Line Graph
1.Simple line graph
2.Complex line graph
Simple Line Graph
Paragraph 1 – Introduction
Paragraph 2 – Overview
Paragraph 3 – 1st main feature
Paragraph 4 – 2nd main feature
Every question
consists of:
- Sentence 1 – A brief
description of the graphic
- Sentence 2 – The instructions
- The graphic – chart, graph,
table, etc.
Sentence 2 tells
you what you have to do.
You must do 3
things:
1.
Select the main features.
2.
Write about the main features.
3.
Compare the main features.
All three tasks refer to the ‘main features’ of the graphic.
You do not have to write about everything. Just pick out 2 or
3 key features and you’ll have plenty to write about.
Step 2 – Identify the Main Features
The graphic in
IELTS line graph questions should not be difficult to interpret. Each question
has been created –to test your language skills,
not your mathematics ability.
All you are looking
for are the main features. These will usually be the easiest things to spot.
There will be lots of information in the graphic to help you identify them.
Here are some
useful questions to ask?
- What information do the 2
axes give?
- What are the units of
measurements?
- What are the time
periods?
- What can you learn from
the title and any labels?
- What is the most obvious
trend?
- Are there any notable
similarities?
Step 3 – Write an Introduction
In the introduction, you should simply
paraphrase the question, that is, say the same thing in a different way. You
can do this by using synonyms and changing the sentence structure.
For example:
Question:
The graph below shows radio and television audiences throughout the day in
1992.
Introduction (Paragraph 1):
The line graph
illustrates the proportion of people in the UK who watched TV and listened to
the radio over 24 hours from October to December 1992.
2) The
line graph above illustrates
the amount of fish and
three other kinds of
meat
namely lamb, beef and chicken that people of a European country
consumed during the period of 1979 and
2004.
Overall, the consumption
of fish showed small degree of fluctuation; meanwhile, the figure for Lamb, Beef
and Chicken changed dramatically from the year of 1979 to 2004.
Starting with more than
50 grams for each individual per week in 1979, the
amount of
Fish slightly declined for the next five years until 1984, followed
by fifteen
years of stability. In 1999, this amount decreased a little and then
nearly
remained unchanged until 2004.
However, Lamb and
Beef consumption with very high starting points of 150
grams and
more than 200 grams per person per week respectively
experienced
many years of up and down and had the main tendency to
diminish
up to the year of 2004. Unlike these two kinds of food, the
consumption
of Chicken with a rather lower start than Lamb tended to soar
and
reached its peak of more than 250 grams for each person a week in 2003
and
stopped in 2004 with a small decline.
Sample answer by E. Tahasoni:
2)The diagram shows how much different kinds of meat and fish was consumed
in a country in Europe
from 1979 to 2004.
Overall, although
beef was the most popular type of meat at first, it
was replaced by chicken towards the end of
the survey. In contrast, fish remained the least significant throughout the
period.
In
the first year, beef was the most popular with a
consumption of about 225 grams per person per week. Then, this figure
experienced a sudden plunge of 50 before surging to about 230 in 1984.
Following this, there were some fluctuations until 1989, after which it
decreased dramatically to around half as high as its original level in 2004.
The
figure for lamb was initially almost as high as that for chicken
(around 150 grams per person per week). However, while the former declined
gradually and significantly as it reached approximately 60 in the last year,
the latter saw a considerable growth and outstripped beef consumption in 1989,
peaking at 250 in 2004.
Fish consumption was originally
approximately 60 and experienced a small fall of about 10 over
the period.
(183 words)
The graph below shows the proportion of the population aged 65 and over
between 1940 and 2040 in three different countries.
Summarise the information by selecting and
reporting the main feature and make comparisons where relevant.
3) The line graph compares the percentage of
people aged 65 or more in three
countries over a period of 100 years.
It is clear that the proportion of elderly
people increases in each country between
1940 and 2040. Japan is expected to see the
most dramatic changes in its elderly
population.
In 1940, around 9% of Americans were aged 65
or over, compared to about 7% of
Swedish people and 5% of Japanese people. The
proportions of elderly people in the
USA and Sweden rose gradually over the next 50
years, reaching just under 15% in
1990. By contrast, the figures for Japan
remained below 5% until the early 2000s.
Looking into the future, a sudden increase in the
percentage of elderly people is
predicted for Japan, with a jump of over 15%
in just 10 years from 2030 to 2040. By
2040, it is thought that around 27% of the
Japanese population will be 65 years old or
more, while the figures for Sweden and the USA
will be slightly lower, at about 25%
and 23% respectively.
(178 words)
Introduction + Basic/ General Trends + Details Description + Conclusion (optional).
Each part has a specific format and therefore being equipped with the
necessary vocabulary will help you to write the task 1 efficiently and will
save a great deal of time.
|
Starting |
Presentation
Type |
Verb |
Description |
|
The given / the supplied / the presented / the
shown / the provided/ the |
diagram / table /
figure / illustration / graph / chart / flow chart / picture/
presentation/pie chart / bar graph/ column graph / line graph / table data/
data / information / pictorial/ process diagram/ map/ pie chart and table/
bar graph and pie chart ... |
shows
/ represents / depicts / enumerates / illustrates / presents/ gives /
provides / delineates/ outlines/ describes / expresses/ denotes/ compares/
contrasts / indicates / figures / gives data on / gives information on/
presents information about/ shows data about/ demonstrates/ outlines/
summarises... |
the
comparison of…
|
Example :
1. The provided diagram shows data on employment
categories in energy producing sectors in Europe starting from 1925 and till
1985.
2. The given pie charts represent the proportion of male
and female employee in 6 broad categories, divided into manual and non-manual
occupations in Freedonia.
3. The chart gives information on expenditures of 4
European countries on six consumer products namely Germany, Italy, Britain and
France.
4. The supplied bar graph compares the number of male and
female graduated in three developing countries while the table data presents
the overall literacy rate in these countries.
5. The bar graph and the table data depict the water use
in different sectors in five regions.
6. The bar graph enumerates the money spent on different
research projects while the column graph demonstrates the sources of the amount
spent over a decade, commencing from 1981.
7. The line graph delineates the proportion of male and
female employees in three different sectors in Australia between 2010 and 2015.
Note that, some teachers prefer "The
line graph demonstrates..." format instead of "The given
line graph demonstrates...". However, if you write "The given/
provided/ presented...." it would be correct as well.
In general, In
common, Generally speaking, Overall, It is obvious, As is observed, As a
general trend, As can be seen, As an overall trend, As is presented, It can be
clearly seen that, At the first glance, it is clear, At the onset, it is clear
that, A glance at the graphs reveals that...
Example:
1. In general,
the employment opportunity has increased till 1970 and has dropped down
afterwards.
2. As is
observed, the figures for imprisonment in the five mentioned countries show no
overall pattern of increase or decrease rather shows the considerable
fluctuation from country to country.
3. Generally
speaking, USA had a far more standard life than all the other 4 mentioned
countries.
4. As can be
seen, the highest number of passengers used the London Underground station at
8:00 in the morning and at 6:00 in the evening.
Complex Line Graph
As is presented in the diagram(s)/ graph(s)/ pie chart(s)/ table...
2. Now, turning to the details....
3. As can be seen in the...
4. According to the...
5. The table data clearly shows that...
6. As the diagrams suggest...
7. Getting back to the details...
You should spend about 20 minutes on this task.
The line graph shows the number of books that were
borrowed in four different months in 2014 from four village libraries, and the
pie chart shows the percentage of books, by type, that were borrowed over this
time.
Summarize the information by selecting and reporting the main features and
make comparisons where relevant.
Write at least 150 words.
Model Answer
The line graph depicts the number of
books that were loaned out from four libraries over a four month period and the
pie chart illustrates the proportions of books borrowed in terms of genre.
It is immediately apparent that
the borrowing patterns for each library were quite varied, and that fiction was
by far the most popular type of book.
The borrowing of books at Sutton Wood
and Ryeslip began fairly high, at 250 and 300 per month in June respectively.
However, while book borrowing at Ryeslip fell steadily to around 175 at
the end of the period, borrowing at Sutton Wood followed a much more erratic
pattern. It plummeted to 100 in August, before then rising steeply to finish at
300, which represented the highest level of borrowing of the four.
Borrowing at West Eaton and Church
Mount, meanwhile, followed very
similar patterns, with both starting quite low at 50 per month, but then
gradually increasing to finish at 150.
Moving
on to the types of books borrowed, fiction
was in demand the most, at 43%. The next most popular books were biographies,
accounting for around a fifth of the total. The borrowing of science and
history were identical, at 14% each, leaving self-help as the least popular at
10%.
(211
Words)
You should spend about 20 minutes on this
task.
The chart and graph below give
information about sales and share prices for Coca-Cola.
Model Answer:
The given pie chart and line graph illustrate
the consumption of Coca-cola in the year 2000 as well as the share price of
Coca-cola company from 1996 to 2001.
Firstly, it is clearly seen that most sales of the company in 2000 were
in North America at 30.4%. The figure in Latin America was quite close, at
25.7%; wheres Europe had a little lower share that accounted for 20.5%. In
contrast, Asia, and Africa and Middle East had a substantially lower portions
at 16.4% and 7% respectively.
Secondly, Coca-cola share price exhibited a fluctuating pattern in the
period shown. The share price was almost 35$ in 1996 and it gradually increased
to little below 70$ in 1997. This was followed by a period of fluctuation and
it reached its peak of 80$ in 1998. It was followed by a steady decline,
although with a bit of fluctuation, to reach its lowest point since 1996 at
48$. Finally, it reached 57$ in 2001.
Task
Achievement: 8.5
Coherence
& Cohesion: 8
Lexical
resources: 8
Grammar:
8
Overall
Score: Band 8
The graph and table
below give information about water use worldwide and water consumption in two
different countries.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and
make comparisons where relevant.
» You should write at least 150 words.
|
Country |
Population |
Irrigated land |
Water consumption per
person |
|
Brazil |
176 million |
26,500 km² |
359 m³ |
|
Democratic |
5.2 million |
100 km² |
8 m³ |
The charts compare the amount of water used for agriculture, industry
and homes around the world, and water use in Brazil and the Democratic
Republic of Congo.
It is clear that global water needs rose significantly between 1900 and
2000, and that agriculture accounted for the largest proportion of water
used. We can also see that water consumption was considerably higher
in Brazil than in the Congo.
In 1900, around 500km³ of water was used by the agriculture sector
worldwide. The figures for industrial and domestic water consumption
stood at around one fifth of that amount. By 2000, global water use for
agriculture had increased to around 3000km³, industrial water use had
risen to just under half that amount, and domestic consumption had
reached approximately 500km³.
In the year 2000, the populations of Brazil and the Congo were 176
million and 5.2 million respectively. Water consumption per person in
Brazil, at 359m³, was much higher than that in the Congo, at only 8m³,
and this could be explained by the fact that Brazil had 265 times more
irrigated
land.
(184 words, band
9)
Time:
From 1990 to 2000, Commencing from
1980, Between 1995 and 2005, After 2012.
» By 1995, In 1998, In February, Over the period,
During the period, During 2011.
» In the first half of the year, For the first
quarter, The last quarter of the year, During the first decade.
» In the 80s, In the 1980s, During the next 6
months, In the mid-70s, Next 10 years, Previous year, Next year, Between 1980 -
1990.
» Within a time span of ten years, within five years.
» Next month, Next quarter, Next year, Previous
month, Previous year.
» Since, Then, From.
|
Type |
Verb |
Noun |
|
Highest Point |
peak / culminated / climax / reach the peak / hit the peak / touch
the highest point / reach the vertex/ reach the apex |
a (/the) peak / a (/the) vertex / a (/the) vertex / the highest point/ an
(/the) apex |
|
Lowest Point |
touch the lowest point / get the lowest point / reached the nadir |
the lowest point / the lowest mark / bottommost point / rock bottom
point/ bottommost mark / nadir |
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