IELTS templates & sentence banks.

Introduction — paraphrase the visual

Never copy the prompt word-for-word; reword it in one sentence.

• The [line graph / bar chart / table / pie chart] illustrates…e.g. The line graph illustrates coffee and tea consumption per person between 2000 and 2020.
• The [chart] compares… over the period from … to …
• The diagram depicts the process by which…
• The map shows how [place] changed between … and …

Overview — the single most important line

Start with 'Overall,' and give the big picture with NO specific numbers. Without it you're capped at Band 5.

• Overall, it is clear that…e.g. Overall, it is clear that coffee overtook tea to become the more popular drink.
• Overall, the most striking feature is that…
• In general, [X] rose steadily while [Y] showed the opposite trend.
• It is noticeable that [X] remained the highest throughout the period.

Describing an increase

• … rose / climbed / increased / grew / went up…e.g. Sales of electric cars rose sharply after 2015.
• There was a [sharp / gradual / steady] rise in…
• … surged / soared (for a dramatic increase).
• … experienced steady growth over the period.

Describing a decrease

• … fell / declined / dropped / decreased / went down…e.g. The number of visitors fell steadily between 2010 and 2015.
• There was a [sharp / gradual] decline in…
• … plummeted / plunged (for a dramatic fall).
• … halved / dropped to a low of…

Stability & fluctuation

• … remained stable / held steady / levelled off at…
• … plateaued at around…
• … fluctuated (wildly) between … and …
• … stayed roughly the same throughout the period.

Degree & speed (adjectives / adverbs)

Vary how strong and how fast the change is.

• Speed: rapidly, sharply, steeply, dramatically vs gradually, steadily, slowly.
• Degree: a slight / marginal / significant / substantial / dramatic change.

Grammar variation (impress the examiner)

Show range by switching between two structures for the same idea.

• Verb + adverb: 'Prices rose sharply.'
• There was + adjective + noun: 'There was a sharp rise in prices.'

Comparisons & superlatives

• [X] was significantly / slightly higher than [Y].
• [X] was more than twice as high as [Y].
• The highest / lowest figure was recorded by…
• [X] accounted for the largest proportion, at …%.

Proportions & percentages (pie charts / tables)

• … accounted for / made up / represented …% of the total.
• A [quarter / third / majority] of…
• The largest / smallest share belonged to…

Predictions & future data

Use when the visual includes projected years.

• … is expected / projected / forecast to reach… by [year].
• … is likely to continue to rise over the coming decades.

Process diagrams

Use the passive voice and clear sequencers.

• The process consists of [number] main stages.
• First / Initially, … Then / Subsequently, … Following this, … Finally, …
• At this stage, the [material] is [heated / collected / transported]…

Maps (changes over time)

• The area underwent significant changes / was transformed between … and …
• The [woodland] was cleared to make way for…
• A [new road] was constructed / built, while the [X] was demolished / relocated.

Introduction — introduce the topic

• … has become increasingly common in many parts of the world.e.g. Online learning has become increasingly common in many parts of the world.
• In recent years, there has been a growing trend towards…e.g. In recent years, there has been a growing trend towards remote working.
• With the rapid development of modern society, … has become an important issue.
• … is widely regarded as one of the most significant issues facing society today.
• There is an ongoing debate about whether…

Introduction — explain the reason behind the trend

• This change is mainly driven by…e.g. This change is mainly driven by technological advancement and changing lifestyles.
• Several factors have contributed to this trend.
• This development can largely be attributed to…
• One of the primary reasons for this trend is…

Thesis — state your position

Match the sentence to the question type.

• Opinion: I completely / largely agree with this view.
• Opinion: I partly agree; however, I believe…
• Positive/Negative: Overall, I believe this is a positive development.
• Advantages outweigh: Although this has certain disadvantages, I believe its advantages are far more significant.
• Discussion: This essay will discuss both perspectives before presenting my own opinion.

Body paragraph openings

• First idea: The main reason is that… / One significant advantage is that… / One major problem is that…
• First idea: One possible solution is to… / The primary cause of this trend is…
• Second idea: Another important point is that… / Another contributing factor is…
• Second idea: Furthermore, … / Moreover, … / In addition, …

Explanation

• This is because…
• The reason for this is that…
• This can be explained by the fact that…
• As a result, … / Consequently, … / Therefore, … / For this reason, …

Effect

• This can have a significant impact on…
• This may lead to… / This often results in…
• As a consequence, …
• This contributes to… / This plays a crucial role in…

Advantages

• One of the biggest advantages is that… / One notable benefit is…
• This enables people to… / This allows individuals to…
• This provides greater opportunities for…
• This can improve… / This helps to reduce…

Disadvantages

• One significant drawback is that…
• However, this may also result in…
• Despite these benefits, there are several disadvantages.
• This can create challenges for… / This may place additional pressure on…

Causes

• This trend is largely caused by… / This change is mainly driven by…
• This can largely be attributed to…
• Several factors are responsible for this trend.
• The primary cause is…

Problems

• One serious problem is that…
• One major issue associated with this is…
• This creates a number of challenges.
• One immediate consequence is…

Solutions

• One effective solution would be to…
• Governments should… / Individuals can also play an important role by…
• This problem could be addressed by…
• One practical measure is to…

Comparison / concession

• Although this can benefit X, it may also weaken Y.
• While this approach offers several benefits, it also has certain limitations.
• Despite its advantages, this development is not without drawbacks.
• Although both views have merit, I believe…

Examples

• For example, … / For instance, …
• A good example of this is…
• This can clearly be seen in…
• Many developed countries have demonstrated this by…

Conclusion

• Restate: In conclusion, … / To conclude, … / Overall, …
• Restate opinion: For these reasons, I strongly believe that…
• Restate opinion: Considering both sides, I believe that…
• Summarise: While this issue is complex, its advantages clearly outweigh its disadvantages.
• Summarise: Although the issue presents certain challenges, appropriate measures can minimise them.

High-band patterns to reuse in almost every essay

• … has become increasingly common in many parts of the world.
• This change is mainly driven by… / This development can largely be attributed to…
• One of the primary reasons is… / The main reason is that…
• This is because… → As a result, … → Consequently, …
• One significant advantage is that… / One major drawback is that…
• Although it can benefit X, it may also weaken Y.
• One practical solution would be to…
• In conclusion, while both sides have valid arguments, I believe that…

Answer fully (answer → reason → detail)

Two to three sentences is the sweet spot.

• Yes, definitely. The main reason is that… In fact, …e.g. Yes, definitely. The main reason is that it helps me relax. In fact, I do it almost every evening.
• Not really, to be honest. I tend to… because…
• It depends, really. On weekdays I…, but at weekends I…

Talking about preferences

• I'm definitely more of a [X] person, mainly because…
• I'd much rather … than …, simply because…
• If I had to choose, I'd probably say…

Frequency & habits

• I'd say I … a couple of times a week, usually when…
• I hardly ever …, but when I do, …
• It's become a bit of a daily routine for me.

Sounding natural (softeners & fillers)

Natural speech isn't perfect speech — small fillers keep you fluent.

• To be honest, … / Actually, … / I suppose … / I'd say …
• That's a good question — let me think…

Extending when you run short

• …, which is something I've enjoyed since I was young.
• …, and that's probably why I…
• …, especially when I have some free time.

Opening the long turn

• I'd like to talk about… / The [thing] I've chosen to describe is…
• There are a few things I could mention, but I'll focus on…

Covering the prompts (sequencing)

• To give you some background, … / Let me start with…
• As for why…, the main reason was that…
• In terms of how…, what happened was…

Adding colour (specifics & senses)

Concrete detail is what fills the two minutes naturally.

• What made it special was…e.g. What made it special was how quiet it was early in the morning.
• I still remember… / I can picture it clearly, even now.

Giving reasons & feelings

• The reason this matters to me is that…
• It made me feel… / Looking back, I realise that…

Ending / reflecting

A reflective close is where the higher bands are won.

• All in all, it's something I'll never forget, because…
• So that's the [thing] I wanted to describe, and it's had a lasting effect on me.

Fluency fillers (buy thinking time)

• Let me see… / Where should I start… / Now that I think about it…

Giving & justifying an opinion

• I'd argue that…, mainly because…
• Personally, I think…, and the reason is…
• In my view, …, although it does depend on…

Balancing views (concession)

Showing both sides lifts your Coherence and Grammar range.

• On the one hand, …; on the other hand, …
• While some people believe…, I'd say that…
• That said, there's a strong argument that…

Comparing then and now

• Compared to the past, people nowadays tend to…
• A generation ago, …, whereas today…

Speculating about the future

Modal + future forms show grammatical range examiners reward.

• I imagine that in the future, … / It's likely that…
• If this trend continues, we might well see…

Generalising

• By and large, … / On the whole, … / Generally speaking, …
• There's a tendency for people to…

Examples & evidence

• Take … as an example. / A good case in point is…
• You often see this with… / Research seems to suggest that…