ielts vocabulary for common topics

Contents Government Immigration Climate change Employment 12 Art 16 Advertising 18 Technology 21 Family 27 Globalization 30 University education 34 Crime 39 Environment 43 Home town 47 Government vocabulary and ideas Very often you need to be able to discuss social issues and what may need to be done about them In this case it helps to have plenty of government vocabulary to describe what governments – or don’t do! A quick note on spelling GOVERNMENT is one of the most commonly misspelled words in English – don’t forget that N Forms of government It helps to distinguish between different types of government – not all government is equal If you this, you will find that you have more to say by comparing what different type of government can This is a great example of how words and ideas connect If you choose good words then you get better ideas! central government: this is the national government of a country local government: this is the regional form of government that typically takes care of more local issues the authorities: this is a general term for all forms of government – note that we use it in the plural regulatory bodies: these are bodies which are sometimes set up by the government and sometimes selfregulatory and typically they control one specific area such as advertising Legislation is not always the answer enforcement agencies: these are bodies that have direct control of how laws are being obeyed This is something central government does not always itself An example of an enforcement agency is the body that monitors pollution in rivers international organisations: don’t forget these either many problems need global solutions and demand international cooperation from bodies like the UN NGOs: these are the opposite of governments! NGO stands for Non Governmental Organisation Almost always their work is charitable and very often in aid and development You are most likely to refer to them when countries help each other quangos: if you must know these are quasi autonomous non governmental organisations They are normally set up by central government to look after one issue What central governments This does depend slightly what country you live in – different countries have different legal and political systems Something that all countries have though is a central government – sometimes a parliament, sometimes a senate and sometimes a congress and – for some lucky countries – all three! Here is what they tend to pass/introduce legislation: The time has come when the government needs to introduce new legislation to protect the privacy of citizens bring in/enact laws: One possible solution is for the government to bring in laws that prohibit the sale of tobacco to anyone under 21 adopt policies: One possibility is for the government to adopt policies that encourage mothers to return to work take measures/action: The situation is now so severe that the government must take measures to police the internet raise (and lower) taxes: One way to limit air pollution from aircraft would be for the government to raise airport tax have/provide a budget/funding: It is the responsibility of the government to provide more funding for research into renewable energy ban/prohibit: Most people would agree that there should be a ban on the sale of automatic weapons People within a government departments: The Health Department should ensure that doctors are not forced to work a 60-hour week political parties; This is one issue where all political parties should work together to provide a solution politicians: If enough people protested then politicians would have to listen and take action What local governments This is one area that will vary greatly from country to country Below you will find some examples of the type of issues that local governments sometimes are responsible for and some of their powers: impose fines: Local councils should ensure that householders are fined if they they not recycle their waste properly provide resources/services: Local government needs to provide adequate resources for schools so that they can cope with the influx of children who speak English as a second language maintain: If local governments maintained the roads in a better condition, then there would be fewer problems with traffic congestion fund: Councils could fund local community projects where residents work as volunteers in schools and hospitals hire: It would certainly help if local councils hired more staff Thinking long-term and short short-term Another concept to think about when talking about government action is whether it is short-term or long-term temporary: One idea is that the government could introduce a temporary restriction on immigration to determine what effect it would have on employment rates long-term The government needs to consider the long-term effect of a poorly trained workforce immediate Governments of wealthier countries should provide in disaster zones to help with their immediate needs financial assistance to people a stopgap measure While this may only be a stopgap measure, it would help if governments sent financial aid to disaster areas How people can influence governments Another way to approach question where you need to talk about governments is to think about what the people can to have an effect on their decisions lobby politicians: Individuals could help here by lobbying their elected representatives and MPs to try and force them to introduce legislation engage in peaceful protests/demonstrations It is possible that the government might be swayed by peaceful demonstrations asking for more action on the environment Some links with more information BBC schools: this is basic but it covers all the important points and has useful language Queensland Gov: an Australian variant Immigration vocabulary and ideas This is a selection of immigration vocabulary and ideas with      some key words for immigration some common word combinations to show different forms of immigration arguments in favour of immigration arguments against it some possible measures Get the key immigration vocabulary right The key words for describing immigration are immigrant – the person immigrate – the verb immigration – the idea Note the mm Also note that immigrants (people who enter a country) are also emigrants (people who leave a country) and also migrants Some common word combinations To discuss this topic well, it helps to distinguish between different types of immigration illegal immigrants: – people who enter a country illegally economic migrants: – people who move country to earn more money migrant workers: – note that migrant can also work as an adjective immigrant community/population: – this can be used for people who have settled in country for some time influx of immigrants: – this is usually used in a negative sense meaning that there are too many immigrants first generation immigrant: – this is either an immigrant or a child on an immigrant [sometimes it is hyphenated as “first-generation”] Arguments in favour of immigration There are various arguments in favour of immigration – these mostly relate to the economic benefits immigrants bring to a country Note that I have added examples to some of these reasons to explain them further dynamism: Immigrants provide dynamism which is beneficial to the economy and helps growth and competitiveness For example, many immigrants set up their own businesses unskilled labour: In many countries there is a shortage of unskilled labour and the immigrant population is typically willing to work that the native population is not This is particularly the case in agricultural communities where immigrants provide seasonal labour in the harvest season skilled labour: A large proportion of young immigrants are highly-qualified university graduates and they work in fields where there is a shortage of skilled labour childcare: Another benefit that immigrants bring is that they often work in childcare or as home helps and this enables more mothers to return to work boost the economy: Most research shows that encouraging immigration actually provides a boost to the economy as immigrants are net contributors to the GDP There is also evidence that they actually claim fewer benefits and pay more tax than the native population principle of freedom of movement: There is also the consideration that the principle of freedom of movement is a human right and that people should be allowed to choose where they live short-term only: It should also be considered that many younger migrants return home once they have earned enough money and will never claim pensions in their host country Arguments against immigration These arguments are normally based on social consequences of immigration and the impact it has on the native population There are also arguments (factual or otherwise) that immigrants are bad for the economy Also note the range of language to discuss problems (highlighted in red) integration: The major argument against immigration is that so many migrants fail to integrate with the local community and culture and this leads to social tension and even unrest local services and jobs: One common difficulty is that they increase the pressure on local services and create competition for local jobs and this creates ill-will claim benefits/social housing: One reason why people want less immigration is that immigrants not pay tax and still claim benefits and require social housing that is paid for by taxpayers schools: Another serious issue is that in some areas schools not have sufficient places for the children and so class sizes become unmanageable language: Related to this is the problem that many immigrants only have a basic command of the language and this can lead to difficulties in the classroom and elsewhere loss of trained workers: The impact on poorer countries who lose much of their trained workforce through emigration should also not be forgotten overcrowding/population: Many countries need to limit immigration because they are already suffering from over-population Measures and solutions You may also need to consider how immigration should be controlled taxes and law: One possible measure is to ensure that migrants pay taxes and are subject to the criminal justice system language requirements: Another measure that could be put in place is to insist on a minimum language requirement so that all immigrants are able to integrate into the community deportation: Some people believe that all illegal immigrants should be deported immediately quota: The United States for example has a quota system whereby a fixed number of green cards are issued every year Climate change vocabulary and ideas Below you’ll find plenty of climate change vocabulary and ideas These are organised under headings:       Talking about the scale of the problem Negative effects Causes Possible solutions Ways of taking action How individuals can help The idea in doing this is to show you that ideas need to be organised if you use them Also, if you are one of those people who believes that global warming is not caused by human activity, you are not just on the wrong page – you are wrong! Talking about the size of the problem An important group of climate vocabulary and ideas is to say how large the problem is: crisis: Climate change is a crisis that cannot be ignored by governments record levels/amount: Despite the claims of some scientists, we are now producing record levels of CO2 and there is no dispute about the connection between this and global warming disaster/disastrous: It is not an exaggeration to say that the effects of global warming are disastrous global: Although some areas are relatively unaffected now, climate change is a global problem irreversible: The major concern is that the effects of our actions on the climate will be irreversible long-term: The effects of our use of fossil fuels today may last for generations and it is almost certain to have long-term consequences for humanity Negative Effects This group of climate change vocabulary gives you language to explain what the effects are As you read through the examples note the different language I use for effects and probability ill-health: It sometimes goes unnoticed that there is a clear connection between climate change and illhealth floods/rainstorms: One result of the rising temperatures is that floods and rainstorms are now a frequent occurrence the Polar ice cap: One major concern is that rising temperatures in the Arctic are causing the Polar ice cap to melt, which in turn is leading to rising sea levels heatwaves and droughts: Most experts agree that there is an increased risk of heatwaves and other extreme weather conditions the natural world: Climate change will not only have a severe impact on people, but also devastate the natural world and lead to the extinction of important species food shortages: We are already seeing in many parts of the world that climate change is leading to food shortages as a direct consequence of extreme weather conditions housing/homelessness: One side-effect of rising sea levels is that more and more people who live by the coast will become homeless conflicts/wars: If no action is taken on climate change, then it is likely that there will be more conflicts between nations, especially over water supplies cost: It has been shown that any delay in making emission cuts will increase the cost of reducing carbon dioxide by almost 50% Causes You may also need to discuss the causes of climate change too You don’t need any very technical knowledge and this vocabulary should be enough Again, note the cause language human activity: It is no longer possible to say that human activity does not affect weather conditions greenhouse gas emissions: If we are to halt climate change, we need to make substantial reductions in greenhouse gas emissions power stations: One of the leading causes of climate change is the number of dirty power stations using fossil fuels carbon emissions: Carbon emissions are still rising year by year and are at record levels illegal logging and deforestation: It should not be forgotten that illegal logging in the Amazon Basin is still a major factor in climate change burning fossil fuels: Individuals can make a small contribution by not burning wood and other fossil fuels CO2: The root cause of much global warming is the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere Possible solutions These words and phrases show different kinds of solutions Some show what should be done (use more renewable energy and invest money), others show how it should be done (quickly and together) wind and solar power: An obvious solution is to deploy much more wind and solar power renewable energy: Wind farms and other sources of renewable energy will help to reduce Co2 emissions to an acceptable level international action/cooperation: International action on climate change could have a significant impact quick/immediate action: Any action should be immediate because this is not a problem that can be delayed investment: There should be greater incentives to invest in renewables and to reduce the current reliance on fossil fuels decommission power stations: It goes without saying that coal-fuelled power stations should be decommissioned protest/campaign: Individuals can help force governments to act by taking part in legal protests against the continuing use of fossil fuels energy efficiency and waste: A greater emphasis on energy efficiency and reducing waste would undoubtedly mean that less fuel was consumed Ways of taking action Climate change is a problem – that almost everyone can agree on When you have a problem, you need to take action These words and phrases give you a variety of ways of saying that Note the different structures used with these verbs cope: It is clear that national governments are no longer able to cope by themselves with the problem tackle: A global solution is necessary as only international bodies will be able to tackle climate change avert: Investment in renewable energy will help avert the impact of the CO2 emissions prevent: The only way to prevent a disaster is to reduce these emissions to zero act/take action: Governments should take decisive action to halt global warming fight/combat: A way needs to be found to make combatting global warming that is affordable sustainable and affordable: The key is to ensure that all countries around the world have the chance to adopt energy How individuals can help You may be asked what we as individuals can about climate change Here are some ideas – there are plenty of them: 10 notes     it can replace the word “student” note the different prepositions “of a university” and “from university” and “in a subject” graduate is quite formal so in speaking you could use “I left university” instead a fresher is a first year student, Americans use “freshman” Level of degrees notes   if you study a humanities subject, you get a BA for your first degree and an MA for your master’s if you study science, you get a BSc for your first degree and an MSc for your master’s Types of qualifications notes and common mistakes   you can only receive a degree for a full course at university; not use “diploma” and “certificate” to mean degree to confuse you, the piece of paper you receive when you graduate is a certificate Types of education notes 35   if you receive a degree from a university, you are in higher education if you receive a diploma or certificate, you are in further education Types of course Institutions notes Be particularly careful with “college” and “school” which not mean the same as “university” in British English Forms of learning notes and common mistakes   a lecturer gives or delivers a lecture and is sometimes used as a rank of university teacher a tutor is in charge of a seminar or tutorial 36  we don’t use “class” or “lesson” in university education (although Americans use “class”) Finance notes   a scholarship is won for academic merit typically a grant is awarded either for a particular project or to allow a student to follow a course Types of writing Studying and lecture words notes   you review your notes, but revise for an exam you concentrate in a lecture but on a subject 37 Some informal “university” verbs – useful in speaking 38 Crime vocabulary and exercises One of the core topics for IELTS is crime and justice It is a tricky area as there are a number of quite technical words that need to be learnt So what you will find here is not so much as a list of words, but more useful phrases that you can use in context You will also find language notes and exercises to help you use this crime vocabulary Types of crime Rather than learn lists of very specific words for names of individual crimes, it is almost certainly more useful to learn phrases that describe different categories of crime: Key words Another key word here is “offence” which is a close synonym for crime It is a slightly broader word as it includes behaviour that is not necessarily criminal You can also use the phrase “criminal behaviour“ 39 Punishments Key words/ideas There is a common saying that “the punishment should fit the crime“ If you wish to practise this vocabulary, a standard exercise is to look at the crimes and decide what punishment you think they should receive In some countries, there is still capital punishment/the death penalty, while this is banned in other countries An occasional IELTS essay topic is to discuss the merits of capital punishment What are the arguments for and against it? Another topic you need to consider is crime prevention Is it more effective to send someone to prison or to prevent the crime in the first place? Linked into this idea is whether prison sentences act as a deterrent to criminals 40 The justice process The details of this will vary from the country to country, but here are some of the main ideas: 41 Useful phrases Exercises These are exercises in the form of paragraphs from IELTS essays:    young offenders the death penalty the causes of crime A great place to get more crime vocabulary  Random idea blog 42 Vocabulary and ideas to discuss the environment This lesson helps you out with some vocabulary and ideas to discuss one of the key IELTS topics: the environment The best way to learn vocabulary is in context, so in addition to useful lists of words I have recorded sample part speaking answers using some of this vocabulary This way you can understand how to use it in practice You will also find the vocabulary to download and some exercises to practise it at the bottom of the page The vocabulary Environmental problems The natural world 43 Pollution Energy 44 Useful verbs The ideas In this section, you will find sample part speakings (slightly long) to listen and read I have highlighted the environmental vocabulary Our effect on the natural world When we’re the discussing the environment, it’s important not to forget that our actions have an impact not only on us but on the natural world and other species So, for example, certain species are now endangered because of our actions it’s not just because of hunting, but because we have destroyed their natural habitats: they not enough food or anywhere to live If we carry on in this way, the biodiversity of the planet is under threat Pollution I would have said that one of the most serious environmental problems today is of course pollution It’s a very pressing green issue and if you travel to any of the large cities in China, for example, you’ll find that there is very bad air pollution and there is a layer of smog hanging over the cities It’s just air pollution, there is also water pollution in many parts of the world, the quality of the water is not good because rivers have been contaminated by all sorts of industrial waste, by chemicals and fertilisers And what we need to is to recycle our waste and take care of the planet and try use renewable resources where we possibly can Energy Another extremely important green issue is of course energy There are two points to be made here The first point is that the way we use energy is causing harm to the environment Most of us get energy in the form of electricity This electricity is produced by power stations These power stations emit all sorts of dangerous gases such as carbon monoxide up into the atmosphere And these gases cause acid rain which does harm to our ecosystem and environment the second point to make about energy is we need to make sure that we are using energy in a sustainable way There is a limit to the Earth’s natural resources and there is a danger that we use so much energy the Earth is no longer going to be able to provide us with sufficient coal and fossil fuels What we need to is look for more renewable sources of energy such as wind or perhaps solar energy from the sun 45 Global warming What’s the greatest threat to the Earth today? I’d have to say it’s probably a combination of global warming and the greenhouse effect I don’t understand all the science behind it, but I understand it’s to with the build up of gases such as carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, which means that the planet is slowly but steadily getting warmer and one of the results of this is that the polar icecap is melting and the levels of the oceans are rising And it’s caused I understand by deforestation, particularly of rainforests and particularly in the Amazonian Basin And what this means is that we may be doing irreparable harm to the planet and the future of the planet for our children and our children’s children looks really rather bleak 46 Home town vocabulary and ideas for IELTS One of the topics you are most likely to be asked about in part speaking is your home town This lesson gives you some vocabulary and ideas to help you along You will also find a download version of this vocabulary and a quiz to test yourself You can find some speaking practice questions to talk abut your hometown here Talking about quality of life These ideas should help you discuss what you enjoy/dislike about your home town Remember to try and give examples/reasons to extend your answers notes “the rat race” is a nice idiom for the fast pace of modern city life where no one has the time to sit back and enjoy life Areas of a city If you are asked where you live, you should try and be precise 47 notes “the inner city” is normally (in English) associated with poverty – although this will obviously vary from city to city “the outskirts” are the outer parts of a city/town Means of transport 48 Adjectives You will of course need some adjectives too You should note how I use “fairly” “really” and “quite” to qualify these adjectives Test yourself Hometown vocabulary quiz 49 [...]... of globalization 33 University education vocabulary Introduction to university education vocabulary Education is one of the key topics for IELTS You will almost certainly need it in part 1 of the speaking module and it is also a common essay topic You will find here a list of helpful vocabulary to improve your performance in those two papers How to learn this vocabulary Whatever you do, don’t just sit... are model paragraphs that should give you ideas for writing or speaking about advertising     children and advertising forms of advertising how advertising works the regulation of advertising an essay  gapfill essay 20 Technology vocabulary and exercises This lesson provides you with some useful vocabulary for technology – one of the key topics in IELTS I have tried to do more than give you a list... 11 Employment vocabulary and exercises One of the key topics in IELTS is work and employment To help you out, here is a selection of useful employment vocabulary There are also examples of how the words are used and a series of exercises Employ If you want to learn words well, it is important to learn different forms of them Employ is one of the key words and it has several different forms – you need... photographs Does cinema count? For some people, yes Television? The plastic arts These are the ones we can touch A sculpture and a piece of pottery are examples Performance art This is when you see someone performing and what they do/produce is a piece of art Theatre can be called a form of performance art, perhaps a better example is juggling We normally use this term for art that is “different” There... graduate is quite formal so in speaking you could use “I left university” instead a fresher is a first year student, Americans use “freshman” Level of degrees notes   if you study a humanities subject, you get a BA for your first degree and an MA for your master’s if you study science, you get a BSc for your first degree and an MSc for your master’s Types of qualifications notes and common mistakes... complete an essay on technology Download the vocabulary Technology vocabulary (23697) Useful sites to improve your science and technology vocabulary The best way to improve your vocabulary is without doubt reading So why not try looking at these sites to see if you can find something to interest you:    BBC technology news CNET news Technews World 26 Family vocabulary and exercises Here are some useful... a common pronunciation problem:    advert advertise advertisement This means that you make an “iss” sound when say advertisement.This is a very common mistake and one way to avoid it is to say and write advert Different forms of advertising 18 Adjectives to describe advertising Other related words 19 Exercises words  test your vocabulary and spelling – a crossword exercise on some of the most common. .. problem/issue for what it is – often meaning that it is not as serious as it seems If you describe someone as being no oil painting, be careful This means that they are ugly 17 Advertising vocabulary and exercises This lesson helps you with advertising vocabulary for essays and discussion tasks You’ll find some exercises at the bottom of the page to test your skills Advert, advertisement or ad? All these forms... to discuss your family in IELTS speaking Although this is an “easy” topic, you do want to make sure that you show a good range of family vocabulary You should note that these words and examples are mostly useful for speaking and not writing as they include many phrasal verbs Types of family Notes There are a lot of words to describe families – here I give you some of less common ones In British English,... when you share a parent, while a step-brother/sister is when neither parent is in common, for instance when your parent marries someone else who already had children Your mother/father-in-law is the mother/father of your husband/wife Family resemblances These words are useful for describing things that you may have in common with other members of your family 27 Notes Resemble is mostly used to describe ... education vocabulary Introduction to university education vocabulary Education is one of the key topics for IELTS You will almost certainly need it in part of the speaking module and it is also a common. .. revise for an exam you concentrate in a lecture but on a subject 37 Some informal “university” verbs – useful in speaking 38 Crime vocabulary and exercises One of the core topics for IELTS is... you get a BA for your first degree and an MA for your master’s if you study science, you get a BSc for your first degree and an MSc for your master’s Types of qualifications notes and common mistakes