IELTS Academic Writing Task 1
Describing Trends
B2 vocabulary test · Exercises 1–8
Interactive self-checking testComplete one exercise, select Check answers, then use the targeted clues to revise any incorrect responses.
Autosaves1
Verbs of increase
Complete each sentence with the most appropriate item from the box. Use each item once.
Word bank rose · increased · climbed · grew · went up · surged · improved · doubled
- Thanks to a successful vaccination programme, life expectancy by nearly three years over the decade.
- After the company launched its new smartphone, online orders by almost 80% in just two weeks.
- Following months of intensive training, the athletes’ overall performance noticeably.
- The average house price from €180,000 to €240,000 between 2018 and 2023.
- As more people moved to the city, the population steadily each year.
- Petrol prices to almost €2.10 per litre after the international supply crisis.
- Following several years of investment, passenger numbers at the airport from two million to four million annually.
- After the government reduced taxes, consumer spending slightly during the following quarter.
IELTS focus: Similar verbs are not always interchangeable. Look at the noun, the size and speed of the change, and any figures given.
2
Verbs of decrease
Complete each sentence with one item from the box. Use each item once.
Word bank fell · declined · dropped · decreased · reduced · plunged · went down · dipped
- After a major security breach, the company’s share price by almost 30% in a single day.
- Thanks to a nationwide road-safety campaign, the number of traffic accidents was by 18%.
- Following the end of the tourist season, hotel bookings slightly during October.
- The percentage of smokers steadily between 2010 and 2020.
- Air-pollution levels from 62 units to just 39 after stricter laws were introduced.
- Petrol prices after several oil-producing countries increased supply.
- Demand for printed newspapers gradually as more readers switched to online news.
- Visitor numbers dramatically after the airport closed because of volcanic ash.
3
Adverbs: manner & degree
Choose the most suitable adverb. Use each one once.
Word bank slightly · gradually · steadily · significantly · sharply · rapidly · dramatically · considerably
- The number of electric vehicles increased after government subsidies were introduced.
- The unemployment rate fell during the financial crisis.
- Average salaries increased over twenty years, with small gains almost every year.
- The average temperature rose only despite concerns about climate change.
- Online food-delivery services expanded during the COVID-19 pandemic.
- House prices changed after new mortgage regulations came into force.
- The company’s profits increased , rising by almost 45%.
- Following the flood, agricultural production declined across the region.
4
Trend vocabulary
Complete the sentences using each expression once.
Word bank remained stable · levelled off · peaked · reached · fluctuated · recovered · hit · stabilised
- After several months of growth, sales at around 25,000 units per month.
- Fuel prices throughout the year because of political uncertainty.
- The number of passengers at nearly five million in August, the busiest month.
- The population its highest level in 2025.
- Tourism quickly after international travel restrictions were lifted.
- Inflation finally at around 2%, where it remained for several months.
- The unemployment rate a record low of just 2.1%.
- Throughout the final quarter, electricity consumption despite colder weather.
5
Time expressions
Complete each sentence with the correct expression.
Word bank between · from … to … · over · throughout · during · by · by the end of · over the period
- The graph compares energy consumption 2015 and 2025.
- The percentage increased 18% 46%.
- Sales almost tripled five years.
- the summer months, ice-cream sales reached their highest level.
- Household income had increased considerably 2022.
- Tourist numbers remained high the entire year.
- the decade, renewable energy had become the country’s largest energy source.
- The chart summarises the changes shown.
Precision: during locates an event inside a period; throughout means continuously from beginning to end.
6
Academic reporting language
Complete the sentences using each item once.
Word bank illustrates · compares · presents · depicts · indicates · accounted for · respectively · proportion
- The line graph the number of international visitors over ten years.
- The table employment figures for six European countries.
- The diagram the different stages involved in recycling plastic.
- The latest figures that inflation is beginning to slow.
- Adults aged 25–44 almost half of all respondents.
- The of households with internet access rose considerably.
- Germany and France recorded unemployment rates of 4.2% and 5.1%, .
- The report information collected from over 15,000 participants.
7
Mixed IELTS vocabulary
Complete each sentence with one word from the box.
Word bank overall · whereas · while · approximately · compared · contrast · trend · proportion
- , the graph shows a positive trend despite a few short-term declines.
- Canada experienced continuous growth, Australia recorded several fluctuations.
- The of university graduates increased every year.
- This year’s figures should be with those from the previous survey.
- The chart reveals a clear upward .
- The first graph shows population growth, the second focuses on employment.
- 72% of participants said they exercised at least once a week.
- In to urban areas, rural populations declined slightly.
8
Name the graph or data type
Write the correct term under each illustration.
Word bank line graph · bar chart · pie chart · table · scatter plot · flow chart · map · process diagram
AChanges over time
A. __________________________________
BCategories compared
B. __________________________________
CParts of a whole
C. __________________________________
DRows and columns
D. __________________________________
ERelationship between variables
E. __________________________________
FDecisions and sequence
F. __________________________________
GPlaces and spatial change
G. __________________________________
HStages of production
H. __________________________________
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Exercise 1 · Verbs of increase
- increased“Life expectancy increased by…” is the standard neutral collocation for a measured change across time.
- surgedAn 80% rise in only two weeks is both sudden and dramatic, so a strong verb is appropriate.
- improvedWe normally say that performance improves; “performance rose” would sound unnatural in this context.
- went upA natural expression for a price moving from one clearly stated value to another.
- grewPopulations conventionally grow, and “steadily each year” describes consistent long-term development.
- climbedPrices commonly “climb to” a high figure, suggesting a noticeable upward movement.
- doubledThe number rose from two million to four million—an exact twofold increase.
- rose“Consumer spending rose slightly” is a natural, neutral collocation for a modest increase.
Exercise 2 · Verbs of decrease
- plungedA sudden 30% fall in a single day is severe, so the strongest verb in the set fits.
- reducedThe passive form “was reduced” shows that the road-safety campaign caused the decrease.
- dippedA dip is a small, often temporary fall, matching the seasonal and slight reduction.
- decreasedThis is neutral, formal wording for a steady statistical fall over a ten-year period.
- fell“Fell from … to …” is a standard IELTS pattern for stating exact starting and ending values.
- went downThis is natural neutral phrasing; the sentence gives a cause but does not specify the size.
- declinedA formal reporting verb that pairs naturally with “gradually” and long-term demand.
- dropped“Dropped dramatically” communicates a strong decline following a sudden external event.
Exercise 3 · Adverbs: manner & degree
- rapidlyThe subsidies led to fast growth; “rapidly” focuses specifically on the speed of change.
- sharplyA financial crisis suggests a sudden, steep fall rather than a slow downward movement.
- steadilySmall gains occurred consistently almost every year, with no major interruption.
- slightlyThe limiting adverb “only” signals that the total temperature change was small.
- dramaticallyThe pandemic brought a major, striking expansion in online food-delivery services.
- graduallyThe effects of new regulations generally develop progressively rather than all at once.
- significantlyA 45% increase is substantial and important enough to be statistically noteworthy.
- considerablyThe flood produced a large decline across the whole region, so a strong degree adverb fits.
Exercise 4 · Trend vocabulary
- levelled offSales first grew, then stopped rising and became approximately flat at 25,000.
- fluctuatedPolitical uncertainty caused repeated rises and falls instead of one consistent direction.
- peakedAugust was the busiest month, so passenger numbers reached their highest point then.
- reached“Reached its highest level” is the correct formal collocation for arriving at a maximum.
- recoveredTourism returned towards its previous level after the setback caused by restrictions.
- stabilisedInflation settled at around 2% and then remained close to that figure.
- hit“Hit a record low” is a concise, natural collocation for reaching an extreme value.
- remained stableConsumption showed little or no change throughout the final quarter.
Exercise 5 · Time expressions
- between“Between” introduces two endpoints and must be followed by the connector “and”.
- from … to …The paired prepositions introduce the precise starting and finishing percentages.
- over“Over five years” describes a change developing across the complete duration.
- duringThe peak occurred at some point within the summer months; it did not necessarily last all summer.
- byWith the past perfect, “by 2022” marks the deadline before which the increase was completed.
- throughoutThe tourist numbers stayed high continuously from the beginning to the end of the year.
- By the end ofThis sets a final point in the decade; the past perfect confirms completion by that time.
- over the periodThe phrase refers back to the complete time span displayed in the chart.
Exercise 6 · Academic reporting language
- illustratesA conventional formal verb for introducing what a Task 1 line graph shows.
- comparesThe employment figures for six countries are being set against one another.
- depictsA formal alternative to “shows”, especially suitable for a visual sequence of stages.
- indicatesThe figures provide evidence suggesting that inflation is starting to slow.
- accounted forThis fixed academic expression means “made up” a stated share of the total.
- proportionA proportion is the percentage or share of households possessing a characteristic.
- respectivelyIt links 4.2% to Germany and 5.1% to France in the same order given.
- presentsA formal reporting verb used when a report provides information to the reader.
Exercise 7 · Mixed IELTS vocabulary
- OverallThis overview marker introduces the graph’s main pattern rather than an individual detail.
- whereasIt forms a clear contrast between Canada’s continuous growth and Australia’s fluctuations.
- proportionThe word refers to the share of the relevant population who were university graduates.
- comparedThe sentence requires the fixed passive construction “be compared with”.
- trend“Upward trend” is a standard IELTS collocation for a general increase over time.
- whileHere “while” contrasts the different focus of the first and second graphs.
- ApproximatelyIt signals that 72% is a rounded or estimated figure rather than an exact value.
- contrastThe fixed phrase “in contrast to” introduces the difference between rural and urban areas.
Exercise 8 · Name the graph or data type
A
Line graph
Line graph
B
Bar chart
Bar chart
C
Pie chart
Pie chart
D
Table
Table
E
Scatter plot
Scatter plot
F
Flow chart
Flow chart
G
Map
Map
H
Process diagram
Process diagram
A line graph connects data points to show change over time. A bar chart compares quantities across categories. A pie chart divides a whole into shares or percentages. A table organises exact values in rows and columns. A scatter plot reveals the relationship or correlation between two numerical variables. A flow chart shows a sequence that may include choices or decisions. A map communicates locations and spatial change. A process diagram explains the ordered stages in a natural or manufactured system.