IELTS Speaking Part 1: General questions with example answers; shopping, festivals, smoking

November 20, 2018June 9, 2023

In IELTS Speaking exam, part 1 consists of some general questions which are asked by examiners. You need to have a good preparation for this segment because answering correctly and skillfully in this segment may give you the start which can lead to an attractive band score. In this post, I’ve prepared some example answers (shopping, festivals, smoking) which can be a guide to arrange your own creative answers. You may need to change some answers according to your needs and situations.

Shopping (Perspective: North America)

(Here, the answer will vary from person to person.)

Do you enjoy shopping?
Example answer: Yes, I do. I really enjoy it. It’s one of my hobbies.
How do you feel about shopping?
Example answer: I feel quite energetic and happy about activities like shopping.
Do you like shopping on the Internet?
Example answer: It’s difficult to say. Sometimes I like it because it saves a lot of time and energy, yet sometimes I feel cheated and don’t like it.
Who usually does the shopping in your home?
Example answer: Well, I and my sister generally buy groceries and the clothes are usually done by my mom and my sister.
Do you have any favorite stores?
Example answer: Yes, my favorite store is the big Target store in my hometown. It’s just a colossal place with almost everything you need for your day to day purpose.
What don’t you like about shopping?
Example answer: Sometimes two different stores in the same town have different pricing structures. Some stores do not have customer care. I don’t like these things.
Which is the most popular place to shop in your hometown?
Example answer: At present, the most admired shopping places in my hometown are The Target Store, Walmart, and Starbucks. All these stores have quite similar products and the facilities are state-of-the-art. So, they are all popular.

Smoking (Perspective: South Asia)

(Here, the answer will vary from person to person.)

What is your opinion about smoking?
Example answer: In my opinion, smoking is one of the worst things to do. It is scientifically proved that it is quite injurious to health.
What do you feel about smoking in public places?
Example answer: I personally don’t like smoking, as I’ve mentioned before. As far as public place is concerned, it is a major threat to public health. Many people are daily affected by passive smoking. So, it’s a heinous thing to do.
Do you think smoking should be banned in people’s homes?
Example answer: It might sound a bit autocratic, but I believe it should be completely banned in people’s homes as it has no beneficial aspects in our life. Rather it poses a great threat.
Do you have friends who use to smoke?
Example answer: Unfortunately, yes. I have some close friends and colleagues who are smokers.
Have you ever talked to them about the bad effects of smoking?
Example answer: Yes, I did, and it has had a positive impact on some of them. Two of my colleagues have quit smoking and they are encouraging others to do the same.
What’s the best way to solve this problem?
Example answer: Well, there are many ways by which we can solve this problem but the best solution is the government itself. The government can pass a rigid act against smoking and we should help them to implement it. Take Bhutan, a south-east Asian country for example. According to Bhutanese law, any individual found selling tobacco can face imprisonment for a period of three to five years. And they have been quite successful.

Festivals (Perspective: China)

(Here, the answer will vary from person to person.)

What’s the most important festival in your country?
Example answer: The Chinese New Year or Lunar New Year festival is the most common in my country.
How do people celebrate this festival?
Example answer: People celebrate the festival by observing different programs. We decorate our houses with the iconic Red color theme. We hang the Fu symbol in front of our doors. Little children are often presented with tips in red envelopes. We wear new traditional dresses and take special foods on this occasion. We also light fire-crackers on this occasion.
What special food is associated with this festival?
Example answer: The most common Chinese New Year foods include dumplings, fish, spring rolls, and Nian Gao, which is a traditional Chinese rice cake.
What special activities are associated with this festival?
Example answer: Lots of activities are connected with the Chinese New Year festival celebration. One of them is known as ‘Shou Sui’, an activity involving family members staying awake together during the transition from year to year during midnight. Another activity is Spring cleaning. It is done in preparation of the Chinese New Year. At Midnight, fireworks take place and we observe it from different locations. On the first day of the New Year, most people begin the act of visiting and greeting families and friends in their homes to offer good wishes; this is called Bai Nian.
What do you enjoy most about this festival?
Example answer: I am a big fan of the red color. So, I like to take photographs of different festivities concerning the red color. I also like the fact that people wear their traditional dresses. Moreover, I like all the traditional foods.
Do you think festivals are important for society?
Example answer: Absolutely. I consider festivals glue of our social bonding. It connects people of different attitudes, ideas, and cultural backgrounds, and thus creates unity in the society. A festival unites people to enjoy together and spreads the message of peace. It helps to forget all kinds of mean things, jealousy, disparity etc.

Click the following links for practicing other Speaking Part 1 topics:

Post your comments below if you like this article. If you face any difficulty regarding part 1 questions, you will be given solutions and suggestions for your improvement.

If you think the post is helpful, please follow and like us: