Highlight trends

over the time

Y-axis X-axis
(vertical) (horizontal)
shows what is shows the
being time period
 Describing Line graph

Analysis (1minutes)

1. Topic
2. Units of measurement
3. Time frame
4. Tense
5. Trend/ significant data
 Task 1 Structure

Introduction Overview

Body Feature 1
Conclusion is
optional
ignore it
Feature 2
 Introduction
Paraphrasing The graph below shows the proportion of the population
aged 65 and over between 1940 and 2040 in three
the topic
different countries.

The graph
illustrates the
changing trend
in ……..
 Introduction
The graph below shows the proportion of the population aged 65 and over
between 1940 and 2040 in three different countries.
This word is used
only for guiding
purposes and since
the examiner won’t
see a chart below
your writing.

The line graph below illustrates/indicates/ provides

information about / compares/ reveals the percentage of
elderly people/ people (who were) aged 65 and older
Verbs can be
from 1940 to 2040/ over a period of one hundred years/ replaced by with a
during a one-hundred year period/ a cross a century synonym
beginning in 1940 in the USA, Sweden and Japan.
 Introduction
Essay topics: The graph shows the income of four cafes in New York over last year.

The line graph illustrates the revenue of the Tea Room, Internet Express, Wi-Fi cafe,
and Cafe Cool in New York over the previous year.
 Introduction
The graph below shows UK acid rain emissions, measured in millions of tonnes,
from four different sectors between 1990 and 2007.

•The line graph illustrates the amount of acid rain emissions that four sectors produced
over a period of 17 years in the UK.
• The line graph compares four sectors in terms of the amount of acid rain emissions that
they produced from 1990 to 2007 in the UK.
Introduction

The graph compares

the proportion of
domestic waste
recycling in the UK,
France and Germany
from 2005 to
2015/over a period of
10 years/ during a 10-
year period.
 Overview
No dates, no
number, no
percentage

The overall
2 main points trend
Overview
(2 sentences) The biggest
change
 Overview

Ways of looking for 2 features in the graph

1. All the lines increase or decrease
2. Find a line which reaches a peak or a lowest point
3. Find a line which has anomalies (the biggest
change)
4. There are both increasing lines and decreasing lines
 Overview
1. All the lines increase or decrease
All the numbers/ amounts/ percentages/ figures of A, B and C increased/
decreased during the research period.
2. Find a line which reaches a peak or a lowest point
The number/ amount/ percentage/ figure of A was by far lowest/ highest during
the research period.
3. Find a line which has the biggest change
The number/ amount/ percentage/ figure of A experienced the most dramatic/
noticeable change.
4. There are both increasing lines and decreasing lines
While the numbers of A and B both fell/ decreased , there were sharp increases/
rises in the figures of C and D
 Overview

Writing an overview using this structure:

Over/ During the period shown

Over/ During the research period
 Overview

1. All the lines INCREASE or DECREASE

All the numbers/ amounts/ percentages/ figures of A, B and C

increased/ decreased during the research period.
 Overview

1.All the lines increase

2.Japan line has the
biggest changes

It is clear from the line graph that all the percentages of people aged 65
and more in Japan, Sweden and the USA are expected to increase during
the research period. Additionally, the figure for Japan is predicted to
experience the most dramatic change.
 Overview
2. Find a line which reaches A PEAK or the LOWEST POINT

The number/ amount/

percentage/ figure of A was by
far lowest/ highest during the
research period.
 Overview

1.Fish line reached the lowest

point.
2.There are lines which
increased and decreased.
 Overview
3. Find the line which has ANOMALIES (the biggest change)

The number/ amount/

percentage/ figure of A
experienced the most dramatic/
noticeable change.
 Overview
4. There are both INCREASING LINES and DECREASING LINES

While the numbers of A and B both fell/ decreased , there were sharp
increases/ rises in the figures of C and D
The graph below shows UK acid rain Overview
emissions, measured in millions of
tonnes, from four different sectors
between 1990 and 2007.

1. Domestic line is at the lowest point

2. Electricity, gas and water supply
has anomalies
 overview

The graph below shows UK acid rain

emissions, measured in millions of
tonnes, from four different sectors
between 1990 and 2007.

It is clear from the line graph that there was a considerable decline in the total amount
of acid rain emission during the research period. Additionally, the most dramatic
decrease was seen in the electricity, gas and water supply sector.
 Time period paraphrase:

In 2015 In the year 2015

In the years 1999 and 2009

Between 1999 and 2009/ From 1999 to 2009
In 1999 and 2009
In the period between 1999 and 2009
Over 10-year period

In the years 2015, 2016 and 2017

In 2015, 2016 and 2017 From 2015 to 2017
In three consecutive years: 2015, 2016 and 2017
Over the course of three years: 2015, 2016 and 2017

In 1997, 2007, and 2017 In three separate years: 1997, 2007, and 2017

Last year over the previous year

Time:
Between 2015 and 2025 = from 2015 to 2015/
over a period of 10 years from 2015 to 2025/
[over-during-throughout] a 10-year period from 2015 to 2025/
during 2015 and 2015.
Every day/ week/ year = each day/ week/ year
= per day/ week/ year
=on a daily basis/ on a weekly basis/ on an annual basis.
10 years = a decade
Over the period shown
Over the research period
During the period under study
 peak plummet
Decline
double
Fall, drop
decrease

Increase recover rocket

fluctuate Gain, rise
improve

Level off triple

halve
a decline
a gain a doubling
a drop a fall
an increase a halving
(rocket does not have a noun form in this a levelling off
context) a tripling
a plummet (rare, but it does exist as a noun) a recovery
a peak a decrease
a rise a a fluctuation (fluctuate around)
jump an improvement
Exercise 2 (p.22)
 Exercise 2 (p.22)

a. There were wild fluctuations in spice exports from Africa over the period.
b. There was a gradual fall in the development of new products.
c. Research investment has decreased noticeably.
d. There was a significant drop in the purchases of tickets last month.
e. There was a dramatic rise in the number of sites on the Internet.
f. The sale of mangos decreased suddenly.
g. The number of visitors at the theme park fluctuated very slightly.
h. Sugar imports declined gradually.
i. There has been a slow increase in the quality of food in the
supermarkets.
j. There was a remarkable fluctuation in the number of air travellers.
 To hit the highest point/ level of
To reach a peak of
To peak at
To plateau at

To fluctuate around to go down to

See a fluctuation/ a lower level To reach/ hit / fall to a low point of
variation To hit the lowest point point/ level of
See an ups and down To reach/ hit / fall to a trough of
Undergo a volatile trend To bottom at/ to reach a low of
Use words below when giving inexact data
(due to inaccuracies of the chart)
Related adjectives and adverbs
 Structure
There + be + a/an + Adj + Noun + in S + Number + Time
There was a significant increase in the number of people commuting by car from 1 to 5
million between 2000 and 2001

S + V (shows changes) + Adv + Number + Time

The number of people commuting by car increased significantly from 1 to 5 million
between 2000 and 2001
Time + saw/ witnessed/showed/experienced + a/an + Adj + Noun + in S + Number
The period from 2000 to 2001 experienced a significant increase in the number of
people commuting by car from 1 to 5 million

The Adj Noun + be + seen in the number of/ percentage of….

The most dramatic decrease was seen in the electricity, gas and water supply sector.
 Making Predictions
It is predicted / forecast / expected/ estimated/ suggested/
likely/ probable that + clause (will)

• It is predicted that the population will increase to 6 billion.

S + be predicted/ estimated/ forecast to + V

• An increase in the population to 6 billion is expected.

• The population is expected to increase to 6 billion.
Do not say:
• It is predicted that the population may increase to 6 billion. (It
is too uncertain)
 Comparison structure
• Be the same
• The figures for Life expectancy of older citizens in 1990 was the same for USA and Sweden, at about 14
percent, and decreased even further in Japan, around 3.5 percent.
• Likewise/ Similarity
Similarly, with the exception of a stability between 2000 and 2010, the number of city workers travelling by
train kept rising until it reaches a peak of about 5 million in the final year.
• Show similar pattern
• At the end of the period, the proportion of elderly population in USA and Sweden will show a similar
pattern (25%).
• Be equal to
• As compared to….
More old people will live long in the future ( 27 percent in 1940 ) as compared to other 2 countries.
• While
• The tea room witnessed a downward trend while the other three experienced the gradual growth in
revenue.
• In contrast/ By contrast
• Whereas / On the other hand,
• In comparison,
Internet connection: the internet/ internet access
Patterns of access to modern technology in homes: 4 kinds of modern technology/ domestic usage for all
personal technology/ home accessories/ patterns of technology usage/ high-tech devices
Mobile phone: cell phone
 The line graph illustrates the percentages of British using high-tech devices, namely
CD player, DVD player, mobile phone, and internet connection over the period from
1994/95 to 2008.
It is clear from the line graph that all the figures of 4 kinds of modern technology
increased during the research period. Additionally, CD player made up the biggest share
while the least was the Internet. (CD player was the most favorable device).
In 1994/95 nearly 45% of homes used CD player, which almost overwhelmed over
the period shown and the number of people using this device grew gradually to more than
85% in the final year.
From 1998/99 to 2002/03, while there wasn’t information given to DVD player,
cellphone fluctuated at around 70% which much higher than the internet at about 45%. In
the next 6 years, there was a sharp increase in the internet users from 30% to
approximately 90% in 2008.(The internet user tripled to approximately 90%).In comparison,
the proportion of British using Mobile phone steadily rose before reaching plateau of under
80%. In contrast, although a gradual growth was seen in the internet access, it reached the
lowest share , just under 65 % at the same time.
reached a peak exceeded a sharp decline a significant rise more popular
a marked increase a significant decrease a steady downward trend
Exercise 9 (p. 26)
a. F
b.As a result, people would be obliged to manage their time more
effectively.
c. This would enable them to work from home and avoid stressful
commuting.
d.This would lead to better communication between members of
the family.
e.Consequently, there would be less traffic congestion and journey
times would be reduced.
f. By doing this, they would ensure that there were fewer people
living in crowded or substandard accommodation.