Contents
- 1 The Most Commonly Repeated Spellings of Words for IELTS Listening Test
- 2 List of Words in Listening Test
The Most Commonly Repeated Spellings of Words for IELTS Listening Test
An IELTS Listening spelling list will help you hone your language skills while preparing for the exam. Vocabulary is allocated 25% of marks for all 4 categories of the IELTS test, that is, Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening. In the Listening section of the IELTS test, you can come across thousands of words from different topics. You must know the pronunciations as well as the spellings of all the repeated words that come in the IELTS exam. It can contribute to fetching you a high band. Developing the English language is very important in order to ace the IELTS test.
Correct responses are the foundation for a high IELTS Listening score. This means that you earn one point for each question you successfully answer correctly. For erroneous responses, you don’t lose points. An answer must be spelt correctly in order for it to be accepted. Any incorrectly spelt response will be marked as incorrect. For consideration, the IELTS recognises both British and American English spelling.
For example, people are prone to making mistakes in the spelling of words like preparation, material, listening, repeat, tuition, etc.
Moreover, knowing the correct usage and spelling of these words will also enable you to communicate fluently even after your IELTS days are behind you. So, read our IELTS Listening spelling list to know the correct spelling of 1200 oft-repeated English words in the IELTS test that will help you during and beyond IELTS.
Here is a list of the most commonly used words in the IELTS listening test that you should keep in mind to avoid losing valuable marks. Be warned, some of these words are commonly misspelt by IELTS test takers.
List of Words in Listening Test
- Days of the week: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, weekdays, weekend
- Months of the year: January, February, March, April, May, June, July August, September, October, November, December
- Hobbies: gardening, stamp collection, orienteering, caving, spelunking, scuba diving, snorkeling, skateboarding, bowls, archery, ice skating, darts, golf, billiards, photography, painting, embroidery, climbing, chess, parachute, pottery, woodcarving.
- Subjects: science, politics, architecture, law, geography, history, biology, archaeology, literature, statistics, mathematics, performing arts, visual arts, logic, physics, psychology, anthropology, economics, philosophy, chemistry, humanities, business management, agriculture.
- Marketing: catalogue, interview, research method, entertainment industry, TV program, strategies, leadership, management, customer, special offer, collecting data, display, products, questionnaire, survey, mass media, poll, business card, training, trainee, statistic, profit margin, newsletter, competition, merchandise, manufacture, recruitment.
- Studying at college/university: course outline, group discussion, handout, research, Proofreading, experiment, written work, report writing, experience, reference, textbook, student advisor, teamwork, module, topic, dictionary, laptop, printer, assessment, library, department, computer centre, classroom, attendance, deadline, give a talk, speech, lecture, tutor, main hall, computer laboratory, certificate, diploma, placement test, facilities, college, dining room, specialist, knowledge, international, accommodation, overseas students, full-time, homestay, primary, secondary, intermediate, media room, commencement, dissertation, leaflet, school reunion, feedback, tasks, outcomes, advanced, introductory, extra background, resources room, staff, higher education, guidelines, post-secondary, faculty, pupils, pencil, supervisor, bachelor’s degree, compound, foreign students, schedule, vocabulary, student support services, student retention, publication, registrar’s office, stationery.
- Works and jobs: designer, occupation, profession, decorator, architect, engineer, waiter, teacher, vacancy, professor, specialist, manager, waitress, psychologist، volunteer, craftsman, work experience, curriculum vitae, freelance, secretary, mail address, receptionist, pilot, lecturer, office assistant, clerk, accountant, guard, flight attendant, cashier, captain
- Health: yoga, tai-chi, keep-fit, salad bar, vegetarian, outdoor activities, leisure time, disease, meal, protein, balanced diet, food pyramid, vitamin, carbohydrates, rice, pasta, potatoes, pizza, tomatoes, bread, cereals, minerals, zinc, meat, seafood, eggs, beans, milk, cheese, yoghurt, fruit, vegetables, citrus fruits, green pepper, blackcurrant, nuts, egg yolk, liver, medicine، treatment, remedy, nursing care, nursery, regular exercise.
- Nature: field, footbridge, river, mountain, forest, village, environment, waterfall, coast, reef, lake, valley, peninsula, earthquake, avalanche, tornado, typhoon, hill, cliff, island, desertification, volcano, disaster, landslides, storm, flood, hurricane, pond, catastrophe, erosion, jungle, oasis, dam, canyon
- The environment: coal, fossil fuels, acid rain, global warming, carbon dioxide, greenhouse effect, burning fossil, exhaust fumes, smog, climate, pollution, temperature, power plants, deforestation, nitrogen oxide, landfill, cattle, wind turbine, renewable, source of energy, reliable, solar panels, solar power, hydroelectric power, environmentally friendly, oxygen, chemical-free, vegetation, sea level, ocean currents, soil conditioner, firewood, desert, degradation, drought, contaminated.
- Continents: Australia, Africa, South America, North America, Asia, Europe, Antarctica
- Countries: Switzerland, Turkey, England, Egypt, Mexico, Germany, Greece, Brazil, India, North Korea, the Dominican Republic, France, Indonesia, India, Malaysia, New Zealand, United Kingdom, China, Italy, Nigeria, Pakistan, Singapore, the Philippines, Denmark.
- Languages: Japanese, German, linguistics, bilingual, trilingual, polyglot, Portuguese, Mandarin, Bengali, Chinese, Hindi, Russian, Punjabi, Thai, Persian, Filipino, French, Italian, Greek, French
- Architecture and buildings: dome, palace, fort, castle, glasshouse, pyramid, log cabin, lighthouse, hut, skyscraper, sculpture
- Homes: chimney, bedroom, semi-detached house, duplex, townhouse, row house, bungalow, thatched cottage, mobile home, houseboat, a block of flats, apartment building, condominium, basement, landlord, terraced house, tenant, rent, lease, neighborhood, suburb, dormitory, story, kitchen, refrigerator, microwave, sofa, coffee table, ground floor, oven, hallway, insurance
- In the city: central station, cities, street, lane, city centre, car park, department store, bridge, temple, hospital, garden, avenue, embassy, road system
- Transportations: boat, lifeboat, cargo plane, shipment, container ship, ferry, liner, canal boat, narrowboat, dinghy sailing, hovercraft, hydrofoil, sailboat, paddle steamer, cabin cruiser, kayak, canoe, punt, gondola, aircraft, rowing boat, rowboat, helicopter, seaplane, airship, hot-air balloon, airport, platform, hire a car, automobile, crew, passenger.
- Workplaces: staff selection, clinic, dentist, reception, appointment, colleague, workshop, employer, employment, unemployed, technical cooperation, team leaders, showroom, information desk, stress, ability, vision, employee, internship, confidence.
- Places: parliament, accommodation, local library, swimming pool, cafeteria, cottage, restaurant, bookshop, sports centre, city council, canteen, cafe, dance studio, park, conversation club, kindergarten
- Money matters: cash, debit, low-risk investment, credit card, cheque, annual fee, monthly membership, tuition fees, poverty, bank statement, money management, current account, interest rate, deposit, student account, withdraw, mortgage, grace period, in advance, budget deficit, retail voucher, coupon، counterfeit money, debt, interest-free credit, purchase, partial refund, annuity, public money, taxpayers’ money, income, non-refundable, MasterCard, VISA, duty-free store, distribution costs, finance department, family finances.
- Rating and qualities: expensive, cheap, reasonable, satisfactory, dangerous, poor quality, satisfied, disappointed, efficient, luxurious, safe, strongly recommended, coloured, spotted, striped
- Touring: souvenir, trip, tourist guided tour, ticket office, guest, reservation, view, culture, single double-bedded room, picnic, tourist attraction, hostel, suite, memorable, aquarium.
- Adjectives: energetic, social, ancient, necessary, fantastic, exciting, fabulous, dull, comfortable, convenient, suitable, affordable, voluntary، mandatory, compulsory, temporary, permanent, Immense, vast, salty, extinct, vulnerable, pessimistic, optimistic, realistic, practical, knowledgeable, flexible, confident, Western, intensive, tranquil, spectacular, intact, various
- Verbs: train, develop, collect, supervise, mark, edit, revise, exhibit, donate, surpass, register, support, hunt, persuade, concentrate, discuss, suggest, arrange, borrow, immigrate, review, learn, touch.
- Sports: jet-skiing, bodyboarding, snowboarding, cricket, baseball, basketball, rugby, hang-gliding, skydiving, soccer, American football, hockey, swimming, tennis, squash, the javelin, badminton, ping-pong, field, court, pitch, stadium, team, the discus, the hammer, the high jump, horse racing, show jumping, polo, cycling, canoeing, refreshment, gymnasium, extreme sports, paragliding, abseiling, athlete, gym, bungee jumping, white-water rafting, surfing, windsurfing, kitesurfing, mountain biking, push-up, judo, recreation, jogging, press-up, snooker, walking, barbell, treadmill, championship.
- Shapes: Oval, Square, rectangular, triangular, polygon, spherical, circular, curved, cylindrical, three dimensions, Measurement width, length, altitude, imperial system, metric system, spiral, Mass, depth, breadth, height, frequency
- Weather: humid, hot, sticky, breeze, chilly, cold, cool, dry, dusty, freezing, hot, warm, wet, weather forecast, antenna, moisture,
- Equipment and tools: helmet, light, musical instrument, cassette, silicon chip, digital monitor, gadget, device, screen, breaks, wheels, mechanical pencil, disk, backpack,
- The arts and media: Opera, Orchestra, concert, symphony, the press, conductor, vocalist, audience, festival, carnival, exhibition, classical music, theatre, cinemas, art gallery, museum, ballet, television, radio, graphics, newspaper
- The animal kingdom: lion, penguin, seabirds, poultry and game, birds of prey, mammals, genus, species, cetacean, whale, primates, rodents, reptile, insects, octopus, phylum, fish, amphibian, class, order, family, livestock, creature, plants: mushroom, fungus, stem, roots, cluster, fertilizer, leaves, seed, core, bark, trunk, twig, branch, flower.
- Vehicles: camper, double-decker bus, single-decker, minibus, forklift truck, school bus, coach, truck, tanker, van, lorry, transporter, tow truck, breakdown truck, pickup, jeep, taxi, cab, tram, underground, subway, caravan, tractor, stream train, freight train, a goods train
- Expressions and time: midday, three times, three times per week, millennium, a gap year, fulltime, part-time, midnight, century, decade, fortnight.
- Materials: aluminum, copper, fur, metal, steel, rubber, plastic, ceramics, cement, stone, textile, cotton, fabric, wool, glass, leather, bone, paper, lumber/wood, glue, concrete, wax, paper, wood, silver, composite, fiberglass, gold, feather
- Colour: blue, white, orange, green, grey, black, red, yellow, purple, brown, pink
- Other: sufficient, dialogue, passport photo, state, variety, private sector, practice, gender, creativity, government, individual, original inhabitant, indigenous, demonstration, circuit, guarantee, commerce, carriage, narrative, strike, entrance, chocolate, satellite, decision, prototype, attitude, activity, recipient, ultrasound, pedestrian safety, daily routine, personal fulfilment, traffic jams, procedures, creation, senior, opportunity, driving license, prize, junior, process, literary, man-made, republicans, waiting list, sewer systems, liberal democracy, democrats, umbrella, frequently updated, lunar calendar, libertarian, burger, videos, fund-raising event, magnet, dialect, ramification, straight, nature conservation, life expectancy, farewell, welfare, encyclopedia, illiteracy, robot, proficiency, evolution, revolution.
Correct usage of words and their spellings is the foremost requirement for well-written content, and to get an exhaustive list of such words you may register yourself for our IELTS online classes.
Also check :
- IELTS Listening Answer Sheet
- IELTS listening recent actual test
- IELTS Listening tips
- How to Improve IELTS Listening Section 3 and 4?
- What is Signposting?
Frequently Asked Questions
Do spellings matter in IELTS test?
Yes. You are marked for the correctness of your spellings.
Should I follow American or British spelling? For example, it is color in Amercian and colour in British?
Please stick to the British variant. It is “Colour”
Should I use “z” or “s” in words like familiari[s/z]e, urbani[s/z]ation ?
Please follow the British variant here also. Use “s”.
In cases like ” New Zealand” will I lose marks if I write “Newzealand”?
Yes.
In cases like “snorkeling” will I lose marks if I write “snorkelling”? I ask this question because, it shows that I know the word, only the “l” is extra?
Yes, you will lose marks. You are supposed to be aware of the correct spelling.
Learn how to improve your English vocabulary, listening, and speaking at the same time using the 3000 most commonly used words in English.
Fortunately, you don’t have to learn them all to become fluent in English. Americans use around 2500 – 3000 of the most common words in their daily lives. If you know these 3000 most common words, you can understand at least 95% of all conversations, e-mails, newspapers, and books.
Sounds great! But what is the most effective way to learn these words?
Focus on example sentences when learning vocabulary. Here’s why?
When it comes to learning English vocabulary, the most important thing
you need to focus on are
example sentences because they help you to improve all your English skills — including vocabulary, listening, speaking, and writing.
If you want to speak English fluently, learn with your ears, not with your eyes
Learning English can be broken down into two parts: input and output. Input consists of reading and listening while output consists of writing and speaking. The more input you get, the more output you can produce. It’s that simple.
Here’s the little secret you probably don’t know yet:
Repetition is the secret to English fluency
If you want to quickly achieve fluency level — to speak English easily, fluently and automatically, you’ll need to do one more thing:
Learn deeply through lots of repetition.
It means that you will need to listen to every example sentence many, many times, until you MASTER it. Don’t listen just one time or a few times. It’s not enough. You will forget it very soon.
You may know how to use a word to make a correct sentence, but here’s the thing: Can you use it quickly, easily, and automatically?
If the answer is no, you need to repeat more. You must listen to that example sentence again and again.
Don’t ignore this simple secret. This is how you will achieve automatically fast speaking.
FREE English Lessons — 3000 Most Frequently Used Words in English
In the following section, you will find around 3000 free lessons for the 3000 most commonly used words in English. Each lesson consists of the definition (meaning) of the word, the audio pronunciation, and many example sentences with high-quality audio.
Listen to (and repeat) each lesson many times — and watch how fast your English speaking improves!
Enjoy the lessons!
P/S: Check out the Resources page for our recommended courses and lessons.
Listening is the most important skill in English. These lessons will help you to practice English by listening. The voice from conversations is quite slow. Therefore, you can listen to almost all words in the dialogs.
Learn and improve your English listening skills with 100 lessons.
Easy English Listening lessons will help you with your Listening and Speaking skill.
Pin
Easy English Listening Lessons
It’s giving you the confidence to speak with native English speakers.
These lessons have basic English conversations for beginners and also beginner-level English conversations.
These are perfect for beginners wanting to improve their English listening skills.
100 Easy English Listening Lessons for Beginners
These are the best lessons to get started with English listening comprehension for beginners!
Learn More: 100 English Listening Lessons for Intermediate
If you want to download all of these lessons, just leave your email in the comment. We will send them to you!
You may also like
- Home
- All Lessons
- Topics
- business english
- comprehension
- culture & tips
- expressions
- grammar
- IELTS
- pronunciation
- slang
- speaking
- TOEFL
- TOEIC
- vocabulary
- writing
- Teachers
- Resources
Are you listening? Can you hear me? What’s the difference between LISTEN and HEAR in English? Watch this free lesson to find out, then take the quiz to see if you got it.
Quiz
Test your understanding of this English lesson
Test your understanding of the English lesson by answering these questions. You will get the answers and your score at the end of the quiz.
LEAVE A COMMENT
10000+ результатов для ‘english listening’
Friendship Speaking & Listening
Случайное колесо
от Laura812
Adult Education
English
ESOL E2 Speaking Listening
L2 Discussion: Environmental Issues
Случайное колесо
от Elc2020
L2 ESOL
L2 Functional Skills English
English
Speaking Listening
FS — Formal Group Discussion — Useful Expressions
Групповая сортировка
от Elc2020
L1 Functional Skills English
L1/L2 Functional Skills English
Adult Education
English
Speaking Listening
Functional English — Group Discussion — Useful Expressions
Групповая сортировка
от Elc2020
L1/L2 ESOL
L1/L2 Functional Skills English
English
ESOL
Speaking Listening
3A Race across London
Упорядочивание
от Donaldson
English
EFL
Listening
New Year’s Questions
Случайные карты
от Elc2020
L1/L2 ESOL
L1/L2 Functional Skills English
Adult Education
English
ESOL
Speaking Listening
Onestop Live from Stratford 1 Listening 1
Упорядочивание
от Donaldson
English
EFL
Listening
Introduction to Speaking and Listening
Викторина
от Smatthews2
Adult Education
English
Speaking and Listening
Alphabet Pronunciation (All Letters)
Групповая сортировка
от Donaldson
English
EFL
Listening
pron
Listening 151 (English-Russian Translation)
Флэш-карты
от Ebenatalia73
B1 PET Listening Test One Part 3
Сопоставить
от Donaldson
English
vocab
B1 PET
EFL
Listening
CBE BOW OTL Engels Learn English through Oxford English video episode 1
Викторина
от Lievebekaert
English
listening
sentences
vocabulary
vragen
Song: If you love somebody (vocab)
Сопоставить
от Donaldson
Adult Education
English
vocab
EFL
Listening
Solutions Ele 2C Ex6
Викторина
от Donaldson
EFL
Listening
Matching sounds to words SW 5th July 21
Найди пару
от Katiemorrell
Elementary School
English
SPAG
speaking and listening
th and f CL sp & L words practise 7th July 21
Групповая сортировка
от Katiemorrell
Elementary School
English
speaking and listening
2B 1b-d Listening Vocab
Найди пару
от Donaldson
Adult Education
English
vocab
EFL
Listening
True or False (Listening)
Правда или ложь
от Graceyy234
Adult Education
English
Discussions for Speaking and Listening
Групповая сортировка
от Natalie28
English
IELTS Listening Section One
Правда или ложь
от Donaldson
University
English
EFL
IELTS
Listening
Lesson Stream: 1957
Сопоставить
от Donaldson
High school
Adult Education
English
vocab
EFL
Listening
Reading
speaking
LISTENING — Television
Привести в порядок
от Teacherwayne
English
LISTENING — Travelling
Привести в порядок
от Teacherwayne
English
IELTS Listening Section One
Групповая сортировка
от Donaldson
University
EFL
IELTS
Listening
Discussion strategy (questions).
Привести в порядок
от Katieteacher
ESOL speaking and listening
Missing verb (was/were/wasn’t /weren’t)
Случайное колесо
от Traintotefl
English
Teaching English
face2face elementary 6C weekends phrases
Групповая сортировка
от Viktorialogan3
English
English
2. Fact or Opinion?
Викторина
от Elc25
L1 Functional Skills English
English
6 min English — youngsters and technologies, after listening
Откройте поле
от Brrrahms
Listening
Викторина
от Flapps
Speaking and Listening Wheel Level 1 Functional Skills English
Случайное колесо
от Mrsferroenglish
L2 ESOL Sp & L — Urbanisation Pros & Cons
Групповая сортировка
от Elc2020
L2 ESOL
Adult Education
ESOL
Speaking Listening
Listening
Откройте поле
от Alisanaumenko02
Elementary School
Listening — Les profs — match the sound to the English
Сопоставить
от Hb5
L2 Sp & L. Debate: CCTV
Случайное колесо
от Elc2020
L2 ESOL
ESOL
Speaking Listening
As far as = Listening Quiz
Викторина
от Teacherwayne
English
L2 Sp & L: Debate: NHS — vocabulary
Случайное колесо
от Elc2020
L2 ESOL
Adult Education
ESOL
Speaking Listening
Present Perfect Listening. Accidents.
Пропущенное слово
от Nataliyakowtun6
English
10-step Formal Letter Layout/ Structure
Сопоставить
от Lauracollins
Functional Skills English
English
LISTENING GAP FILL — Traffic
Привести в порядок
от Teacherwayne
English
Unit 4 Listening Heo
Сопоставить
от Abcdenglish2022
English
Entry 1- S&L revision
Случайное колесо
от Rchallis
Adult Education
ESOL
Entry 1
revision
Speaking and listening
In, at, on (prepositions of place)
Групповая сортировка
от Learnwithjitka
Angličtina
English
ESL
TEFL
English grammar
Prepositions
1. FACT or OPINION?
Групповая сортировка
от Elc25
L1 Functional Skills English
English
Fact or Opinion
Present Perfect questions- Entry 3- Task 2 S&L exam
Привести в порядок
от Rchallis
Adult Education
ESOL
Entry 3
Present perfect questions
Speaking and listening exam
L2 Discussion: Debate: Throwaway Clothes Culture — New Vocabulary
Сопоставить
от Elc2020
L2 ESOL
Adult Education
ESOL
Speaking Listening
Language and structure
Групповая сортировка
от Michaelheyman75
GCSE
English
English Language
Language and structure
L2 Sp & L: Debate — Influence by celebrities — good v bad
Случайное колесо
от Elc2020
L2 ESOL
Adult Education
ESOL
Speaking Listening
L2 Sp & L: Debate: Traffic Issues — Vocabulary
Случайное колесо
от Elc2020
L2 ESOL
Adult Education
ESOL
Speaking Listening
L2 Discussion: Domestic Violence
Случайное колесо
от Elc25
L2 ESOL
Adult Education
ESOL
Speaking Listening
Jack the Ripper listening words
Сопоставить
от Handlery
English
GIVE ME FIVE 1 UNIT 1
Сопоставить
от Annajosephaj
English
English language
Present simple questions- make positive and negative sentences
Случайное колесо
от Rchallis
Entry 1
Present simple
Present simple questions
Speaking and listening
Letter/ Email Comparison
Викторина
от Lauracollins
Functional Skills English
English
FS English — Informal Group Discussion — Useful Expressions
Групповая сортировка
от Elc25
L1/L2 Functional Skills English
English
Group Discussion Phrases
Supermarket Cards
Случайные карты
от Jolynch
Pre-Entry
ESOL
Listening
Speaking
Vocabulary
English quiz
Викторина
от Анонимный
L2 Sp & L: Debate — City Life v Living in the Countryside
Случайное колесо
от Elc2020
L2 ESOL
Adult Education
ESOL
Speaking Listening
Weekly activities
Перевернуть плитки
от Jolynch
Pre-Entry
ESOL
Listening
Speaking
Vocabulary
The Reading / Listening — English Vocabulary — Level 3 Quiz
Викторина «Игровое шоу»
от Csc
English
Increasing your vocabulary range is important if you want to become a more proficient language learner. Understanding words and knowing how to use them and write them correctly is important and will help you perform better in the IELTS Listening test. You are being tested on understanding what you hear, however, if your answer is spelled incorrectly, your ‘correct’ answer will be marked as incorrect.
Each part of the Listening test presents different vocabulary groups, starting with the most frequently used vocabulary in Part 1, to vocabulary that is specific to a range of topics in Part 4. We will look at the most commonly used words in all four parts of the IELTS Listening test along with tips and advice on how to spell English words correctly.
Part 1: familiar vocabulary
Basic vocabulary that you would have studied when first learning English is included in Part 1 of the Listening test. You will hear a conversation between two people set in an everyday social setting. The vocabulary used will be familiar word groups relating to everyday life, dates, times, places, activities, work and leisure.
Even though these words are used commonly, they are often spelled incorrectly so valuable marks are lost in the easiest part of the Listening test.
1. Days of the week: Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday
Quick Tip: Wednesday is commonly misspelled.
2. Months and seasons of the year: January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December, winter, spring, autumn, summer
Quick Tip: The first ‘r’ in February is often forgotten. If you struggle with spelling, you can choose to write the date using numbers as long as these numbers are written in the correct format. E.g. ‘the 10th of February, 2020’ = 10/02/2020
Quick Tip: the final ‘n’ in autumn is often forgotten as we don’t hear the silent ‘n’.
3. Shapes: circle, square, rectangle, triangle, cylinder, oval
Quick Tip: Shapes can be used when we refer to places in a city, King George Square, so it’s important that you can spell common shapes.
4. Transportation: automobile, truck, tractor, tram, subway, airplane, train, bicycle, car, pedestrian, passenger, commuter
Quick Tip: ‘commuter‘ is often misspelled, confusing it with ‘computer’!
5. Colours: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, white, black, brown
Quick Tip: Colour spelled with a ‘u’ is the Canadian/British spelling. In the US, it is spelled ‘color’ without a ‘u’. Both are correct and a matter of preference.
6. Verbs: suggest, develop, borrow, persuade, discuss, review, concentrate, believe, crash
Quick Tip: Sometimes verbs are conjugated for gender, tense, etc. The difference could give you an incorrect answer.
7. Adjectives: beautiful, necessary, fantastic, comfortable, convenient, wonderful, terrible, temporary, permanent, knowledgeable, exciting, boring, difficult, easy
Quick Tip: Make sure that you note adjectives that have double consonants (ss/mm). It is easy to miss a letter.
8. Numbers, times, and currencies: commonly appear in Part 1 of the listening test. Recording the corresponding number or symbol is suggested because this will help eliminate the possibility of spelling the word incorrectly.
For example, thirty dollars is the same as $30 on the listening test. Also, six o’clock and 6:00 are the same as well. Finally, ten thousand and 10,000 are also both correct. Writing the number or symbol allows you to feel more confident that you have not made a spelling mistake.
Quick Tip: When deciding on whether the answer is 30 or 13, listen to the stressed syllable. If it’s 13, the stress is on the second syllable ‘thirteen‘, if it’s 30, the stress is on the first syllable ‘thirty’.
Quick Tip: Copy the correct symbol from the Listening question to make sure you are using the correct currency. If you use ‘$’ instead of ‘£’, the answer will be incorrect.
Read our recent blog on how to write numbers in the IELTS test.
Part 2: a monologue, speech or talk
In Part 2 of the IELTS Listening test, you will hear a monologue which is set in an everyday context. You might hear a speech about local facilities, describing the layout of a recreation centre, or you will hear a description of rooms in a particular building. There are a variety of question types in this part of the test and some questions may involve maps so there is vocabulary that may be helpful to know.
If you see a map or diagram, the first piece of advice is to write L and R on either side of your booklet, to make sure you don’t confuse your right with your left! It would also be useful to draw a compass with the points North, South, East and West if this has not been already done for you. Remember when you are under test conditions, you will be nervous, and may confuse left with right, meaning you cannot follow the description.
1. Rooms in buildings: kitchen, bathroom, bedroom, living room, dining room, lounge, library, gymnasium (gym), cafeteria (cafe), classroom, waiting room, reception, ticket desk, storage room, theatre
2. Place markers: street, road, avenue, lane, drive, court, place, terrace, way
There is some vocabulary you should be listening for, but may not have to write down when doing a map question in Part 2, which will allow you to follow the map more easily. Make sure you know where these direction words point to.
3. Directions and prepositions of place: north, south, east, west, up, down, right, left, straight, across from, between, beside, diagonal, corner, opposite, adjacent to, near, past, before, after
4. Verbs: turn, move, continue on, walk, cross, pass, start, finish, end, stop, go straight ahead
5. Places on a map: tennis court, river, courtyard, laboratory, building, bridge, road, path, traffic lights, bench, seat, table, basketball court, running track, swimming pool, beach, forest, garden, castle
Part 3: a conversation between people
In Part 3 of the IELTS Listening test, you will hear a conversation between up to four people. This conversation will generally be set in an educational or training context, for example, an university lecturer discussing an assignment with two students.
Being familiar with academic related vocabulary connected to learning, study and assessment may be helpful for this part of the test.
1. School terms: presentation, project, teamwork, pairs, organisation, outline, proofreading, experiment, reference, lecture, tutor, teacher, attendance, specialist, knowledge, faculty, bachelor’s, master’s, schedule, management, leadership, questionnaire, statistic, percentage, laboratory, school, university, college
Quick Tip: North Americans pronounce ‘laboratory’ in three syllables: lab-bra-tory. British English speakers pronounce the same word using four syllables: lab-or-a-tory.
2. Subjects in school: Mathematics (Maths), Science, English, Physical Education (PE), Art, Music, Geography, Biology, Chemistry, History
Quick Tip: When students study a subject at school, their school year is divided into terms or semesters. They have breaks or holidays between each term.
3. Subjects in university: Commerce, Science, Psychology, Engineering, Marketing, Sociology, Medicine, History, Geography, Architecture, Law, Philosophy, Economics, Education
Quick Tip: When students study at university, their university year is divided into semesters. They usually have exam blocks at the end of each semester following by a break. They can study part-time or full-time and combine it with employment.
4. Examination: assessment, test, revision, pass, fail, repeat, supervise, supervisor, assess, exam, results, degree, certificate
Part 4: a university lecture
Even though Part 4 is the most difficult part of the IELTS Listening test, the vocabulary used is still words that are common knowledge. Part 4 is also based on academics, so there could be a range of different topics spoken about.
Look through the range of topic areas below and some vocabulary that is frequently used.
1. Health: vegetarian, vegan, healthy, unhealthy, leisure, disease, vitamin, protein, carbohydrates, exercise, treatment, obese, overweight, fit, doctor, check up, medicine, vitamin, pandemic, virus, cure, vaccination
2. Animals and their habitat: mammals, reptile, primates, predators, prey, mountain, jungle, forest, island, pond, river, stream, zoo, pet, endangered, species, ocean, sea
3. Continents and Countries: North America, South America, Asia, Africa, Europe, Antarctica, Australia, Oceania, England, Canada, China, United Kingdom, Germany, Mexico, Switzerland
4. Environment: global warming, disaster, earthquake, tornado, blizzard, hurricane, pollution, temperature, drought, flood, cyclone, volcanic eruption, deforestation, desertification, bush fires
5. Government: politics, leader, politician, senator, mayor, laws, regulations, senate, president, society, individual, council, rules
Quick Tip: The word ‘society’ is one of the most commonly misspelled words on the IELTS test.
6. Energy: nuclear, oil, coal, hydro electrical power, natural gas, solar power, source, generate, electricity, dam, windmill, wind turbine, renewable, non-renewable
Quick Tip: Remember to check your spelling of nuclear, it is often written as ‘unclear’, a simple typo that result in an incorrect answer.
7. General: appointment, cooperation, employment, government, exhibition, occupation, aluminum, century, decade, millennium, individual, creativity, guarantee, satellite, opportunity, licence, frequently, calendar, different
Quick Tip: The words ‘government’ and ‘different’ are two of the most commonly misspelled words in the IELTS test. Also, ‘aluminum’ is pronounced with four syllables in North American English: a-lu-min-num. It is pronounced with five syllables in British English: al-u-min-i-um.
To help you feel confident in the Listening test as well as the rest of the IELTS test, try to be knowledgeable on a variety of topics and have a good range of vocabulary to discuss those topics. If you need more tips and advice on how to build your vocabulary, read our blog on building mind maps. You will notice that the more you use these words, the more likely that you will be able to remember their meaning and also how to spell them.
If you feel that your vocabulary resource is good enough to do a test, why not practice with our official online Progress Check practice tests to see if you are ready to take a real IELTS Listening test.