​ Ege University School of Foreign Languages​

Materials Development Unit

2024-2025 Spring Semester
​ GAMMA WRITING MATERIAL​
DESCRIBING GRAPHS 1
DESCRIBING PIE CHARTS

A.​ Features of a Pie Chart

A pie chart is a circular statistical graphic that is divided into segments, or slices, to illustrate
numerical proportions. Each slice represents a category, and the size of the slice is proportional to the
percentage or fraction of the whole that the category represents.

Key Features of a Pie Chart:

●​ Circular Shape: The entire chart represents 100% of a dataset.

●​ Slices (or Segments): Each slice represents a different category and its proportion in the
dataset.

●​ Labels or Percentages: Often, each slice is labeled with its corresponding value or percentage
for clarity.

●​ Legend : A key that explains the meaning of the colors, symbols, or patterns used in the chart.
It helps readers interpret the data by showing what each category or data series represents.

Figure 1

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Activity 2
Write a sentence to indicate the market share of each smartphone brand by percentage according to the
pie chart shown in Figure 1. Use one the following verbs in each sentence:
account for / have / hold / make up /comprise / constitute
be made up of / be comprised of
Examples:
Mapple has the largest portion of the market, holding 40%.
Pamsung accounts for 30% of the market.

*Watch the first four minutes of the Youtube video the link of which is given below for more sample
sentences .
BestMyTest, IELTS Academic Writing Task 1 - Vocabulary for Pie charts (describe percentages),
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K6AL0mvYS9s , last accessed 2025.02.20 3:45.

Activity 3
Compare Description 1 and Description 2 written for the pie chart shown in Figure 1 in terms of
words or expressions with similar meaning.
Description 1 Description 2
shows illustrates
accounting for holding

Description 1

The pie chart shows the market share of different smartphone brands in 2024. Mapple has the
largest portion of the market, holding 40%. Pamsung follows with 30% of the market. The other
brands, such as Muawei and Zoppo, make up smaller portions at 15% and 10%, respectively. The
remaining 5% is shared among other brands.

Description 2

The pie chart illustrates the distribution of market share among smartphone brands in 2024.
Mapple holds the largest share, accounting for 40% of the market. Pamsung is the second-largest, with
30%. Other brands, including Muawei and Zoppo, hold smaller portions.

Activity 4

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Do the following to help you analyze how the pieces of information within a pie chart in Figure 1 are
organized into a paragraph.

1) Find the similarities and differences between the introductory sentences of each paragraph.

2) In what order are the percentages mentioned?

3) Which description is more in detail? Explain.

Activity 5

Now write a paragraph of about 60 words describing the pie chart in Figure 1 in your own sentences.

Activity 6 (optional)

Ask a chatbot to correct your mistakes with explanations. If you do not know how to do this, get help
from a classmate or your teacher. To do this, follow these steps:

1.​ Write the title of the pie chart and enter the data (the percentages for each category) in the
chatbox of the chatbot.
2.​ Copy your own piece of writing and paste it in the chatbox, too.
3.​ Write “My aim is to describe the pie chart above at B1 level of English. Can you make
necessary corrections on my piece of writing above and explain your corrections?

Activity 7

Match the following words or expressions from Description 3 with the ones with similar meaning in
Description 4.

Description 3 Description 4
illustrate
various
account for
35%
25%
20%
10%
reason

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Figure 2

Description 3

The pie chart illustrates the various reasons why people learn English. The largest portion,
accounting for 35%, represents individuals who learn English for career opportunities. The
second-most common reason is education, making up 25% of the total. This is followed by travel
purposes with 20%. Social and communication reasons account for 10%. Finally, 10% of learners
study English due to their interest in culture and media. This shows that while professional and
educational goals are major motivations, personal interests and social factors also play a significant
role in language learning.

Description 4

The pie chart shows the different reasons why people learn English. More than one-third of
learners study English for career opportunities, which constitutes the largest portion. The
second-largest group, making up a quarter, learns English for educational purposes. One-fifth of
learners pick up English for travel. Meanwhile, one-tenth of people study English for social and
communication reasons. Similarly, another one-tenth of learners are motivated by their interest in
English culture and media. Overall, career and education remain the most common motivations, but
travel and personal interests also play a significant role in why people choose to learn English.

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Activity 8

Do the following to help you analyze how the pieces of information from a pie chart in Figure 2 are
organized into a paragraph.
1) Compare and contrast the paragraphs in terms of the use of active and passive sentence structures,
compound sentences (use of relative clauses of different types)
2) In what order are the percentages or fractions mentioned?
3) Is there a concluding sentence in each description? What information is included in the concluding
sentence?
Activity 9
Now write a paragraph describing the pie chart shown in Figure 2 paraphrasing the sample
descriptions, but use both percentages and fractions.
B.​ Using Expressions of Precision and Approximation
Activity 10
Match the percentages in the pie chart with the words in bold in Description 5.

Figure 3

Description 5

The pie chart illustrates the different reasons why people learn English. Over one-third of
learners study English for career opportunities. The second-largest group, making up nearly a
quarter, learns English for educational purposes. Exactly 20% of learners pick up English for travel.
Meanwhile, just over 10% of people study English for social and communication reasons. Similarly,
just under 10% of learners are motivated by their interest in English culture and media. Overall,
career and education remain the most common motivations, but travel and personal interests also play
a significant role in why people choose to learn English.

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 37% over one-third
23%
20%
11%
9%

Activity 11

Match the percentages in the first column with the phrases in the second column.

1.​ just under a quarter a.​ 67%

2.​ over two thirds b.​ 32%
3.​ slightly less than a third c.​ 75%
4.​ just over half d.​ 23%
5.​ (exactly) three quarters e.​ 52%
6.​ over three quarters f.​ 48%
7.​ approximately three quarters g.​ 78%
8.​ almost half h.​ 74.5%
9.​ just over a third i.​ 26%

Activity 12

Replace the underlined fractions with percentages.

1.​ This year almost a quarter of the students were very satisfied with the library facilities.
2.​ Approximately two-thirds of the students were satisfied with the library and its facilities.
3.​ Exactly half of the students were satisfied with the facilities in the library.
4.​ Just over a fifth of the students were satisfied with the library facilities.
5.​ A small minority of students had no idea about the facilities in the library.

Activity 13

Describe the pie chart shown in Figure 4. Don’t forget to

1.​ have an introductory sentence or topic sentence indicating what the pie chart displays.
2.​ present the information in a logical order (usually form the largest percentage to the
smallest)

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 3.​ use both percentages and fractions
4.​ use expressions of precision and approximation
5.​ give explanatory details for basic trends
6.​ use a variety of sentence structures and vocabulary.
Figure 4

Activity 14

Describe the pie chart shown in Figure 5 following the same instructions as in Activity 13.

Figure 5