Describe useful object in your home that you can’t live without: IELTS Cue Card

Bhargavee Sisodia

25 Jun 2024

Describe useful object in your home that you can’t live without: IELTS Cue Card

One of the most important components of the IELTS exam is the speaking test, which evaluates a non-native English speaker's ability to communicate in the language easily and fluently. To get a decent IELTS test score and apply to the university or company of their choice abroad, a candidate must comprehend the nuances of the IELTS speaking topics and IELTS speaking questions appropriately. 

During the three main sections of the IELTS speaking test, an examiner evaluates a person's ability to communicate in English. In the general conversation between the examiner and the candidate in the first portion of the IELTS speaking test, the candidate is asked a series of general questions concerning their hobbies outside of work and in their personal life. This portion of the IELTS test is similar to the icebreaker segment. To ensure that you can respond to these questions with ease on the IELTS speaking test, it is a good idea to rehearse a brief introduction of yourself as a part of your IELTS preparation. 

The Cue Card portion is the second segment of the IELTS speaking exam. In this section, you will be given a Cue Card that has a topic printed on it. You will have one minute to gather your ideas and prepare a two-minute monologue on the subject. If you take longer than two minutes while answering the IELTS speaking topics, the examiner may cut you off in the middle, which would affect your IELTS test score adversely. 

Thus you must practice your monologues on the frequently asked IELTS speaking questions during your IELTS exam preparation to earn a good score in your speaking test. Your IELTS exam preparation should include ample practice on the IELTS speaking topics, enacting answers to the common IELTS speaking questions, and regularly taking the IELTS sample test in order to get comfortable with the format and structure of the exam.

The section with follow-up questions is the last leg of the IELTS speaking test. In this section, the examiner goes into great detail about the response given in the second part of the speaking test i.e. the cue card section. Candidates are asked to defend their responses, demonstrate their confidence, and discuss their thoughts in response to follow-up questions on the IELTS speaking topics. 

To get a decent result in this section of the IELTS speaking test, it is imperative that you take at least one IELTS practice test every day. Thorough IELTS speaking practice and skimming over answers to the IELTS exam sample on frequently asked IELTS speaking topics are equally essential components of your IELTS preparation. 

When preparing for the IELTS exam, it is crucial to comprehend the purpose of each section and plan the kind of strategy that would be appropriate for each. 

IELTS exam sample 1: Describe useful object in your home that you can’t live without

You need to be truthful while responding to topics like this. These types of IELTS speaking topics deserve relatable answers from practical experiences. You need to dive into your trail of memories and dig out a relatable instance as a response to the topic. You can fashion the response in the following manner : 

• What is this item?
• Explain its utility
• Why is it irreplaceable
• Conclusion

Let us have a look at some model answers.

What is this item : 

I am certain that everyone has something or the other in their homes without which their life feels incomplete. Just like everyone else, I have an item at my home which is like a lifeline to my existence. The item I am talking about is my water bottle. 

Explain its utility : 

The bottle can hold both warm and cold water intact for 14-16 hours. It is very easy to clean and since it is made of steel, it is hardy enough to not break in small instances. It is compact enough to be carried anywhere which is why I carry it with me everywhere. On a hot summer afternoon, while returning from my IELTS test tuition classes, the chilled water from this bottle washes away all my exhaustion in minutes. When I am having a cold during the winter, this bottle is apt to store warm fluids which works like magic for my sore throat. 

Why is it irreplaceable : 

This bottle’s numerous utilities are not the sole reason why it is irreplaceable to me, it also has an emotional connect as well. I bought a similar bottle with my own money from a sale during my days at the hostel. One day while traveling on a bus, I accidentally dropped it on my seat and when I got back home, I was devastated by its loss. I called my father crying and narrated the whole story to him. That day, while returning home from the office, my father bought the bottle for me, which has stuck with me ever since. It made me feel like the small crying child who lost her favorite toy only to be replaced by a new one bought by her father.

Concluding Emotions : 

That is the reason why this bottle holds a very special place in my life and is irreplaceable to me. I cannot go one day without this bottle and tend to lose my cool if I cannot find it. It is my daily dose of reminder of my father’s love for me and it keeps me hydrated, so it is a win-win scenario for me. 

IELTS exam sample 2: Describe useful object in your home that you can’t live without

What is this item : 

Just like everyone else I have an item at home to which I am overly attached. The item in question is my pillow and I cannot survive a single day without this pillow of mine. This is the pillow I have slept on for the last 5 years and it has always managed to serve me with a good night's sleep. 

Explain its utility and why it is irreplaceable : 

The pillow is made of special memory foam to keep the discomfort of my shoulder and spine away while sleeping. It was recommended by my doctor after I complained of severe back and shoulder pain on numerous visits. This pillow has been a lifesaver for me as it has a unique feature. It has a tunnel on its bottom for the arm to rest. While sleeping on the side, I had this habit of putting my arm under my pillow which caused serious pain from my shoulder to the palm of my hand every morning. But ever since I got this pillow, I have never suffered from that pain due to this special feature of the pillow. Now my arm can easily fit inside the tunnel of the pillow and my shoulder can rest without any suffering. That is why this pillow is a game changer for my lifestyle and has reduced my back and shoulder pain to a minimum. In our hectic life, it is important to have good sleeping habits so that we can carry on with out work without being drained out. This pillow has managed to do that for me and I am truly thankful to my doctor for recommending it. 

Concluding thoughts : 

Every second person in our generation suffers from back pain because of the lifestyle we lead. We sit at a table for hours without proper movement or any change of posture which causes our muscles or bones to lose their agility. Thus it is important to use a well-suited pillow and a comfortable mattress to ease the pain which is exactly what my pillow does for me. That is the reason this pillow is the most useful object of mine at home.

IELTS speaking test: Follow-up questions

The IELTS speaking topics section is followed by a segment of follow-up questions. Here, the examiner will evaluate your conversational abilities by posing a few follow-up questions to you in response to your answer in the IELTS speaking topics section. You need to go over the IELTS speaking questions a lot to understand the variants of the commonly asked speaking questions and their follow-up questions in the IELTS speaking follow-up questions portion. 

IELTS speaking - Follow-up question

Do you think it's ok to be overly attached to any object?  

Answer: In my opinion, too much attachment to anything is unhealthy, be it a person or any object. Attachment to things forms dependencies that are hard to sever, which gives rise to a sort of addiction. When you get overly attached to any object, life becomes difficult without it. So it is okay to depend on things based on their utility, but one should also be prepared for the times when the item is not in their life. That could save them a lot of trouble. 

Do you think people tend to be dependent on objects based on their utility? 

Answer: Certainly. I think people tend to get attached to things that serve them with a lot of utility. If any item at home gives us the perfect amount of comfort, we tend to use the item repeatedly, which grows our dependency on it. Items that are not frequently used can be easily replaced, whereas items that are useful to us, give us a minor heart attack if we lose sight of them. 

What are the reasons behind a person being attached to an object? 

Answer: There are many reasons why a person gets overly attached to a few objects. The utility of an item can be the main reason for its increased dependency in a person’s life. The other reason can be an emotional connection. People tend to get attached to objects due to the emotional significance they hold in their lives. If an item is both emotionally significant and utilizable, then it is highly likely for an individual to get attached to the piece of object. 

Conclusion

D-VIVID's expert IELTS preparation program provides one-on-one tutoring and in-depth guidance for your speaking exam. Using our IELTS sample test and IELTS exam sample resources will provide you with a comprehensive overview of the kind of questions you could expect on your test. You will receive all the guidance you require to ace the IELTS exam from our team of highly qualified and experienced educators. From IELTS speaking topics to specific IELTS speaking questions, we can help you hone all the abilities required for the IELTS speaking test. You may relax knowing that D-VIVID will take care of all the details while you prepare for your IELTS exam. So, take immediate action and contact us.