IELTS grammar and vocabulary Archives - Preparation for the IELTS Exam

IELTS Grammar: Conditional sentences.

March 16, 2020August 28, 2019 by Ray IELTS Focus

How to use zero, 1st, 2nd and 3rd conditionals (if sentences)

There are four kinds of conditional sentences. The zero conditional describes real or specific situations, while unreal Conditionals describe unreal, imaginary situations or hopes for the future. With unreal conditionals there is a difference in the likelihood of them happening, however, they don’t refer to the past. The 3rd conditional is for past regret, how something could be different or a past hypothetical situation.

Conditional sentences are very useful structures in IELTS as they are seen by the examiner as complex sentences and are often included in a natural conversation. This comes in very handy in the IELTS speaking section when talking about your daily life, talking about possibilities and expressing regret or a hypothetical past.

8 things that could lower your IELTS writing score

November 20, 2022June 13, 2019 by Ray IELTS Focus

Things to avoid in IELTS essays.

Updated: Nov 19th, 2022

The essay writing section of IELTS is formal. This is the same for the academic writing task 1 reports, so you must use the right register. You could lose marks in vocabulary or grammar if you are writing informally, using idioms, or using memorised stock phrases.

In IELTS general writing task 1 you will sometimes get an ‘informal’ letter to write, so obviously in that specific case, you will write the letter in an informal register.

You may not lose a band score if you are doing just one of these things below but if you are making a combination of errors then it could be the cause of being stuck at band 6 or 6.5.

IELTS Prepositions: By, Until, With

August 30, 2019May 6, 2017 by Ray IELTS Focus

IELTS grammar: By, Until, With.

Sometimes students make simple grammar mistakes when speaking or in the essay writing part of the test. IELTS examiners mark you on the accuracy of your grammar in the speaking and writing sections of the test. Grammar makes up 25% of your marks in writing and speaking.

I advise focusing on accuracy when writing and speaking because even if you have a wide range of grammar if it is used incorrectly you will lose marks. Below is a short lesson on how to use the prepositions By, with, until.