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IELTS Speaking · Part 2

IELTS Speaking Part 2 Topics (Cue Cards) with Sample Answers

In Part 2 you get a cue card, one minute to prepare and up to two minutes to speak. This page shows how to use that minute, three worked cue cards, and all 204 Part 2 topics in our question bank, grouped by type.

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Updated · LingoLeap IELTS Content Team

What happens in IELTS Speaking Part 2

The examiner gives you a task card with a topic and the points to cover, plus pencil and paper. You have one minute to prepare, then you speak for up to two minutes without interruption. The whole part takes 3–4 minutes.

Part 2 tests whether you can speak at length on your own: organising a short talk, keeping it going, and using a range of vocabulary and tenses. Part 3 then asks broader questions on the same theme — see IELTS Speaking Part 3 questions.

How to use your one minute of preparation

  1. Choose fast. Pick the first real example that comes to mind — a real person, place or event gives you real details.
  2. One line per prompt. Write two or three keywords next to each point on the card.
  3. Plan the “explain” point. Note one feeling or reason and one example; it is the part people run short on.
  4. Add one extra. A contrast, a change over time, or what you would do differently — your reserve if you finish early.

A structure that fills two minutes

Opening (10 seconds)

Say what you are going to describe: “I'd like to talk about…”.

The prompts (60–70 seconds)

Take the points in order, each with a detail or an example.

The story (20–30 seconds)

One specific moment — “The time I remember best is…” — in the past tense.

The explanation (20 seconds)

Why it matters to you, how you feel now, or what you learned.

Three worked IELTS cue cards with example answers

Person

Describe a person who likes to help others.

You should say:

  • who this person is
  • how you know them
  • how they help others
  • and explain how you feel about this person.

One-minute notes: neighbour Mrs Lin · retired nurse · 10 yrs next door · first-aid classes, elderly shopping · lockdown: groceries for whole building · admire: never asks for thanks

Example answer (written by our team, about 2 minutes)

I'd like to talk about my neighbour, Mrs Lin, who has lived next door to my family for about ten years. She's a retired nurse, and I think that background explains a lot about her, because helping people seems to be completely natural to her. In practical terms, she does all sorts of things. She runs a free first-aid class for parents in our building once a month, and she regularly does the shopping for two elderly neighbours who can't walk far. The example I remember best is from a few years ago, when a lot of people were stuck at home. She organised a group chat for the whole building and collected shopping lists, so that one person could do one trip instead of twenty people going out. What I admire most is that she never expects anything back. When people try to thank her she just changes the subject. To be honest, she has made me think more about my own neighbours — I've started helping with that group chat myself.

Place

Describe a relaxing place you like to go to.

You should say:

  • where it is
  • how often you go there
  • what you do there
  • and explain why you find it relaxing.

One-minute notes: riverside park · 15 min bike · most Sundays · bench under willow, read, watch rowers · no traffic noise, phone off · contrast: busy week

Example answer (written by our team, about 2 minutes)

The place I find most relaxing is a small park along the river, about fifteen minutes from my home by bike. I go there most Sunday mornings, and more often in exam periods. There isn't much to do there, which is really the point. I usually sit on the same bench under a big willow tree, read for an hour, and watch the rowing teams training on the river. Sometimes I bring a coffee from a stall near the entrance. I think it's relaxing for two reasons. First, it's surprisingly quiet — the river is between the park and the main road, so you can't hear traffic at all. Second, I have a rule that my phone stays off while I'm there. My weeks are usually quite hectic, with classes and a part-time job, so having one place where nobody expects anything from me helps me reset before Monday.

Event

Describe a time when you were late for something important.

You should say:

  • what the event was
  • why you were late
  • what happened as a result
  • and explain how you felt about it.

One-minute notes: university interview · 2 yrs ago · train cancelled, signal fault · called ahead · 20 min late, moved to end · felt panicked → relieved · lesson: leave an hour early

Example answer (written by our team, about 2 minutes)

I'm going to talk about the day I was late for my university admissions interview, about two years ago. It was probably the most important appointment I'd had at that point. I had planned it carefully and left with forty minutes to spare, but my train was cancelled because of a signal fault, and the next one was packed. I realised I wasn't going to make it, so I called the admissions office from the platform to explain. In the end I arrived about twenty minutes late. Luckily, they were understanding and moved my interview to the end of the day, so I actually had time to calm down and look over my notes. At the time I felt completely panicked — my hands were shaking on the train. Looking back, though, I'm glad I phoned ahead instead of just rushing in late, and ever since then I leave at least an hour early for anything that matters.

All 204 IELTS Speaking Part 2 topics

The Part 2 cue cards in LingoLeap's IELTS Speaking question bank (as of 2026-09-28). The groups are approximate — some topics fit more than one. In the practice app, each is set as Part 2 with Part 3 questions.

People (60)

  • A creative person you admire
  • A famous person you would like to meet
  • A friend I initially disliked but ended up liking
  • A friend of yours who loves to sing
  • A good friend who is important to you
  • A good habit your friend has and you want to develop
  • A meal enjoyed with friends
  • A person who encouraged you to protect the nature
  • A person who likes to help others
  • A person who makes plans a lot
  • A person who solved a problem in a smart way
  • A sportsperson you admire
  • A time when you felt proud of a family member
  • A time when you told your friends an important truth
  • Activities done with others
  • Admired athlete
  • Admired athlete/sports team
  • An experience when someone apologized to you
  • An occasion when many people were smiling
  • Ancestors' jobs
  • Bad behavior of children in public places
  • Childhood friend
  • Disputes among friends
  • Energetic person
  • Family business
  • Fashionista
  • Favorite singer
  • Foreigners who are good at speaking Chinese
  • Frequent visits to a familiar person's house
  • Gardener
  • Good news
  • Good suggestion
  • Idol's movie character
  • Intelligent person
  • Interested celebrities
  • Interesting conversation with an elderly person
  • Interesting job
  • Interesting old man
  • Interesting people I want to meet
  • Movies that disappoint you
  • One of your friends who learned a skill from someone
  • People dressed in strange costumes
  • People from different cultures you know
  • People met at the party
  • People who enjoy cooking
  • People who help others
  • People who want to study/work together
  • People with interesting ideas
  • Person who gives advice
  • Person you want to spend time with
  • Person you want to study/work with
  • Persuader
  • Skills I want to learn
  • Someone else's room
  • Someone I know is moving to a new house
  • Something important that has been kept in your family for a long time
  • Spending time with children
  • Successful businessman
  • Successful students
  • The person who motivates you to do interesting things

Places (34)

  • A brief stay in his city
  • A city you want to visit again
  • A natural place
  • A place with poor air quality
  • A relaxing place
  • A shopping mall
  • An interesting building
  • An interesting building you saw during a trip
  • An occasion when you were not allowed to use your mobile phone
  • An unusual building you'd like to visit
  • Beautiful city
  • Beautiful sky
  • Crowded place
  • Desired foreign country
  • Desired place with many trees
  • First day of school
  • Frequently used websites
  • Ideal house
  • Important things learned outside of school
  • Interesting places
  • Newly opened store
  • Noisily
  • Noisy place
  • Outdoor activity area
  • Outdoor activity location
  • Parks or gardens in the city
  • Place to see wild animals
  • Quiet place
  • Recommend a place in your country to a tourist
  • Relaxing place
  • Second-hand goods website
  • Shop
  • The distant place I want to go in the future
  • Your favorite place in your house where you can relax

Events and experiences (63)

  • A bicycle/motorcycle/car trip you would like to go on
  • A foreign country you would like to stay or work for a short period of time
  • A movie you watched recently
  • A movie you watched recently that you felt disappointed with
  • A music event that you didn't enjoy
  • A period that changes life
  • A time when the electricity suddenly went off
  • A time when you broke something
  • A time when you encouraged someone to do something that he/she didn't want to do
  • A time you needed to use your imagination
  • A trip you would like to make again
  • A water sport you would like to try in the future
  • Activities that make you feel tired
  • Adventure
  • An exciting activity you have tried for the first time
  • An interesting traditional story
  • An occasion when you lost your way
  • An unusual meal
  • An unusual meal you had
  • Argument
  • Bad shopping experience
  • Being late
  • Break a promise
  • Car journey
  • Childhood favorite activities
  • Childhood fun
  • Childhood games
  • Complaint
  • Computer breakdown
  • Daily tasks that I enjoy doing
  • Decisions made with the help of others
  • Determined to wait
  • Exciting activities
  • First time speaking a foreign language
  • Gathering
  • Goals that are strived to achieve
  • Got incorrect information
  • Important decision
  • Important rules in school/work
  • Interested historical period
  • Interesting incident on social media
  • Journey
  • Late
  • Lost
  • Made a promise
  • Memorable conversation
  • Overcoming difficulties and eventually succeeding
  • Plan a group activity
  • Poor service
  • Proud of overcoming difficulties
  • Public speaking experience
  • Recent daily changes
  • Residential development
  • Something that makes you proud
  • Speech experience
  • Sports show
  • Teach others how to do things
  • The first day of school
  • Traditional celebration
  • Waiting for good things
  • Waiting for special events
  • Water sports
  • Your perfect job

Objects and things (39)

  • A book you read that you found useful
  • A child you know who likes drawing/painting very much
  • A movie that made you laugh
  • A painting
  • A photo you are proud of
  • A piece of technologythat you would like to own
  • A program or app on your computer or phone
  • A storyyou have read recently
  • A time that you gave advice to others
  • Ads that are not liked
  • An area/subject of science that you are interested in and would like to learn more about
  • An important old thing that your family has kept for a long time
  • An item on which you spent more than expected
  • Beautiful item
  • Books that have been read multiple times
  • Childhood toys
  • Clothes that you like to wear
  • Desired outdoor sport
  • Desired sports match
  • Favorite movie
  • Favorite show
  • Health article
  • Interested scientific fields
  • Interesting novel/story
  • Photos that make you happy
  • Plastic waste
  • Received desired item
  • Receiving money as a gift
  • Save money to buy expensive gifts
  • Seen the advertisement of a product
  • Something that you can't live without
  • Sports venue
  • Talent that wants to be improved
  • Teaching skills to others
  • Technology products
  • Useful advertisement
  • Useful inventions
  • Using difficult technological products
  • 常用网站 popular websites

More topics (8)

  • Environmentalist
  • Foreign food
  • Impressive English class
  • Information search
  • Interesting discussion
  • Poem lines/lyrics
  • Share
  • Something done with others

Practising the People group? Our IELTS Speaking people topics guide has Part 1–3 questions and sample answers for family, friends, teachers and role models.

Practise out loud, then check your answer

LingoLeap's IELTS Speaking practice has Part 1 and Parts 2–3 questions from the same question bank as the topic lists on these pages. Record an answer and get an estimated band with feedback on fluency, vocabulary, grammar and pronunciation. You can browse the questions without an account; a scored answer costs 200 credits, and sign-up credits cover your first ones.

Open IELTS Speaking practice

FAQ

How long is IELTS Speaking Part 2?

3–4 minutes in total. You get one minute to prepare and then speak for up to two minutes. The examiner may ask one or two short questions when you finish.

What is an IELTS cue card?

The task card you are given in Part 2. It names a topic (“Describe a person who…”), lists three or four points to cover, and usually ends with “and explain…”.

Can I write notes in IELTS Speaking Part 2?

Yes. You get pencil and paper for the one-minute preparation. Write keywords for each prompt, not full sentences — you won't have time to read sentences back.

What if I finish before two minutes?

Keep going if you can: go back to a prompt and add an example, compare it with something else, or say how you feel about it now. The examiner will stop you when the time is up.

Do I have to cover every point on the cue card?

The points are there to help you. Covering all of them is the easiest way to fill two minutes and keep your talk organised, and the final “explain” point is usually where you show the most language.

What are the most common IELTS Part 2 topics?

They fall into four groups: people, places, events and experiences, and objects or things. The 204 cue cards in our question bank are listed on this page by group.

Sources

Test format, timing and scoring criteria are from IELTS (ielts.org), read 28 September 2026. Topic lists are from LingoLeap's IELTS Speaking question bank. Example answers are written by our team to show a method; they are not official material and were not graded.