IELTS Preparation Series 3, Episode 10: Vocabulary for Speaking
(Bấm vào đây để chọn bài học kế tiếp)
Xem lời thoại bên dưới:
0:13
Hello, and welcome to Study English, IELTS Preparation. I'm Margot Politis.
0:18
Today we'll look at how to make best use of your vocabulary and get your meaning across
0:24
in the IELTS Speaking Test.
0:27
Knowing how to use your vocabulary in different ways can help you maintain conversation.
0:33
When you find that you can't think of the right word, you can talk around the idea as
0:38
this candidate does here:
0:41
Do you think the children of famous people have it easy?
0:43
No, I don't think so. It must be very, very hard. You know, when I lived in Ecuador, I
0:51
knew a lot of famous people and they always have to have bodyguards, or they have to live
0:57
behind bars, you know, behind big walls, and children are always protected, and they don't
1:05
have the freedom, so it's a big price you pay.
1:10
You can picture the surroundings from her description even though she has not named
1:14
it.
1:15
She said 'have to have bodyguards' 'live behind bars'
1:24
'behind big walls' 'children are always protected'
1:29
and 'they don't have the freedom'.
1:33
She paints a clear picture of what she means: 'live behind bars' - we imagine someone in
1:39
jail; 'bodyguards' - employing someone to protect you and your children.
1:45
The vocabulary used in her description accurately, effectively and successfully describes a 'gated
1:53
community'.
1:55
The ability to use your vocabulary to describe something you don't have the exact word for
2:00
is called circumlocution. Circumlocution means 'talking around something' and is assessed
2:08
as a vocabulary skill.
2:14
During the interview the examiner may use a word that you don't know the meaning of.
2:19
Let's imagine the topic of computers in education comes up in the interview. The interviewer
2:26
takes the opportunity to explore this area and says:
2:31
Computer technology plays a big role in children's education today. Do you think the benefits
2:36
of using computers are overrated?
2:38
Let's say you don't understand the word overrated. You can ask the interviewer what that word
2:45
means, like this:
2:47
Computer technology plays a big role in children's education today. Do you think the benefits
2:52
of using computers are overrated?
2:55
What do you mean by overrated?
2:57
I mean that the benefits are regarded too highly. They're exaggerated.
3:01
This is called asking for clarification. Apart from helping you answer, it shows the interviewer
3:09
an aspect of your speaking ability. There are several ways of asking for clarification.
3:16
You could say:
3:17
Sorry, I'm not quite sure what you mean by 'overrated'.
3:22
Or
3:23
Would you mind explaining what 'overrated' means?
3:27
All these examples ask for clarification appropriately. They range from the least formal what do you
3:34
mean by …? to the most formal would you mind explaining …?
3:40
It would be inappropriate in such a formal interview to just say:
3:46
What's overrated?
3:51
It would, however, be more to your advantage if you tried to guess the meaning of overrated
3:57
and then checked with the interviewer whether your understanding is correct.
4:01
Let's try doing this.
4:03
You know from your own experience that the use of computers for education can be good
4:09
and bad. The question asks about benefits. Benefits are good things but are they overrated?
4:19
Is there any part of the word you recognise?
4:22
It starts with 'over', a prefix you might know. You hear of overpopulation and people
4:29
being overweight. That's too many people … and too fat. So 'over' probably means 'too
4:39
much'. And it's not a good thing.
4:42
So you can check with the interviewer to see if you've understood by rephrasing the question
4:47
like this:
4:49
Computer technology plays a big role in children's education today. Do you think the benefits
4:54
of using computers are overrated?
4:56
Are you saying that the benefits of computer use might not be that good?
5:01
Yes, that's right.
5:04
Asking a question like this shows that you can use your vocabulary skilfully.
5:07
The questions in the Speaking Test interview are designed to encourage answers that show
5:17
you can use a range of language functions.
5:21
The interviewer wants to see if you can express an opinion, or speculate or give a suggestion.
5:29
It's a good idea to vary the ways you respond.
5:33
Take the question: Do you think there is too much violence in films today?
5:38
It's inviting you to express an opinion, like this:
5:42
As far as I'm concerned there is too much violence in films these days.
5:48
But there are other ways of expressing an opinion. Listen:
5:52
In my opinion there is too much violence in films these days.
5:57
From my point of view there is too much violence in films these days.
6:02
It seems to me that there is too much violence in films these days.
6:07
Well, I would say there is too much violence in films these days.
6:11
The same applies to speculating. Speculating means making suggestions, where you don't
6:18
necessarily know the right answer.
6:21
Here are some phrases you can use to speculate:
6:24
Why do teenagers vandalise public transport?
6:27
If I had to guess I'd say that it's boredom
6:32
I'm not sure but from my observation it's boredom
6:36
I imagine that the most important reason would be boredom
6:41
And here are some ways to give suggestions:
6:44
What would you do to improve public transport?
6:48
I think what should be done is increase services
6:52
The problem could be solved by increasing services
6:56
What might be done is increasing services
7:03
Another strategy is to use synonyms or words that have similar meanings.
7:09
Listen to this candidate doing this:
7:12
Why have the forms of popular entertainment changed over the years?
7:16
Because the society has changed a lot, and now we seem to be rushing all the time and
7:21
want to consume everything a lot faster, so I think every form of entertainment is also
7:27
reflecting that kind of very fast, quick way of wanting something different and wanting
7:33
something very quickly.
7:35
He uses a number of synonyms to talk about how society has changed - he feels there is
7:41
a need for things to be done in a hurry.
7:44
He uses the synonyms: rushing, fast and quick. He uses different word forms: the adjective
7:54
fast and its comparative faster, the adjective quick and the adverb quickly.
8:04
By using a variety of synonyms and different word forms he is managing communication well
8:09
and maintaining fluency.
8:12
Listen again:
8:13
Because the society has changed a lot, and now we seem to be rushing all the time and
8:19
want to consume everything a lot faster, so I think every form of entertainment is also
8:25
reflecting that kind of very fast, quick way of wanting something different and wanting
8:30
something very quickly.
8:36
One way to build up your vocabulary is to organise words around categories such as movement.
8:43
You can arrange words like this:
8:46
Some synonyms are fast and quick.
8:50
A collocation, or group of words often used together is 'rushing all the time'
8:58
Word forms would be faster and quickly.
9:03
Some opposites would be slow and sluggish.
9:08
An idiom could be 'in the fast lane', which means living an exciting if sometimes risky
9:14
life.
9:16
Keep adding to this and then using the words you've discovered.
9:23
That's all for now.
9:24
To find more information about the vocabulary you need for the Speaking Test visit our Study
9:30
English website. The address is: australianetwork.com/studyenglish.
9:39
Good luck with your studies. Bye for now.