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Ten Common Speaking Mistakes

Common mistakes in IELTS speaking include silence for too long between responses, memorizing answers instead of speaking spontaneously, and overusing transition words. Candidates should avoid simply repeating the question, answering a different question, saying they don't understand without rephrasing, and speaking for too long or short a duration. Other errors are poor pronunciation, flat intonation, and asking the examiner for their opinion instead of answering the question. To do well, practice speaking on a variety of topics with feedback and focus on clear pronunciation with varied intonation.

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62 views

Ten Common Speaking Mistakes

Common mistakes in IELTS speaking include silence for too long between responses, memorizing answers instead of speaking spontaneously, and overusing transition words. Candidates should avoid simply repeating the question, answering a different question, saying they don't understand without rephrasing, and speaking for too long or short a duration. Other errors are poor pronunciation, flat intonation, and asking the examiner for their opinion instead of answering the question. To do well, practice speaking on a variety of topics with feedback and focus on clear pronunciation with varied intonation.

Uploaded by

nhinhinguyen
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Ten Common IELTS Speaking Mistakes

1. Silence
Different cultures have different attitudes to silence, but for English
speakers the attitude is one of near-zero tolerance. Its fine to hesitate
for a few seconds before speaking or between ideas, but silences of
longer than five seconds will go down badly. Happily, theres a solution
to this problem and thats to learn some filler expressions such as
thats a tough question and let me see.
2. Memorized answers
The examiner is very likely to notice if you try to recite an answer from
memory, and there is a penalty for this. The telltale signs of a
memorized answer include speaking in a written style of English,
unnatural intonation, and the candidate attempting to rephrase the
question to the one they want to answer. Any questions you try to
memorize answers to are very unlikely to be asked, so it is much more
effective to practice speaking about a wide range of topics before you
take the test.
3. Overuse of transition signals
Its helpful to use a few signposting words like first, for example or on
the other hand. But if you overload your speech with these you could
actually damage your score. Sounding natural, not like a signposting
robot, should be your goal in IELTS Speaking. There are also many
words characteristic of formal writing such as furthermore, moreover
and in addition that are hardly ever used in speech and could actually
make you sound less natural if you say them.
4. Parroting the question
In the wild, a parrot is a bird that can mimic but not understand human
speech. In IELTS, a parrot is a candidate who repeats the question back
in statement form: Q: Whats your favorite sport to watch on TV? A: My
favorite sport to watch on TV is football. As the scoring criteria of IELTS
heavily reward those who can vary speech, paraphrasing the words or
structure of the question is a fast-track route to a higher score: Im
always watching football on TV.
5. Answering the wrong question
This is the most disastrous mistake of all because your score will be
marked down for coherence in IELTS Speaking if your answer fails to
address the question. Ask yourself before you begin speaking if you are
sure you have understood, and do not be afraid to ask the examiner for
help. But be sure to avoid

6. Saying I dont understand


There are much better ways to check for meaning, so learn them! You
can use a straightforward request like could you say that again,
please? Or ask a checking question such as Do you mean? that
shows you have at least partly understood the question.
7. Saying too much or too little
If you say too little, you miss the opportunity to show off your ability. If
you say too much, you risk sounding less coherent and making more
mistakes. As a general guide, answers of two to four sentences are fine
in Part 1. There are clear instructions about the length of speaking time
in Part 2. You should aim to say three to six sentences after each
question in Part 3.
8. Poor pronunciation
Great ideas are worthless if the listener cant make out your words.
Theres a good reason pronunciation accounts for 25% of the score in
IELTS Speaking and thats because its fundamental to spoken
communication. Before taking IELTS, you should find an opportunity to
practice with native or native-level speakers and get an honest
appraisal of your pronunciation. If they have trouble hearing your
words, its very likely the examiner will too.
9. Flat intonation
Even when you pronounce words clearly, flat intonation will make it
difficult to follow what you say. We vary intonation, pitch, volume and
speaking speed in order to maintain the listeners interest and direct
attention to our important ideas. Even IELTS examiners, who are
trained to listen carefully to everything a candidate says, will find a
flatly-intoned response difficult to follow and your response may be
marked down for both pronunciation and coherence as a result.
10. Asking for the examiners opinion
You are there to answer the questions, not ask them. The examiner will
politely redirect the question back your way if you try to stall for time
by saying I dont know, what do you think? If you really dont have any
ideas, just say Im afraid I know nothing about this topic and wait for
the next question.

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