Structure – Report writing
Introduction (never copy word for word from the question) + Overview/ General trend (what the diagrams indicate at a first glance).
Reporting details
Main features in the Details
+ Comparison and Contrast of the data. (Do not give all the figures.)
+ Most striking features of the graph.
Conclusion
Conclusion (General statement + Implications, significant comments)
[The conclusion part is optional.]
| Introduction + Overview/ General trend. | |
|---|---|
| Main features in the details/ diagrams + | Comparison and contrast of the data. |
| Conclusion (Optional) | |
Tips:
- Write introduction and General trend in the same paragraph. Some students prefer to write the “General Trend” in a separate paragraph and many teachers suggest the both to be written in a single paragraph. Unless you have a really good reason to write the general trend in the second paragraph, try to write them both in the first paragraph. However, this is just a suggestion, not a requirement.
- Your ‘Introduction (general statement + overall trend/ general trend) should have 75 – 80 words.
- DO NOT give numbers, percentages or quantity in your general trend. Rather give the most striking feature of the graph that could be easily understood at a glance. Thus it is suggested to AVOID – “A glance at the graphs reveals that 70% male were employed in 2001 while 40 thousand women in this year had jobs.” And use a format /comparison like the following: “A glance at the graphs reveals that more men were employed than their female counterpart in 2001 and almost two-third females were jobless in the same year.”
Vocabulary to start the report body
Just after you finish writing your “Introduction” (i.e. General Statement + General overview/ trend), you are expected to start a new paragraph to describe the main features of the diagrams. This second paragraph is called the ‘Body Paragraph / Report Body”. You can have a single body paragraph/ report body or up to 3, (not more than 3 in any case) depending on the number of graphs provided in the question and the type of these graphs. There are certain phrases you can use to start your body paragraph and following is a list of such phrases:
- As is presented in the diagram(s)/ graph(s)/ pie chart(s)/ table…
- As (is) shown in the illustration…
- As can be seen in the…
- As the diagrams suggest…
- According to the…
- Categorically speaking…
- Getting back to the details…
- Now, turning to the details…
- The table data clearly shows that…
- The diagram reveals that…
- The data suggest that…
- The graph gives the figure…
- It is interesting to note that…
- It is apparently seen that…
- It is conspicuous that…
- It is explicitly observed that…
- It is obvious…
- It is clear from the data…
- It is worth noticing that…
- It is crystal clear/ lucid that…
- It can be clearly observed that…
- It could be plainly viewed that…
- It could be noticed that…
- We can see that…
Vocabulary to show the changes
| Trends | Verb form | Noun Form |
|---|---|---|
| Increase | rise / increase / go up / uplift / rocket(ed) / climb / upsurge / soar/ shot up/ improve/ jump/ leap/ move upward/ skyrocket/ soar/ surge. | a rise / an increase / an upward trend / a growth / a leap / a jump / an improvement/ a climb. |
| Decrease | fall / decrease / decline / plummet / plunge / drop / reduce / collapse / deteriorate / dip / dive / go down / take a nosedive / slum / slide / go into free-fall. | a fall / a decrease / a reduction / a downward trends /a downward tendency / a decline/ a drop / a slide / a collapse / a downfall. |
| Steadiness | unchanged / level out / remain constant / remain steady / plateau / remain the same / remain stable / remain static | a steadiness/ a plateau / a stability/ a static |
| Gradual increase |
———— |
an upward trend / an upward tendency / a ceiling trend |
| Gradual decrease |
———— |
a downward trend / a downward tendency / a descending trend |
| Stand ability/ Flat | level(ed) off / remain(ed) constant / remain(ed) unchanged / remain(ed) stable / prevail(ed) consistency / plateaued / reach(ed) a plateau / stay(ed) uniform /immutable / level(ed) out/ stabilize/ remain(ed) the same. |
No change, a flat, a plateau. |
Examples:
- The overall sale of the company increased by 20% at the end of the year.
- The expenditure of the office remained constant for the last 6 months but the profit rose by almost 25%.
- There was a 15% drop in the ratio of student enrollment in this University.
- The population of the country remained almost the same as it was 2 years ago.
- The population of these two cities increase significantly in the last two decades and it is expected that it will remain stable during the next 5 years.
Tips:
- Use “improve” / “an improvement” to describe a situation like economic condition or employment status. To denote numbers use other verbs/nouns like increase.
- Do not use the same word/ phrase over and over again. In fact, you should not use a noun or verb form to describe a trend/change more than twice; once is better!
- To achieve a high band score you need to use a variety of vocabulary as well as sentence formations.
Vocabulary to represent changes in graphs
| Type of Change | Adverb form | Adjective form |
|---|---|---|
| Rapid change | dramatically / rapidly / sharply / quickly / hurriedly / speedily / swiftly / significantly/ considerably / substantially / noticeably. | dramatic / rapid / sharp / quick / hurried / speedy / swift / significant / considerable / substantial / noticeable. |
| Moderate change | moderately / gradually / progressively / sequentially. | moderate / gradual / progressive / sequential. |
| Steady change | steadily/ ceaselessly. | steady/ ceaseless. |
| Slight change | slightly / slowly / mildly / tediously. | slight / slow / mild / tedious. |
Example:
- The economic inflation of the country increased sharply by 20% in 2008.
- There was a sharp drop in the industrial production in the year 2009.
- The demand for new houses dramatically increased in 2002.
- The population of the country dramatically increased in the last decade.
- The price of the oil moderately increased during the last quarter but as a consequence, the price of daily necessity rapidly went up.
Vocabulary to represent frequent changes in graphs
| Type of Change | Verb form | Noun form |
|---|---|---|
| Rapid ups and downs | wave / fluctuate / oscillate / vacillate / palpitate | waves / fluctuations / oscillations / vacillations / palpitations |
Example:
- The price of the goods fluctuated during the first three months in 2017.
- The graph shows the oscillations of the price from 1998 to 2002.
- The passenger number in this station oscillates throughout the day and in early morning and evening, it remains busy.
- The changes of car production in Japan shows a palpitation for the second quarter of the year.
- The number of students in debate clubs fluctuated in different months of the year and rapid ups and downs could be observed in the last three months of this year.
Tips:
- DO NOT try to present every single data presented in a graph. Rather pick 5-7 most significant and important trends/ changes and show their comparisons and contrasts.
- The question asks you to write a report and summarize the data presented in graphs(s).
- This is why you need to show the comparisons, contrasts, show the highest and lowest points and most striking features in your answer, not every piece of data presented in the diagram(s).
Types of Changes/ Differences and Vocabulary to present them
| Great change / Huge difference: | |
| Adjectives | Adverbs |
|---|---|
| Overwhelming | Overwhelmingly |
| Substantial | Substantially |
| Enormous | Enormously |
| Big change / Big difference: | |
| Adjectives | Adverbs |
| Significant | Significantly |
| Considerable | Considerably |
| Medium change / Moderate difference: | |
| Adjectives | Adverbs |
| Somewhat | Somewhat |
| Moderate | Moderately |
| Minor change / Small difference: | |
| Adjectives | Adverbs |
| Fractional | Fractionally |
| Marginal | Marginally |
| Slight | Slightly |
Dates, Months and Years related vocabulary and grammar
- From 1990 to 2000, Commencing from 1980, Between 1995 and 2005, After 2012.
- By 1995, In 1998, In February, Over the period, During the period, During 2011.
- In the first half of the year, For the first quarter, The last quarter of the year, During the first decade.
- In the 80s, In the 1980s, During the next 6 months, In the mid-70s, Next 10 years, Previous year, Next year, Between 1980 – 1990.
- Within a time span of ten years, within five years.
- Next month, Next quarter, Next year, Previous month, Previous year.
- Since, Then, From.
Percentage, Portion and Numbers
Percentages:
- 10% increase, 25 percent decrease, increased by 15%, dropped by 10 per cent, fall at 50%, reached to 75%, tripled, doubled, one-fourth, three-quarters, half, double fold, treble, 5 times higher, 3 timers lower, declined to about 49%, stood exactly at 43%.
Fractions:
- 4% = A tiny fraction.
- 24% = Almost a quarter.
- 25% Exactly a quarter.
- 26% = Roughly one quarter.
- 32% Nearly one-third, nearly a third.
- 49% = Around a half, just under a half.
- 50% Exactly a half.
- 51% = Just over a half.
- 73% = Nearly three quarters.
- 77% = Approximately three quarter, more than three-quarter.
- 79% = Well over three quarters.
Proportions:
- 2% = A tiny portion, a very small proportion.
- 4% = An insignificant minority, an insignificant proportion.
- 16% = A small minority, a small portion.
- 70% = A large proportion.
- 72% = A significant majority, A significant proportion.89% = A very large proportion.
- 89% = A very large proportion.
Words/ Phrases of Approximation – Vocabulary
- Approximately
- Nearly
- Roughly
- Almost
- About
- Around
- More or less
- Just over
- Just under
- Just around
- Just about
- Just below
- A little more than
- A little less than.
What criteria would a band 9 graph response satisfy?
Task Achievement:
A) Fully satisfies all the requirements of the task.
B) Clearly presents a fully developed response.
What will be assessed by the examiner?
a) How appropriately, accurately and relevantly you fulfill your task requirements.
b) How accurately you write your report and how appropriately you present the data (compare/ contrast/ show the most striking trends/ features/ data.)
Coherence and Cohesion:
A) Uses cohesion in such a way that it attracts no attention.
B) Skillfully manages paragraphing.
What will be assessed by the examiner?
a) No misinterpretation and presentation of data and trend.
b) How well you organize your paragraphs.
c) Overall clarity and fluency of your report and message.
d) How well you have organized and liked the information, data and ideas in your writing.
e) Logical sequencing and appropriate use of linking devices between and within your sentences.
Tips:
1. Do not incorporate more than 3-4 paragraphs.
2. Do not use a single paragraph to describe everything.
3. The conclusion part is optional. If you think that you have already written more than 170 words and have nothing to say, you can skip the conclusion.
Lexical Resource:
A) Uses a wide range of vocabulary with very natural and sophisticated control of lexical features.
B) Rare minor errors occur only as ‘slips’.
What will be assessed by the examiner?
a) The range of vocabulary you have used in your writing.
b) How accurately and appropriately you have used words/ phrases while presenting the graph(s) as a report.
Tips: Do NOT use words/ phrases that are already given in the question. Do so only if there is no alternative word(s)/ phrase(s) to convey the same meaning/idea.
Band 9? What’s the criteria?
- Uses a wide range of vocabulary with very natural and sophisticated control of lexical features.
- Rare minor errors occur only as “Slips”.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy:
A) Uses a wide range of structures with full flexibility and accuracy.
B) Rare minor errors occur only as ‘slips’.
Tips:
Do not use the same sentence structure and data comparison/ contrasting style over and over again. Bring a variety in your writing to show that you can formulate different sentence structures without making any grammatical mistakes.
Related IELTS Resources
Take a practice test to find out what is your current weakness in terms of IELTS scale and allow more time to improve your weak spots. The following IELTS resources will help you to develop your skills faster: