Data Interpretation 

is the process of making sense

out of a collection of data that has been processed.
This collection may be present in various forms like
bar graphs, line charts and tabular forms and other
similar forms and hence needs an interpretation of
some kind.
Public
The graphs below provide information on global population figures and figures for urban populations in different
regions.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant

Answer:
The first graph shows the trend in world population growth between 1800 and 2100, while the second graph gives predicted
urban population figures for the next 25 years. The world population has experienced continuous growth since 1800. Between
1800 and 1950, the population grew slowly from just under 1 billion to 2.5 billion people. After that, the growth rate increased, and
currently, the figure is around 6.5 billion. Projections show a continued increase in population in the near future, but a steady
decline in the population growth rate.
The global population is expected to peak at 8.2 billion by 2050, and then decline to around 6.2 billion by 2100. The predictions
also show that almost all urban population growth in the next 25 years will occur in the cities of developing countries. In the
developed regions, on the other hand, the urban population is expected to remain unchanged at about 1.3 billion people over the
next two decades. The graphs show that the global population increase will not occur evenly throughout the world, but will be
greater in some areas than others
Sample
2. The chart below shows the places visited by different
people living in Canada. Summarise the information by
selecting and reporting the main features, and make
comparisons where relevant.
 Vocabulary:

Relatively low
Surging
Plunging
The bar illustrates……..
Upward –trend
Sharply increased/decreased

Verbs: rise, increase, grow, go up to, climb, boom, peak, fall, decline, decrease, drop, dip, go
down, reduce, level up, remain stable, no change, remain steady, stay constant, stay, maintain
the same level, crash, collapse, plunge, plummet.
Adjectives: sharp, rapid, huge, dramatic, substantial, considerable, significant, slight, small,
minimal, massive.
Adverbs: dramatically, rapidly, hugely, massive, sharply, steeply, considerably, substantially,
significantly, slightly, minimally, markedly.
There is also a list of adverbs to describe the speed of a change: rapidly, quickly, swiftly,
suddenly, steadily, gradually, slowly.
A. To report an increasing trend:
1. a slight/constant/marked/substantial increase in sales
2. an increase of about/roughly/approximately/in the region of…%
3. a little over/above what we predicted- the recovery/upturn began in
4. an overall increase in…
5. an upward trend in the demand for…
6. sales reached record levels/reached a peak in
7. a strong surge in the sales of… by (month) the figure had risen to …
8. we predict that sales will soar in the coming year/over the next …months.
B. To report decreasing trends:
1. just under our target
2. way below our expectations a slight/notable/significant decrease in
3. a drop of about…% in …
4. a slight/regular/dramatic decline/reduction in …
5. the downturn began in
6. the situation began to deteriorate in
7. the number has continued to fall
C. To show fluctuations and variations:
a slow start developed into steady progress in sales an initial upward trend was followed by … we noted slight fluctuations
throughout the year normal seasonal variations are the cause of occasional downward trends sales have been (rather) irregular
the level/the rate has been unstable since … you will note certain instability in the rate of…
D. To show constancy or no change:
1. has plateaued and steadied
2. has seen/registered/experienced/shown no change
3. has remained constant/static/unchanged/unaltered/ the same.
E. To report portions and proportions:
1. Two-thirds of/one-fourth of/a quarter of
2. As many as twenty percent/less than forty percent
3. As high as seventy five percent
F. Reporting similarities and differences:
1. is the same as/similar to
2. is/are comparable with
3. is better than/more than double/half as much
4. not as big as/as large as
5. many times over/more
G. Drawing conclusions:
1. appropriate measures must be taken …
2. the only option we have is to …
3. these changes are inevitable…
4. the result/outcome will be …