Lesson Introduction
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Video Lesson
- IELTS Academic Writing Task 1 Lesson 1 - How to write about numbers
Part 1
Hello! Welcome to lesson 1 in our IELTS Academic Writing Task 1 series. In this lesson, we are going to look at how to describe and compare numbers that you’ll find in Task 1 questions.
As you may know, IELTS Academic Writing Task 1 requires you to describe data presented in various types of charts and graphs, such as pie charts, bar charts, and line graphs. These visuals usually show statistics, and the units are often given in percentages or numbers. It’s therefore extremely important to know how to analyze and understand them correctly.
At the end of the lesson, you’ll have a chance to practice what you’ve learned with some exercises. Let’s get started!
To write about numbers effectively, you can use the following nouns and verbs:
- the number of – noun
- numbered – past verb
- totaled – past verb
- amounted to – verb phrase
- in total – phrase
- the figure for – noun
- the proportion of – noun
Let’s look at a bar graph and see how we can describe numbers in different ways.
Most students write like this:
There were around 50 male students studying Philosophy at the University of Cambridge in 2001.
A high-scoring sentence will use advanced words or structures like the following:
- The number of male students studying Philosophy at the University of Cambridge in 2001 stood at around 50.
- Male students studying Philosophy at the University of Cambridge in 2001 numbered around 50.
- The number of male students studying Philosophy at the University of Cambridge in 2001 totaled around 50.
- In total, 50 male students studied Philosophy at the University of Cambridge in 2001.
- The number of male students studying Philosophy at the University of Cambridge in 2001 amounted to around 50.
- The figure for male students studying Philosophy at the University of Cambridge in 2001 amounted to or totaled around 50.
Here are more examples:
- Car production in the UK numbered around 4 million units in 2015.
- The total number of EU migrants to the UK was just under 100,000 in 2017.
- The number of cars produced in the UK last year stood at around 4 million.
- The number of people living in London has risen to around 11 million since 1960.
- In total, 4 million cars were manufactured in the last quarter of 2016.
- The figure for people entering university in the UK reached a peak by 2014.
- The figures for the UK’s population increased by 7% over the last two decades.
- The proportion of the UK’s population increased by 7% over the last two decades.
Part 2
Okay! We’ve looked at how to describe numbers using various vocabulary in a simple scenario. Now, let’s explore a more complex situation where you need to compare numbers.
IELTS Writing Task 1 frequently asks you to compare data shown in bar charts or line graphs. Let’s look at different grammatical structures you can use to make comparisons effectively.
More/fewer/less + noun + than
Overall, more people preferred public transport than taxis.
Overall, more people in the UK preferred to eat pizza than hamburgers.
Overall, fewer men exercised than women.
Adjective (one syllable) + -er + than
Overall, a higher number of people preferred public transport than taxis.
Overall, a higher proportion of the UK’s population preferred to eat pizza than hamburgers.
Overall, a smaller percentage of men than women exercised in 2010.
More/less + adjective (two or more syllables) + than
Overall, taxis were more popular than public transport.
Overall, pizza was more popular than hamburgers in the UK.
Overall, exercising was less prevalent among men than women.
Noun + outnumbers + noun
Overall, people taking public transport outnumber those taking taxis.
Overall, people eating pizza outnumber those eating hamburgers in the UK.
Overall, men exercising were outnumbered by women.
The proportion/number of + noun + exceeds/is higher than/dwarfs + noun
Overall, the proportion of people taking public transport exceeds or is higher than those taking taxis.
Overall, the proportion of people eating pizza exceeds or dwarfs those eating hamburgers in the UK.
Overall, the number of males exercising is lower than or falls short of the number of females exercising.
You can describe this comparison in several different ways:
- Snickers sold two times as many chocolate bars as Mars.
- Snickers sold twice as many chocolate bars as Mars.
- Snickers sold double the number of chocolate bars compared to Mars.
- Snickers sold more chocolate bars by a ratio of two to one.
- The number of chocolate bars Snickers sold outnumbered the total amount Mars sold by a ratio of two to one.
Review Exercise (1/2)
1. Homeless people across England around 2,000 in 2010.
2. homeless people across England rose steadily from 2010 to 2016.
3. homeless people in London totaled slightly over 3,000 by 2016.
4. The proportion of homeless people in areas of the country outside of London 1,000 since 2015.
5. homeless people in London rose steadily throughout the seven year period.
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Model Essay:
The bar chart shows the distribution of students by gender across six art-based disciplines at a UK university in 2010.
Generally speaking, the chart shows that while males (1) females in most disciplines, the gender gap for each subject was not significant.
Across five of the six subjects, (2) females enrolled than males. Of these, the difference in enrollment between genders was insignificant, with the notable exception of Philosophy where female students (3)their male counterparts (4) a ratio of almost 3 to 1. Art and Design was the only subject with more men than women at a ratio of 120 to 90.
The most popular subject for both sexes was undoubtedly English Language and Literature with almost as many men [250] as women [230] taking part. In fact, language-based subjects, namely Linguistics, English Language, and Literature and Communication and Media Studies, proved the most popular for both genders. With regard to the least attractive subjects, men seemed least drawn to Philosophy while women were less interested in History and Archeology.
Options
at
a lower number of
a higher proportion of
outnumbered
by
on
at
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