the spirit. My farmhouse is also a peaceful spot with vibrant flowers. As an enthusiastic nature enthusiast, I am well pleased to visit my farm and to unwind and release all my stress. This place is the finest spot for my mind, body and soul relaxation and indeed I adore it whenever I visit my farm. I feel rejuvenated.

Band 6-7

My favorite way to relax is going to the gym. So every time I feel frustrated or I need in need of relaxation, I usually go to the gym and practice weightlifting. So weightlifting makes me release any of my stress and helps me focus, put my attention into one place. I usually go for my personal growth and have a trainer who helps me in the gym to practice the right way. This is the right way to remove my stress and even healthier, which makes me focus on myself and helps me de-stress. I go to the gym quite frequently because it is important to be regular and focus on your own self. I tend to visit regularly so I don't injure myself and you have to be very careful.

Band 6-7

So, I have many ways for relaxing myself. I like reading books. The recent book that I have read is Everybody That You Hate Is Gonna Die by Paul. And I also like playing chess. I like swimming. I like traveling, meditating and watching movies. So among this, one of the main, most favorite thing that I like to do is traveling. Every month or every two months, I try going here like to some of the places. For example, recently I went to Sikkim the last month during Christmas. And it was a mesmerizing moment. I have never seen such an amazing view. For me, traveling and exploring means everything. Sikkim I went and we went to North Sikkim, South Sikkim, East and the East Sikkim. We weren't able to cover the West Sikkim but overall whatever we have covered, it was amazing. I would really recommend people to visit different places just to relax. It is very different. So there was a place called Zero Point that we went in North Sikkim. And I had never seen such beautiful views anywhere. That was my first time and the temperature was minus 10 degrees Celsius. And it was extremely cold and it was very, very different. And overall, it was really, really nice. I really liked visiting Sikkim. Other than that, I have also visited other places like I went to Puri, Odisha. I went to Gujarat, Rajasthan, Udaipur. I have visited different parts of Karnataka, Pondicherry. And every time I travel to different places, it is a different kind of relaxation for me.

Band 6-7

Nowadays people are choosing different ways to get relaxed from the stressful life and whenever they feel bored. Some people like to listen to music, watch TV or chit chat with their friends, whereas some people do yoga, exercise and sleep for a long time. Today I would like to talk about a way which I use to get relaxed from my stressful life. When I feel very bored or I am feeling very stressful due to my hectic work or life, I usually do listen to music. It is one of the best and effective method or way to get relaxed from our stress. Whenever I listen to music, I get really free from my stressful thoughts and expressions and emotions. I feel very quiet and calm environment. I just close my eyes and deeply get into the song. So I can really get very calm environment around me. So this is the way whenever I get stressful life or I get bored when I am alone, I usually listen to music. There are lot of musics are available, but particularly I choose the devotional songs. It is very effective method to get relief from our tensions. As a Christian, I always choose Christian devotional songs. There are lot of devotional songs I like. Especially when I was a child, my grandmother taught me different songs related to our views and customs. So that songs are always I am choosing to hear when I am get really stressed or tension.

Band 6-7

One of my favourite ways to relax is spend time with my dog. Whenever you're feeling down, or when you feel too stressed, he's right there to help you get through the day by showing us, by showing how much he loves us. I love playing with him. Playing with him helps me ease my mind. He's such a bundle of joy, always ready to show his unconditional love. Taking him on walks really exposes my mind to him. I love playing with him.

Band 6-7

The way I relax myself and calm myself is through watching something online or on an OTT, online platform. It helps me relax as it is peaceful. I gently grab a cup of tea and sit in front of a TV or my tablet to spend some time alone. As I am a homebody, I don't prefer going out alone and spend most of my time at home with myself or with my family. The major reason for this is it helps and it aids the feeling of warmth and wellness in me and I feel over the moon when I am at my comfortable place. I feel that home is the cozy place which can give you an experience of freedom and happiness and also the warmth and worth which is required. I believe that most of the people should spend time at home rather than going outside. Especially watching movies also relaxes my mind a lot as I can watch some rom-com or get engrossed in the movie and forget what is bothering me or troubling me and it helps me soothe my mind and alleviate all my tensions.
ielts logo

Get the IELTS Prep App

Star rating icon

4.2

1M+ Installs

app download banner image

Get the app link on your phone

+91

Or download app from

google play storeapp store
master ielts speaking ad