EXPAND YOUR IDEAS IN IELTS SPEAKING

1. Introduce yourself/ hobbies/ tastes.

 I’m an avid + noun
=> Well, I’m an avid traveler. Traveling to different places worldwide can help me
recharge my batteries.
 I’m a noun-conscious
=> I’m really health-conscious after Covid 19 pandemic. Now, I take into a habit of
eating more plant-based food to avoid illnesses.
 I’m really into/ I’m big on
=> I’m really into watching films to unwind after school.
 One of my all-time/ perennial favorites is…/ My current obsession is ….
=> My current obsession is going for a short walk at a leisure pace around my garden.
Well, I can soak up the view and have a great sense of tranquility
 Something you should know about me is that..
=> Something you should know about me is that I was not really big on eating sweet food
when I was a child.
 Well, I don't know about other people but I personally…
=> Do you like giving gifts? -> I don’t know about other people but personally, I am
really into giving hand-made presents to all my beloved friends.
 I'm a bit of a [bookworm/ shopaholic/ coffee lover]
 When it comes to [topic], nothing beats … (không gì có thể hơn…)/ my …
of choice would be …
=> when it comes to films, nothing beats the film called “ Little Women’’ which I
watched one year ago.
 Although I may come across as Adj1 at first, I'm actually Adj2 once you
get to know me better
=> Although I may come across as shy at first, I’m actually friendly and talkative once
people get to know me better
[ Nhớ dùng although rồi thì không dùng BUT ở câu sau nữa nhen ]

OTHERS
To be a bookworm
To be a workaholic
To be a shopaholic
To be a techie = technophile = technology buff
To be a couch potato
To be a sweet tooth
To be a/ an + noun + enthusiast
(example: a travel enthusiast)
Be into
Be keen on
Be fond of
Be interested in
Be a big fan of
Be in favor of

2. Introduce your opinions

 I suppose/ believe/guess that..
 To my mind
 It seems to me that
 I’m not sure/ sure that
 I’m convinced that
Agree: I totally/ wholeheartedly agree that….
Disagree: Hmm I’m afraid I disagree with your view
It’s not always the case / not always true in some aspects.
Example in Part 3:
 Do you think older people don’t want to change ( in lifestyle, …) ?
=>Example: Hmmm based on my observation, the elderly have done the same things
for many years like going to the same shops and eating a particular type of food. They
tend to set ways of thinking and prevent change due to health conditions …. However it’s
not always the case more and more older people are more open-minded and adaptable.
They are willing to change to adapt to the modern world.

[ Đối với part 3 thì mình có thể nói về một khía cạnh, sau đó lật ngược khía cạnh ấy lại,
giống như mình phản biện lại vậy đó. Như vậy sẽ không bị bí ý tưởng nè.]

3. Connecting ideas ( IMPORTANT)

dạng câu này giúp giảo khảo không nghĩ bạn học thuộc câu trả lời.
 Remember what I told you before
 As I mentioned before
 Well given the fact that

Example: - Do you love doing exercise? => actually because of my hectic

schedule, I’m not really keen on doing work-out
 What do you think you need to change in the future? As I mentioned
before, I’m not really into doing exercise so of course, in the near future, I
 hope I can balance all things to take up a habit of doing yoga or doing some
kinds of exercise.

4. Difficult questions
 I’m not so sure about this…
 To be completely honest with you, sth is not an area of my interest but
the way I see it
 To tell the truth, I have never thought about this but as a student/…, I
think …
 I’m afraid I can’t give a satisfactory answer to this question
 Well I don’t have many ideas about this [ topic] but as far as I know


** Dạng câu hỏi easy or difficult?

For example: Is it difficult to learn math? Is it easy to sing?

EASY
be as easy as a pie
be a piece of cake
straightforward
=> Talking with strangers
is just a piece of cake for
me.
DIFFICULT
be in hot water to do Sth
to get into hot water to do Sth
hard/challenging/complicated
tricky
=> from my perspective, physics is a tricky and
complicated subject. It’s always a nightmare for me
actually.

5. Past questions
 Back in the day
 Tracing back to + time
 If memory serves, ../ If I'm not mistaken, …/ To the best of my
recollection,...
 It was [time] back when S+V2
 I still remember vividly the time when …
  My memory is a little hazy right now, I can't recall the exact details but I
remember that ..

6. Compare questions
 Yourself vs. Others
 I guess this is quite peculiar/ I know it may sound bizarre, but…
 There's a common/ general misconception that …
 Although some people might believe that …., I don’t find the same for
myself/ it’s not always the case
Example: Do you like playing with dolls when you were a child? Although many people
think that little girls are big fans of dolls when they were little. However, I didn’t find the
same for myself, I loved playing with robots.

 Compare with something completely different (popular belief)

 This is not the case with…
 ABC is a completely different story
 to be radically/ vastly different

 Present vs. Past

 Well, in the past, I guess people tended to/ used to …
 But today/ these days, things are a little bit/ way more different
 It appears/ seems that people are more inclined to./ are likely to. / have a
tendency to…

7. Prediction questions
 I'd say/ I guess
 Perhaps/ Maybe
 It's possible that…
 I'd imagine that…

8. Reason questions
 This can be attributed to a host of reasons
 This is because
 The first reason I just come up to my mind is that
 The second reason that I want to mention
9. Important questions
For example: Isyour family important to you?
Is it important to have holidays?
Why do you think sport is important?

key/ necessary/ vital/ crucial/ integral (adj)


 play a key/ necessary/ vital/ crucial/ integral role/ part in one’s life (verb
phrase)
 be of great importance (verb phrase)
=> kết hợp với lời giải thích tại sao nó quan trọng nữa nhá.

10. Popular questions

For example: What sports are popular in your country?
Do you think newspapers are still popular?
 to gain popularity
 to be common/ widespread/ prevalent/ omnipresent
 to dominate the market
 It depends on?
 Personality/ age/ status
In terms of/ Regarding/ About + Noun (group 1), ST gains popularity because
+ REASON . However, when it comes to + Noun (group 2), ST is (not)
widespread since + REASON
EX: In terms of older people, indoor activities gain popularity because this group has
problems with health. However, when it comes to the young generation, outdoor
activities are a common choice since they are more energetic.

11. Prefer questions

 I prefer A TO B
 I prefer A RATHER THAN B
 I (would) prefer to do A RATHER THAN do B
 A is A BETTER CHOICE for me

12. Change questions

For example: How has your hometown changed recently?
How has the way you make friends changed recently?
 ST has certainly changed/altered a lot in recent years
 (YES), ST has experienced/ gone through/ seen/witnessed several significant
alterations/ transformations in recent years

13. Express talent

 be excel at/in sth
 be adept at
 be proficient in/at
 be skilled at/in
 be well versed in
 have a knack for
 be an expert at=be skillful at
 be artistically inclined = be musically gifted
 be the sporty type
** Adj:
- Exceptional, extraordinary, genuine, outstanding….( chỉ sự giỏi giang)
- Innate, natural, inborn ( tài năng bẩm sinh)

14. Express busy

 be snowed under with
 be inundated with
 be overwhelmed with
 be up to my ears with
 have a lot on my plate
 race against the time: chạy đua với thời gian
=> Tracing back to 2 months ago, I was snowed under with exams at school and the
IELTS mock tests.

15. Express the benefits of sth

Study Health
 to be helpful/ useful for my study  to keep fit / to get into shape /
 to broaden/ widen my horizon to keep in shape
 about smth
 to enhance/ enrich my knowledge
about smth
 to increase my understanding of
smth
 to gain a deeper insight into smth
 to increase /master/ sharpen/
upgrade + Noun + skill
 brush up on a skill
 be proficient in sth
 to be talented at
Example: Why do you want to study
abroad?
=> Because I want to have more chances to
communicate with foreign people and I
think it will help me to brush up my
speaking skill.
RELAX
 to unwind/ to recharge sb’s
battery
 get away from it all
 let my hair down
 escape from the hustle and
bustle of the city
 have a sense of tranquility
 enjoy the slow pace of life
 soak up the view
Advantages in city
 access to a diversity of cultures
 reliable public transport
 better job opportunities
 higher quality education
 to keep a good figure
 to maintain a healthy weigh
 to increase my body flexibility
 burn calories and build muscle
 to enhance body
coordination/endurance
 to lead a healthy life
FRIENDS/ FAMILY
 strike up a relationship
 to make friends with someone
 to form/ build/ establish a strong/
close relationship with sb
 to enhance/ foster a relationship with
sb
 to keep/ maintain contact with sb
 broaden the circle of friends.
Disadvantages in city
 traffic congestion
 air/ noise/water pollution
 dense population
 high rate of employment
  better standard of living  high cost of living
 entertainment facilities  wealth inequality/ be stuck in a rat race

Advantages in the Disadvantages in the

countryside
 fresh air
 a slow pace of life
 quiteness and tranquility
 less air/noise pollution
 low cost of living
countryside
 weak communication network
 few job opportunities
 lack of essential facilities

16. EXTRA
The first thing that springs to mind is/ The first thing I can come up with is

(1) Get to...: được làm gì (have the chance)

-I’m so happy I get to see you after a long and stressful week.
-What I like about my job is that I get to meet a lot of smart people at my company.

(2) I've always wanted to...

-I’ve always wanted to travel the world with my partner.
-As a child, I’ve always wanted to be a doctor, so I’d say working as a doctor is my
dream job.

(3) I’ve never been one to V

-I’ve never been one to do as I’m told. (tôi không phải kiểu người ai sai gì làm nấy)
-I’ve never been one to say sorry in an argument.

(4) I shouldn’t have V3

-I shouldn’t have gone out amid this pandemic. I’ve contracted the coronavirus.
-I shouldn’t have said those hurtful things to you. I’m sorry. I wish I could take them
back.

(5) It never occurred to me that S would V = I’ve never thought that S would V
-It never occurred to me that he would lie to my face.
-It never occurred to me that I would settle down overseas.

* PHRASAL VERBS
- come across sb/st
- stumble upon sb/st
- run/ bump into sb
- catch up with sb
- look up to
- go for st
- dig through st
- bring up st

*IDIOM
- Pull an all-nighter = to burn the midnight oil
- bring home the bacon = be the (sole) breadwinner
- go wayyyy back
- draw a blank (quen beng’)
- hands down
- keep/ stay in touch with sb
- lose touch with sb
I have a lot on my plate = I’m up to my neck
Under a lot of stress/ pressure
Working out
I’m a massive fan of
I’m not the biggest fan of..
This place is teeming/ crawling with people
I’m a little bummed out = disappointed
Heading home
Find it a chore to V (find doing something boring)
Unwind