How to Improve Vocabulary for the IELTS Test – Part 2

In the first blog of this series we looked at how reading regularly, learning about words in context and focusing on topic-specific vocabulary can contribute to increasing your IELTS band score.

This second blog looks at how you can broaden that vocabulary by discovering synonyms and antonyms, and using the words you’ve learned in your written and spoken responses.

Focus on Synonyms (and Antonyms)

The ability to recognise, understand, and use synonyms is a very important skill to develop in the context of the IELTS Test. For example, paraphrasing the questions in the Writing Test.

Synonyms are, basically, words that have similar meanings. See if you can match the word on the left with a word that has a similar meaning on the right.

1.      important         a adaptable

2.      flexible             b decrease

3.      diverse             c significant

4.      decline             d varied

(Answers at the end of the blog.)

How to do it:

• Learn groups of synonyms: For every word you learn, try to find at least two or three synonyms. For example, for the word “important,” you could learn “significant”, “crucial”, and “vital”. You can then practise substituting these synonyms in sentences to understand how to use the correctly.

• Don’t forget to work on antonyms: Understanding antonyms (words that have the opposite meaning) can also help you to diversify your vocabulary. For instance, for the word “important,” you could identify words that have the opposite meaning like “unimportant,” “trivial,” and “insignificant.”

• Practise paraphrasing: In both the Writing and Speaking Tests, paraphrasing, or expressing the same idea in different words, is extremely important. You will be able to paraphrase with greater ease and accuracy if you practise using synonyms and antonyms. The ability to identify paraphrased structures is also extremely important for the Listening and Reading Tests because it will help you to match the keywords in the questions to their synonyms in the text.

Check out our Team IELTS blog on keywords here:

Why Practise Writing and Speaking Using New Vocabulary?

The more you are able to practise using new words in context, the more natural their use will become.

How to do it:

• Write essays or responses: After learning new vocabulary, use it in your IELTS writing practice. Whether you’re answering an Academic Writing Task 1 question or writing a Task 2 essay, challenge yourself to use the words you’ve recently learned. This will help reinforce your vocabulary and improve your ability to express and communicate ideas clearly.

• Practise speaking with new words: Record yourself speaking on different Speaking Part 2 and 3 topics, and try to use newly learned vocabulary. Doing this will also help you practise pronunciation and improve your fluency.

For other ways you can use recordings of yourself speaking, check out our blog on IELTS Speaking Self-Assessment here:

Use Flashcards for Active Learning

Flashcards are a simple and extremely useful tool to remember new vocabulary. By using flashcards, you can actively engage with the new words you come across while reading, and this will boost your ability to recall and use them.

Check out our “How to improve your spelling for IELTS” blog post for tips to learn how to create flashcards:

Don’t forget to check out our Team IELTS Vocabulary Packs for more practice and further help with your vocabulary.

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Good luck!  

Answers:

1.      important c significant

2.      flexible a adaptable

3.      diverse d varied

4.      decline b decrease