describe a person this is one of the most common tasks in IELTS speaking but we're often limited
by the same descriptors nice kind and smart let's learn some Advanced vocabulary to talk
about people we know and work through a few answers to possible IELTS questions it's Asiya
let's get started [Music] let's start with vocabulary we can use to talk about those closest
to us family and friends and have a look at a part two question with family you may be asked
to Simply describe a person in your family you get on well with or alternatively spend most time with
another possible topic is to describe a person in your family you admire
among the bullet points to cover in our two-minute talk we'll find of course the who
this person is questioned but we always should mention the oh important what's he or she like
we're talking character personality positive characteristics now it's too easy to say that
someone is nice or good but what vocabulary do we need to really stand out in the speaking test
let's take a couple of examples I get on best with my uncle we've been close ever since
I was a child we get on like a house on fire maybe because we share the same sense of humor
apart from that when it comes to emotional support I couldn't ask for more he's always there for me
when I need someone to talk to and he's such a good listener a lot of interesting vocabulary
if you have a good friendly relationship with someone you get on with that person
so you and I get on well or in this example comparing all the family members get home
best we can also say sadly I don't get on with my aunt in your family who are you close to
if you say my brothers and sisters that's fun but is there one of them you're closest
to notice also how we often put close to in a time frame ever since I was a child
it's often used with always or never we've always been closed if you have a great relationship with
someone at work for example you can say that you get on like a house on fire but what about someone
you don't get on with one idiomatic expression to show that your 100 different to someone else is
to say we're like chalk and cheese to completely different things we have nothing in common unlike
the anko described who has this same sense of humor so it's something we share if a relationship
or anything for that matter is so good that it couldn't be better we can say I couldn't ask
for more maybe because as in this case that person is always ready to help it's always there for you
and has that very positive characteristic of being a good listener someone who pays attention
to and respects what you say and think and what about describing someone you admire let's try
I have nothing but admiration for my grandmother I know we all tend to take older family members
for granted but when I began to learn of all the sacrifices she made I was amazed at her
outstanding qualities not only did she bring up a family of four but also qualified as an architect
studying mostly at night she's a true source of inspiration for all of us the lessons of hard
work devotion and striving to achieve one's goals that she has taught us are invaluable
some clear Expressions here I think we can admire someone or have admiration for
someone why well because of their very positive characteristics they are outstanding qualities
which have influenced us have been a source of inspiration through the example of hard
work devotional dedication as well as the idea of striving working hard to achieve some goal
of course in life and especially in family there are people we just expect to always
be there doing the things they always do we just take them for granted but we shouldn't
these examples are from part two but actually there is a 25 chance you'll be asked about your
family right at the start of your test and you can download these questions and Sample answers in the
description below moving away from the family and on to neighbors here is a part two topic describe
an interesting neighbor what if we said well there is a man who's just moved into the building where
I live and we struck up a conversation the other day in the hallway it turns out he's a retired
Diplomat and his full of stories about the places he's lived in all over the world as you might
expect he's very unassuming and outwardly calm very soft-spoken and sincere in everything he says
with our neighbor we met for the first time and began to talk to strike up a conversation
means exactly that to start an interesting conversation with someone you don't know
this neighbor has several good qualities he's unassuming or modest he's not the kind of person
to talk about himself as if he were very important he's outwardly calm she never gets very excited
or shows his feelings on the outside he doesn't have a loud voice rather he speaks quietly he's
soft spoken another area where the topic asks you to talk about someone's character is describe a
person you know who's helpful to others here is a way to begin there is this woman I work with
she must be the most warm-hearted person in the world if you're struggling with something she's
always there to land your hand always with a cheerful smile on her face and she never
asks for anything in return although I would be more than willing to help her with anything
I've never met anyone so kind and considerate yes most people are nice but this is such an overused
adjective how about using a compound adjective with hearted you can be warm-hearted kind-hearted
or good-hearted it can also be evil-hearted but let's not talk about that side of human nature
of course our good warm-hearted friend will always find the time to help when you need
it will always be there to lend a hand or you can say to lend a helping hand a smile can show that
you are happy so it's a cheerful smile I suppose when we say cheers it means happiness to your all
and there are more positive adjectives and again they go in pairs
kind and considerate considers others or things about their needs another
interesting part two topic is about leadership and the qualities you need to be a good leader
the topic question might be describe someone you know who is the good leader or who would make a
good leader a sign of a good leader is someone who leads by example and that's certainly true when
it comes to my friend Mark he works harder than anyone I know and is always on top of everything
although he's very demanding he knows how to delegate and has a great rapport with everyone in
his team as well as being very supportive he's the kind of person who stand by you when it's needed
yes a good leader is someone who shows others how to do things rather than tells
that's what we call leading by example he or she should work hard and know about all the
projects and tasks so to be on top of things or on top of everything expresses that idea
at the same time we expect leaders to be demanding a team leader who makes sure that all the team
members are working hard for example but leaders need to share tasks to delegate
and to have a good working relationship with all the members of the team or as we say here
to have a great rapport with them as well as being supportive to help or back someone when necessary
please note when we use as balance we need a gerund or a verb plus ing his kind and
supportive as well as being honest he's the type of person who will stand by you it means he will
give you their full support in all things going into topics and questions about famous people one
example is describe a famous person you would like to meet let's have a look at this example
I've chosen the climate activist Greta turnberg for someone of her age she's made such an impact
she's so straightforward and she just tells it as it is and has this way of putting her ideas
across in such a persuasive manner I can see how she's inspiring young people to protest against
climate change using the verb to make with a noun gives us loads of common word combinations such as
to make an impact some of us are very direct when we speak or act we are straightforward
and get to the point saying what we think is true we tell it as it is a nice idiomatic expression
how we express our opinions how we put our ideas across to convince others is a talent not all of
us have we've been trying today to describe other people and usually we talk about how happy we are
to see and get to know them what if that's not the case let's go back to the neighbor topic
for a minute and consider this question how well do you know your neighbors well to be honest I
usually try to keep myself to myself I'm not very sociable I've met a few people in my neighborhood
and because I'm not that outgoing I haven't really bonded with anyone at all though there is
this woman about my age who lives nearby and seems quite laid back and easy going as far as I can see
so that was my answer of course we're not all the same some people like to have lots of friends they
love to socialize they are sociable others are very quiet and don't have very many friends so we
can say a person is not particularly or not very sociable be careful when you use the opposite of
sociable unsociable because that describes someone very unfriendly and rude to others so if you're
quite shy and don't socialize very much you can say that you like to keep yourself to yourself
and if you're shy you're not very outgoing someone who is outgoing is talkative talks a lot and finds
it easy to make friends with or bond with others do like people like that or do you prefer them to
be more relaxed and easy going or as we sometimes say laid back well today I've shown you a lot of
short examples from part two but the important thing is to keep on talking for two minutes to
prove you can speak at length and to show more vocabulary and grammar how can you do that I'm
talking about two things you should do in part two to improve your score in this video here and don't
forget to download the PDF with sample answers to questions asked at the beginning of your speaking
exam and thank you so much for watching me today good luck with your preparation and your exam bye