How to talk about hobbies in the IELTS Speaking test
In the IELTS speaking test, the examiner could ask you to talk about your hobbies. Here’s a bad example of a response to a question about hobbies:
Examiner: What sports do you like?
Candidate: Football.
The main problem with the example above is that it is too short. In order to extend your answer, you could begin by describing how you feel about the sport by using adjectives. Here’s a slightly improved answer:
Examiner: What sports do you like?
Candidate: I think football is really exciting, both to watch and to play.
Here are some other adjectives that you can use:
- breathtaking
- physical
- slow
- aggressive
- uneventful
- terrifying
- boring
You can then further extend your answer by giving reasons why you feel the way you do about certain hobbies, to make a far better answer:
Examiner: What sports do you like?
Candidate: I think football is really exciting, both to watch and to play, because there’s often a lot of action – players run up and down the pitch and there’s much more to get involved in compared to a sport like golf, which I find quite boring.
Practice by considering how you would answer the following questions:
1. Do you have a favourite pastime? .
2. What do you do most in your free time? .
3. Do you prefer watching or playing sports? .
4. What hobbies are popular for people in your country? .
5. Are there any hobbies you wouldn’t be interested in trying? .
Remember that when you are practising for your IELTS speaking test, get into the habit of recording yourself as you speak – most mobile phones or computers have a voice recording option, and recording then listening to yourself speak can give you the opportunity to identify your own errors. Don’t worry – most people don’t like the sound of their own recorded voice, but after a few tries, you’ll get more comfortable hearing yourself speak!
Talking about hobbies in the IELTS
BOOST YOUR VOCABULARY! Here’s a glossary of key words from this post:
| Word (Part of Speech) | Definition | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Breathtaking (adjective) | very impressive or beautiful | The final goal was breathtaking. |
| Aggressive (adjective) | forceful, angry, or very active and determined | His playing style is quite aggressive. |
| Uneventful (adjective) | without anything interesting or important happening | The match was uneventful until the last minute. |
| Terrifying (adjective) | very frightening | Missing the easy shot felt terrifying. |
| Pastime (noun) | an activity you enjoy doing in your free time | Football is my favourite pastime. |
| Identify (verb) | to find or show who or what something is | When you listen back, try to identify your mistakes. |
| Candidate (noun) | a person who is taking a test or being considered for something | The candidate answered confidently in the speaking test. |
| Examiner (noun) | the person who asks questions and checks answers in a test | The examiner asked me about my hobbies. |
| Pitch (noun) | the field where football is played | They ran up and down the pitch all game. |
| Action (noun) | events or things that happen, especially exciting ones | There was a lot of action in the final minutes. |