IELTS Speaking Tips

The speaking test is often one of the most challenging tests for students. I hope these 44 IELTS speaking tips will help you better prepare for the test.

1. Try to speak only English before the test. This will make the transition to speaking only English during the test much smoother. You can even ask other candidates if they want to practice speaking while waiting for the test.

2. Maintain eye contact and remember to smile. Appearance is important, pretend to be confident even if you aren’t.

3. Never say I don’t know. If you don’t know, make something up.

4. Remember the examiner isn’t trying to trick you or give you a bad score. They are just like your teacher; they want to see you succeed.

5. If the examiner uses a word you aren’t familiar with, ask them what it means. The examiner may or may not be allowed to give some clarification.

You can try asking them by saying: “What do you mean by …..?” They may be able to clarify some. It doesn’t hurt your score to ask.

6. If you don’t understand what the examiner asked, ask them to repeat it. It is better to ask them to repeat a question than to answer the question incorrectly.

7. Remember natural pauses are okay. Don’t speak too fast. But long unnatural pauses aren’t okay. So keep a steady rhythm.

8. Using a variety of vocabulary is important, but fluency is more important. Don’t spend time trying to think of how to use a complex word when a simple word can be used immediately.

9. Practice presentation skills (eye contact, posture, pace, volume, and body language). They are important to seem confident and communicative.

10. Try to learn synonyms for common adjectives. (i.e. instead of great, amazing; instead of bad, horrible; etc.)

11. Try to use polite formal language, definitely don’t use slang or curse.

12. Everyone tells you to be calm and relax; but will you be calm and relaxed? No. So turn that nervousness into excitement. Try to be excited rather than nervous. Excited is good, but try not to be manic.

13. Remember you can lie. This is an English test, not a truth test. If your actual opinion is too difficult to explain, just lie and pretend you have another opinion. Feel free to lie if it makes answering a question easier. If it is easier to tell the truth, tell the truth, if it is easier to make something up, make something up.

14. Be prepared to talk about the past, the present, and the future. Make sure you are comfortable using different tenses. The speaking test will most likely have questions designed to make you use at least the past, present, and future tense. But probably also the present progressive and the present perfect and maybe more.

15. You can usually use the same tense as the question. So if the question is in the present tense, your answer usually should be in the present tense. (What do you do in your free time? [Do is present tense.] I listen to music a lot in my free time. [Listen is present tense]) You may have to switch verb tense as you expand your answer though.

16. Record yourself while you practice. Listen for intonation, stress, and pronunciation.

17. To check your intonation, stress, and pronunciation: listening to a recording of a native speaker talking for about 10 seconds. Then try to repeat what they say. Record yourself and compare the two recordings.

Try to copy exactly how the native speaker talks. (stress the same words, copy their pronunciation, copy their intonation)

Keep recording yourself. Try to get your recording to sound just like the recording of the native speaker.

18. Be sure you can use adjectives correctly and practice describing how things make / made you feel. You will most likely be asked several times to describe things.

19. Make sure you know how to use comparatives (more / -er ) and superlatives (the most / -est) to describe things and compare things.

20. You will probably have to speculate, especially in part three. So be comfortable using conditionals. (e.g. If people don’t work hard, they will never succeed.)

Also be familiar with modals like might, could, will, may, etc. and how to use them. Be prepared to talk about the possible future.

21. Practice giving your opinion about different things and why you have that opinion. You will often be asked why you think or believe something, especially in part three.

Become comfortable using transitions. And practice using phrases like because, although, even though, that’s why I think, etc. to explain your opinions and thoughts. Part of your score is your ability to justify your answers.

22. If you need extra time you can rephrase the question.

(e.g. Q: What is the most important subject for a student to learn? A: Hmmm, the most important subject for a student to learn? Let me think, I guess the most important subject for a student to learn is….) But be careful, don’t overuse this technique.

23. If you have absolutely no idea how to answer something, just talk, about anything barely related to the question. Even unrelated talk is better than total silence.