IELTS, TOEFL Writing task. Describing a graph/chart/diagram

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Introduction of the graph

The graph//table/pie chart/bar chart/diagram ... gives information about/on ...provides information about/on ...shows ...illustrates ...compares ...explains why ...describes ...draws the conclusion of (a survey) ...

The given / the supplied / the presented / the shown / the provided/ the

diagram / table / figure / illustration / graph / chart / flow chart / picture/ presentation/ pie chart / bar graph/ column graph / line graph / table data/ data / information / pictorial/ process diagram/ map/ pie chart and table/ bar graph and pie chart ...

shows / represents / depicts / enumerates / illustrates / presents/ gives / provides / describes / delineates/ expresses/ outlines/ denotes/ compares/ shows contrast / indicates / figures / gives data on / gives information on/ presents information about/ shows data about/ demonstrates/ outlines/ summarises...

the comparison of… the differences… the changes... the number of… information on… data on… the proportion of… the amount of… information on... data about... comparative data... the trend of... the percentages of...

Examples:

The pie charts provide information on the proportion of males and females working in agricultural sector.
The provided diagram shows data on employment categories in energy producing sectors in Europe starting from 1925 and till 1985.
The given pie charts represent the proportion of male and female employee in 6 broad categories, divided into manual and non-manual occupations in Freedonia.
The chart gives information on expenditures of 4 European countries on six consumer products namely Germany, Italy, Britain and France.
The supplied bar graph compares the number of male and female graduated in three developing countries while the table data presents the overall literacy rate in these countries.
The bar graph and the table data depict the water use in different sectors in five regions.
The bar graph enumerates the money spent on different research projects while the column graph demonstrates the sources of the amount spent over a decade, commencing from 1981.

The Academic IELTS Writing Task 1 requires you to use several vocabularies to present the data given in a pie/ bar/ line/ mixed graphs or to describe a process or a flow chart. Being able to use appropriate vocabulary, presenting main trends, comparing & contrasting data and presenting the logical flow of the graph ensures a high band score in your Academic IELTS writing task 1.

Four criteria examiner uses to score your response: task achievement, coherence and cohesion, lexical resource, grammatical range and accuracy.

The general format for writing academic IELTS task 1:

Introduction + Basic/ General Trends + Details Description + Conclusion (optional).

Caution: Never copy word for word from the question. If you do do, you would be penalised. always paraphrase the introduction in your own words.

General Statement Part:

The General statement is the first sentence (or two) you write in your reporting. It should always deal with:

What + Where + When.

Example: The diagrams present information on the percentages of teachers who has expressed their views on different problems they face when dealing with children in three Australian schools from 2001 to 2005.

What = the percentages of teachers...

Where = three Australian schools....

When = from 2001 to 2005...

A good General statement should always have these parts.

Vocabulary for the General Trend Part:

In general, In common, Generally speaking, Overall, It is obvious, As is observed, As a general trend, As can be seen, As an overall trend, As is presented.

It can be clearly seen that,

At the first glance it is clear,

At the onset, it is clear that,

A glance at the graphs reveals that...

Examples:

In general, the employment opportunity has increased till 1970 and has dropped down afterwards.
As is observed, the figures for imprisonment in the five mentioned countries show no overall pattern of increase or decrease rather shows the considerable fluctuation from country to country.
Generally speaking, USA had a far more standard life than all the other 4 mentioned countries.
As can be seen, the highest number of passengers used the London Underground station at 8:00 in the morning and at 6:00 in the evening.
Generally speaking, more men were engaged in managerial positions in 1987 than that of women in New York.
As an overall trend, the number of crimes reported increased fairly rapidly until the mid-seventies, remained constant for five years and finally, dropped to 20 cases a week after 1982.
At the first glance, it is clear that more percentages of native university pupils violated regulations and rules than the foreign students.

Vocabulary to Start the Report Body:

There are certain phrases you can use to start your body paragraph and following is a list of such phrases:

1. As is presented in the diagram(s)/ graph(s)/ pie chart(s)/ table... 2. Now, turning to the details.... 3. As can be seen in the... 4. According to the... 5. The table data clearly shows that... 6. As the diagrams suggest...

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 / deterioriate/ 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

Standability/ 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/ stabilise/ remain(ed) the same.

No change, a flat, a plateau.

Examples:

The overall sale of the company has 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 student enrollment of the 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 predicted that it will remain stable in the next 5 years.

Vocabulary to represent changes in graphs:

Type of Change
Adverb form
Adjective form
Rapid change
dramatically / rapidly / sharply / quickly / hurriedly / speedily / swiftly / significantly/ considerably / substantioally / noticably.
dramatic / rapid / sharp / quick / hurried / speedy / swift / significant / considerable / substantial / noticable.
Moderate change
moderately / gradually / progressively / sequentially.
moderate / gradual / progressive / sequential.
Steady change
steadily/ ceaselessly.
steady/ ceaseless.
Slight changeslightly / slowly / mildly / tediously.slight / slow / mild / tedious.

Examples:

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 in 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

Examples:

The price of the raw materials fluctuated for the first three months.
The graph shows the oscillations of the price of fuel from 1998 to 2002.
The passenger number in this station oscillates throughout the day but early morning and evening are the two busiest time.
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 as a rapid ups and downs could be observed in the last three months.

Dates, Months & 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.

Percentages:

10% increase, 25 percent decrease, increased by 15%, dropped by 10 per cent, fall at 50%, reached to 75%, trippled, 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 thre-quarter.

79% = Well over three quarter.

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.

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.