‘GT Essay Writing Vocabulary’ section comprises the necessary vocabulary lists to enhance your lexicon resources. The important vocabularies are categories and come with examples. You should use these words and phrases in your essay answers to achieve a higher band score. Vocabulary (also known as lexical resources) determines 25% of your marks in your GT Essay Writing.
Let us first examine the format of the IELTS GT essay. You can use this format as a blueprint for developing your IELTS Essay.
Introduction:
(Note: Paraphrase the topic and use synonyms and give a general idea on the topic. If the essay asks you to give your opinion, this is perhaps the best place to do so. Always analyse the essay topic and plan what you are going to write before you start writing.)
Body Paragraphs:
Ideally, 2 or 3 body paragraphs. Each paragraph should focus on a distinctive idea or argument and should include an example/ evidence and extra details.
Conclusion:
The conclusion should be 2-3 sentences and should restate what the essay is about with your position or some thoughts or suggestions for the future.
Vocabulary for the Essay Introduction:
Ideally, the introduction part has two parts – General idea on the topic and your opinion/position on the topic.
Useful vocabulary/phrases to start your essay:
- These days…/ Nowadays…/ In this day and age… / In this modern era…
- One of the most controversial issues today relates to…
- … is a hotly-debated topic that often divides opinion.
- People are divided in their opinion regarding…
- Many/some people believe/opine/argue/claim that…
- Whether …. or …. is a controversial issue…
- We live in an age when many of us are…
- It is universally accepted that…
- It goes without saying that…/ There is no denying that…
- It is often said that…
Example 1: In recent years, children, like adults, have become increasingly exposed to technology. While some child psychologists have insisted that this is a good thing for their cognitive development, others have alleged that it has an overwhelmingly detrimental impact on children.
Example 2: It goes without saying that the lack of proper education and employment opportunities are the main causes of the rising crime rates in many countries.
Example 3: Many people consider that handwriting skills are no longer significant in this era of computers. According to them, children should not invest time to hone their handwriting skills, especially when they will most likely type instead of write in their professional life.
Note: You can, however, start an essay without using such phrases. Following are two examples that denote how to do that:
Example 1: The global phenomenon of urbanisation from the beginning of industrialisation to the present day has brought opportunity and prosperity, albeit at a cost in the quality of life. With an increasing city population, the complexity of the challenges also increases.
Example 2: Social Networking sites, for instance, Facebook and Twitter, are thought by some to have a detrimental effect on individual people as well as society and local communities.
Useful vocabulary/phrases to state your opinion:
You should state your opinion after the general statement in the introduction part. If the essay asks you to give your opinion, this is a must. If the essay asks you to discuss both views (and does not ask you to give your opinion), you can give your opinion here or state it later at the conclusion part.
- In my opinion…
- I feel that…/I understand…/I suppose…/ I think…/ I believe…
- From my point of view…
- I somewhat agree/ disagree with the idea that… (partial agreement/disagreement)
- I agree/ disagree that.. (agreement/ disagreement)
- I strongly agree/disagree with the idea that… (strong agreement/ disagreement)
- I strongly opine that…
- Personally speaking…
- According to me…
- In my view…
- My own view on the matter is…
- I would like to point out that…
- As far as I am concerned…
- Personally, I think that…
- To my way of thinking…
- From my perspective…
- My two cents go for…
- It seems to me that…
- I cannot deny that…
- I must admit that…
- In my experience…
- It appears that…
- To my mind…
- As I see it…
Example 1: Institutions are now focusing more on introducing innovative assessment techniques and technology has accelerated this trend. I strongly believe that the transformation is essential for the proper evaluation and will help students become academically successful.
Example 2: With the population blast and the development of the through-away society, waste management has become a significant concern for many. In many cases, citizens do not participate in garbage recycling and I believe that rigorous laws are required to force them to salvage the debris they produce.
Useful vocabulary/phrases for expressing Agreement/ Disagreement:
While writing an agreement/ disagreement type IELTS essay you need to clearly express whether you agree or disagree (sometimes partially agree) with a given statement or opinion. You can use the following expression to express your agreement or disagreement. Some expressions given below are meant to show that you agree, partially agree or disagree with an opinion or statement.
Agreement:
- I quite agree that….
- I agree with the opinion that…..
- I am quite inclined to the opinion that…..
- I concur with the group who believe that…..
- I accept that…..
- I consent that…..
- I approve the idea…..
- I am in agreement…..
- I accept the fact that…..
- I strongly agree….. (Strong agreement)
- I could not agree more….. (Strong agreement)
- I completely agree that….. (Strong agreement)
- I totally agree with the given idea that….. (Strong agreement)
Partial Agreement:
- To some extent…
- Up to a point, I agree…
- I somewhat agree that…
- I agree with this view partially…
- To a certain extent, I agree that…
- To a certain extent it is true but…
Disagreement:
- My own opinion contradicts…..
- I disagree with the statement…..
- I disagree with the opinion that….
- I disagree with the group of people…..
- I disapprove that…..
- I strongly disagree….. (Strong disagreement)
- I completely disagree with….. (Strong disagreement)
- I quite oppose the opinion that….. (Strong disagreement)
- However, my opinion is different….. (Strong disagreement)
- I quite disagree with the idea that…. (Strong disagreement)
- I totally do not accept the fact that….. (Strong disagreement)
- I totally disagree with the given idea that….. (Strong disagreement)
Example 1: I agree that virtual communication has a damaging effect on our relationship as well as on our local community.
Example 2: I somewhat agree that such sports allow youngsters to mature emotionally, learn teamwork and help gain self-confidence.
Example 3: I quite disagree with the idea that a single global language is the best way to eradicate cultural barriers.
Useful phrases/vocabulary to end the Introduction:
(Discuss both views type essay)
- In this essay, I am going to examine this question from both points of view.
- Let us examine both views before reaching a concrete decision.
- The following paragraphs discuss whether …… or …… and reach a reasonable conclusion.
- The following essay takes a look at both sides of the argument.
(Agree/disagree type essay)
- I oppose the view and my reasons will be explained in the following paragraphs.
- I will support this view with arguments in the following paragraphs.
(Advantages and disadvantages type essay)
- This essay outlines the advantages and disadvantages of this trend.
- Thus the advantages far outweigh the disadvantages…
(Problem and Solution type essay)
- Let us examine the reasons for this and propose a solution to this.
- This essay deals with the reason behind this problem and proposes a solution.
Example 1: One of the most controversial issues today relates to the absolute freedom of the press. In this essay, I am going to examine this question from both points of view.
Example 2: This essay explains why the high-speed rails are the transportations of the future and why governments should allocate more money for developing railways.
Note: You can, however, simply state your opinion and directly go to the first body paragraph without stating what the essay or paragraphs are about.
Example: Consumers often make fallacious decisions in purchasing commodities in order to attain contentment and satisfaction. Consequently, people are burdened with debt. Financial literacy, in my opinion, could be a silver bullet for this problem. [No such phrase has been used in this example]
Vocabulary for the Essay Body Paragraphs:
Your GT IELTS essay should expand to 2 or 3 body paragraphs. Each paragraph should focus on an argument and provide evidence or example to support the argument. Body paragraphs without examples often end up scoring lower.
Useful phrases/vocabulary to start the first body paragraph:
- First…/ Firstly…/ First of all…/ First and foremost…
- It is true that…
- On the one hand…
- To begin with…/ To start with…/ Initially…/ To commence with…
- In the first place…
- It is worth considering…
- Let us take a look at…
- Though it is true that… (This expression is usually used to point out the opposite view that you disagree with)
- Many support the view that…/ Some people believe that…/ According to many…
Example 1: To begin with, the advocates of more pleasant adulthood believe that happiness is truly enjoyed when someone realises how this is shared with people around us.
Example 2: In the first place, a country becomes more engaging and develops rapidly when its population includes a mixture of cultures.
Example 3: It is worth considering that group sports clearly require individuals to perform a diverse range of rapid mental calculations.
Note: You should state the main point (topic sentence) at the beginning of a body paragraph and then expand it with more details in the rest of the paragraph. Then give an example or experience to make it more evident.
Useful phrases/vocabulary to start the subsequent body paragraph(s):
- Second(ly)… / Third(ly)…
- Next…/ After that…/ Again…
- Also…/ Besides…
- Likewise…/ In addition…
- Consequently…
- What’s more…/ Furthermore…/ Moreover…/ on top of that…
- Other people think that…/ Other people believe that…
- Apart from that…
- On the other hand…
- Last but not least…
- Finally…
Example 1: Moreover, being a sportsperson or movie start does not guarantee an automatic money flow as the rewards are most frequently collected by the successful ones.
Example 2: Secondly, doing what someone likes keeps him motivated and therefore leads to a better career growth.
Example 3: Finally, businesses can reach more customers, strangers can meet online to share ideas, and, most importantly, people are now more cognizant of others’ struggles and are able to help, with the development of such networking platforms.
Useful phrases/vocabulary to give an example:
- For instance…/ For example…/ As an example…/ An example is…
- To show an example…/ To give an example…/ To cite an example…
- Particularly…/ In particular…
- …could be a good/ideal example here
- To illustrate…/ To paraphrase…
- When it comes to…
- Like…/ Such as…
- With respect to…/ In terms of…
- Research has found that…
- As an evidence…
- A case…
Example 1: The Hong Kong Space Museum, for instance, has monthly exhibitions on different issues and professional docents are employed to take visitors on a guided tour around the museum.
Example 2: For example, interactive videos, pictures and reviews of a place help people decide for a trip and enjoy their stay. Booking hotels, paying for tickets, managing a tour guide is just few mouse clicks away.
Example 3: To illustrate, a survey conducted by Canadian Traffic Authority in 2015 outlines that 85% early morning commuters travel either for job/ school or for shopping.
Vocabulary to show the comparison:
- Also…
- Just as…
- Likewise…
- Similarly…
- Similar to…
- In the same way…
- At the same time…
Example 1: Likewise, time invested in developing handwriting skills improves their cognitive as well as language skills.
Example 2: In the same way, group study enables students to obtain information that they could not acquire in isolation.
Vocabulary to show the contrast:
- But…
- Yet…
- Unlike…
- Even so…
- However…
- Oppositely…
- Meanwhile…
- Then again…
- Even though…
- Alternatively…
- While…/ Whilst…
- In contrast to this…
- On the other hand…
- Although…/Though…
- Despite the fact that…
- Nevertheless…/ Nonetheless…
- On the contrary…
- On the flip side…
- Despite… / In spite of…/ In spite of the fact that…
Example 1: On the contrary, people who love their jobs can easily excel in their fields of work and achieve better results than those who put the salary in the first place.
Example 2: Meeting someone face-to-face, on the other hand, demands a person’s time and energy, and it requires an urge to meet the person.
Example 3: However, teaching people about the history and tradition of a country is one of the fundamental reasons we have museums in the first place.
Useful Vocabulary/phrases to draw the Essay conclusion:
- To conclude…
- In conclusion…
- In general…
- All in all…
- Overall…
- By and large…
- To elucidate…
- On the whole…
- To summarise…
- To conclude with…
- All things considered…
- To draw the conclusion…
- Taking everything into account…
- Taking everything into consideration…
- Weighing up both sides of the argument…
Example 1: In conclusion, people learn both from their success and failure and to build a prosperous nation, we must learn from our history. Without the knowledge of our history, scientific discoveries cannot bring a wide range of advantages to a nation.
Example 2: To draw the conclusion, learners can disregard handwriting only at their peril. It is a skill that will stand them in good stead throughout their lives. It is hoped that parents and teachers will realize the importance of handwriting before it is too late.
Example 3: On the whole, if the governments are really keen on improving the health of their citizens, they must address the real cause of diseases. In other words, by simply making housing affordable for all and controlling air pollution, the government can protect its people from illnesses. Prevention, after all, is better than cure.
Next » GT Essay Writing Vocabulary – Part 2
What the ‘GT Essay Writing Vocabulary – Part 2’ section covers:
» Vocabularies/ Phrases to introduce more ideas/ evidence or examples.
» Vocabularies/ Phrases to show reasons and results.
» Vocabulary to make a point or argument stronger by adding emphasis.
» Vocabulary for Adding more information to an argument.
» Useful phrases/vocabulary to present time or sequence.